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Valve teams up with Perfect World to launch Steam China

Valve teams up with Perfect World to launch Steam China

Valve has joined forces with Chinese firm Perfect world to launch Steam officially into the region.

No release date is set for this just yet, but Valve has announced that Steam China - as it is known - will "provide Chinese gamers and developers with a new way to access Steam's expansive selection of games and entertainment".

This is the latest happening in a long-running relationship between the two companies. Perfect World runs DOTA 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive in the region. CEO Robert H. Xiao said that more games would be coming to China through this new client. 

The two will be collaborating not just on the product, but marketing and line-up of games. 

Steam is already accessible in China but it exists in something of a grey area and could be shut down at any time by the government. By partnering up with a well-established local company, Valve's storefront stands a chance of being seen as legitimate within China. Perfect World having a hand in helping select games will no doubt be invaluable for navigating the country's strict cultural guidelines.  

This news comes as Chinese tech and entertainment giant Tencent rolls out its own PC storefront, WeGame. 

Steam China will not affect Valve's other operations, the firm said.


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PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.