Now that
China allows game console salesacross the country, local developers are finally getting a chance to shine: Oasis Games has the distinction of
introducingKoi, the first PS4 game made entirely in China. The debut isn't a triple-A blockbuster, but it's an intriguing, philosophical title that has you purifying a koi fish pond by solving puzzles, opening lotus flowers and dodging predators. Appropriately, it also has a "hypnotic" Chinese piano score to sooth your mind.
Koi doesn't have a firm release date beyond 2016 --i t's only getting its first showcase at the Game Developers Conference this month. However, its very existence could help open the floodgates for Chinese console game makers, especially indies. While console-friendly Chinese studios have existed for years, they tend to be satellites like Ubisoft Shanghai (which assisted on titles like
Far Cry 4). Many existing studios tend to develop for the platforms that have long been legal, such as PCs and smartphones. This could encourage Chinese outfits to go it alone when working on consoles, or at least to work on games that cater to homegrown tastes.
'Koi' is the first PS4 game made entirely in China