Tencent to release 'Dungeon and Fighter' mobile game in May (updated)

DNF Co

22/04/2024 04:44

(Adds share price, adds context and analyst comments from
paragraph 4)
    By Josh Ye
       HONG KONG, April 22 (Reuters) - Chinese tech giant
Tencent Holdings  0700.HK  said on Monday it will release its
much-anticipated "Dungeon and Fighter" mobile game on May 21
after seven years of development. 
    Officially named "Dungeon and Fighter: Origin", the action
game, developed by Korean firm Nexon  3659.T , is a mobile
adaptation of the "Dungeon and Fighter" computer game, one of
the world's most profitable computer games. 
    Tencent's shares rose about 4.5% on Monday morning. 
    The game was already released in South Korea in 2022 and
became an instant hit. But its China release was delayed after
the government cracked down on the gaming industry between 2018
and 2022.
    In a February note, investment bank Jefferies expected the
game to "secure a top 5 spot in revenue rankings" in China and
to potentially generate between $600 million to $1.1 billion in
annualised revenues there over time. But the bank expects a
"cautious approach to engagement and monetization" during its
initial launch. 
    Last month, Tencent conducted a closed test with 300,000
players and had delivered strong results. In a note this month,
HSBC wrote: "Testing for DnFm yielded solid performance in
metrics like [daily active users], retention rate and user's
paying propensity."
        
  

 (Reporting by Josh Ye; Editing by Kim Coghill and Miral Fahmy)
 ((Josh.Ye@thomsonreuters.com;))