Pengze Zheng
ABSTRACT:
This paper examines the structure of Chinese gold farming studios, the detailed process of gold farming, and the industry’s impact. The popularity of online games has driven the rise of global gold farming, and China has produced mature industrial gold farming that influences the global game industry. While much of this influence is viewed negatively, the industry has also created substantial profits and employment opportunities, contributing to the Chinese economy and becoming a vital foundation of its gaming sector. Understanding this industry is therefore essential, particularly in terms of how it might be regulated to mitigate its potential impact on the global gaming ecosystem. Drawing on interviews with multiple gold farming participants and integrating existing research, this paper outlines the industrial mechanics of gold farming in China. It adopts both a macro-level perspective on the industry’s structure and a grounded, participant-centred view of gold farming experience to interpret the broader, irreversible trend of game monetisation in China. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive picture of this industry, offer a close look into its operation model and inspire future studies.
KEY WORDS:
Chinese game industry, digital games, game companies, gold farming, government, grinding, monetisation, real-money trading.
DOI:
10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.22-37
HOW TO CITE:
Zheng, P. (2026). Pay-to-win power: Chinese gold farming and the trend of game monetisation. Acta Ludologica, 9(1), 22-37. http://doi.org/10.34135/actaludologica.2026-9-1.22-37
Pay-to-Win Power: Chinese Gold Farming and the Trend of Game Monetisation © 2026 by Pengze Zheng is licensed under CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0
