Publisher matching
The right Chinese publisher for your genre, not the biggest name
Chinese publishers specialise, and the one that suits a narrative indie is rarely the one that suits a competitive shooter. We shortlist three to five with a real record in your genre, brief you on what each has shipped, and you choose.
How we vet
Three questions every publisher has to answer
A pitch deck tells you what a publisher does. These three tell you how it went.
One
What they have published
Not the logos on the deck: the titles in your genre, how they performed in China on Steam, and whether the publisher was still involved a year after launch.
Two
What they spent marketing it
The campaigns that actually ran on Bilibili, Douyin, TapTap and WeChat, and the creators who fronted them. A publisher with a real record in your genre can show you this without hesitating.
Three
Whether they delivered what they promised
Reporting on time, statements that add up, marketing commitments met. Where we can, we ask the developers they have worked with, and their answers go in the notes.
How it runs
From profile to signed publisher
- Step 1
Profile
We define the publisher your game needs: genre record, marketing muscle, comfort with the Steam Global route and a deal structure that fits your studio. Big names are not automatically on the list.
EightSixWrites the profile from your game and its China compsYouConfirm the priorities: reach, terms or speed - Step 2
Shortlist
Within weeks you have three to five publishers, each with our notes: their comparable titles, campaign record, the terms they have offered before, where we would push, and our recommendation.
EightSixResearch, vetting, the written notes on eachYouReview the shortlist and choose who to meet - Step 3
Introductions
We make the introductions and sit in on the first conversations, so the questions that matter get asked early and nothing is agreed in a chat window that should be in the contract.
EightSixIntroductions and first-call supportYouPick the publisher - Step 4
Then the deal
The chosen publisher sends a term sheet. That is where the second half of our work starts: every clause negotiated on your behalf, and anything that would cost you later called out before you sign.
EightSixNegotiation and contract reviewYouApprove final terms and sign
Before you ask
The questions studios ask about matching
How many publishers are on a shortlist?
Three to five. Enough to compare terms side by side, few enough that every one of them has been vetted rather than listed. If your genre only supports two credible candidates, you get two and we say why.
What if none of the shortlist is right?
Then we go again with a revised profile, or we tell you the honest answer: that the publisher your game needs does not exist yet, and what the alternative route looks like. You are never pushed towards a publisher because they are the only one we could find.
A publisher has already approached us. Can you vet them?
Yes, and it is one of the most useful things we do. We run the same three checks on them, compare their terms against what the market is offering, and tell you whether to sign, negotiate or walk.
How big is your network?
Twenty-plus Chinese co-publishers we work with, across the genres that travel to China on Steam. It grows as we vet new ones, and a publisher with a poor record comes off it.
The next step
Find out which publishers fit your game
The free assessment tells you which publisher types suit your genre and why, alongside a read of your existing China demand. Send your game link and you have it within 24 hours on working days.