Sony lines up new games for Chinese gamers

A series of new games for Sony's PlayStation 4, PS Vita and virtual reality device Project Morpheus debuted Wednesday at ChinaJoy 2015 in Shanghai.

More than 70 new games will be launched in the Chinese market for PS 4 video game consoles in the coming month, Sony announced.

ChinaJoy, or China Digital Entertainment Expo & Conference, is the largest gaming and digital entertainment exhibition held in the Chinese mainland.

Sony debuted its game console PlayStation 4 in 2013, and started selling the Chinese version on March 20 this year.

Priced at 2,899 yuan ($468) for the basic package and 3,299 yuan for a console plus a camera, the PlayStation Eye, the products are available at Sony Store, Tmall.com and JD.com.

It is the second foreign console allowed to enter the Chinese market after Microsoft launched its Xbox One in late September.

Shuhei Yoshida, president of Sony's Worldwide Studios for SCE introduces Project Morpheus HMD, the company's latest virtual reality (VR) gear, during a press event held on July 29, 2015 in Shanghai. [Liu Zheng/chinadaily.com.cn]

A new rule that allows both foreign and domestic gaming console makers to manufacture and sell their devices anywhere in the country was announced last week, according to a statement from the Ministry of Culture.

Due to government officials' concern over objectionable content, China in 2000 banned gaming consoles via a moratorium. As a result, Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony, three of the world's largest video game console makers, were shut out of China's lucrative video game industry.

In 2014, the country limited foreign console makers to operations within the Shanghai Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in 2014.

Industrial insiders believe that such series of progressive policies could shake up the domestic gaming sector.

According to the working committee of China's audiovisual, digital publishing and game publishing association, in 2014, the sales volume of China's gaming market reached 114.48 billion yuan, up 37.7 percent year-on-year.

In the first half of 2015, the number reached 60.51 billion yuan, up 21.9 percent year-on-year. Since last year, overseas sales volume reached 1.76 billion yuan, reflecting a rapid growth of 121.4 percent.