Our verdict
No未在国内上线Not available
Roblox has no licensed version in mainland China; its Chinese edition closed in December 2021
The short answer
Roblox has no licensed version in mainland China. Its Chinese edition, LuoBuLeSi, made with Tencent, opened in July 2021 and was pulled on 8 December 2021. Fortnite’s China version closed in November 2021, and Pokémon Go was never approved. Any game sold or monetised in China needs an official licence, which foreign companies cannot get alone.
| Roblox | Not available; Chinese edition LuoBuLeSi ran July–December 2021 |
|---|---|
| Fortnite | China test version closed 15 November 2021 |
| Pokémon Go | Never licensed; AR games put on hold in 2017 |
| Minecraft | Available: China edition run by NetEase |
| Steam | Steam China (蒸汽平台) since 2021; global Steam not licensed |
| The rule | Every game needs an NPPA licence (版号); foreign firms need a Chinese partner |
Big Western games in China: available, closed or never approved
Status in mainland China, as reported by the sources below.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
| Game | In mainland China | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| Roblox | Not available | Launched a separate Chinese edition, LuoBuLeSi (罗布乐思), with Tencent in July 2021; it was removed from app stores on 8 December 2021. Roblox called it a test version and said it was building the next one, with no date given. |
| Fortnite | Closed | A China version ran as a test from 2018 without in-app purchases. Epic stopped new sign-ups on 1 November 2021 and shut the servers on 15 November 2021. |
| Pokémon Go | Never approved | In January 2017 China’s censor said it would not license augmented-reality games until it had judged their risks to public safety and national security. |
| Minecraft | Available | Microsoft and NetEase announced a China edition in May 2016. It is run by NetEase and was number 10 on the App Store China free games chart on 1 November 2026. |
| Steam | Partly | Steam China (蒸汽平台), run with Perfect World, opened in February 2021 with 41 games. Global Steam is not licensed in China; on 25 December 2021 many players lost access to it, and the cause was never confirmed. |
| Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars | Available | Published in China by Tencent, which leads the consortium that controls their maker, Supercell. |
How game licences work in China
Games meant for official release or monetisation in mainland China need a Game Publishing ISBN, the approval number known in China as 版号 (bǎnhào), issued by the National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA). A foreign company cannot apply for one: it has to work with a mainland operator and a licensed publisher. The NPPA publishes no timetable, and approval can take from a few months to a year or more, according to a September 2026 guide from New Zealand’s trade ministry.
The licence is what gets a game into Chinese app stores. Google Play is not available in mainland China, and Apple’s App Store asks publishers for the ISBN before a game can be offered to Chinese users. Content rules rule out drugs, gambling, organised crime and sexual material, and games must verify players’ real names, protect minors and keep personal data on servers in mainland China.
Licences are not rare. The NPPA approved 1,771 games in 2025, 25% more than the 1,416 in 2024, according to the analysts Niko Partners. But only 95 of them were imported games; the other 1,676 were Chinese.[9][10]
What Chinese players play instead
China’s app charts are dominated by local versions and local giants. On 1 November 2026, Tencent published 6 of the 10 highest-grossing iPhone games in China, led by Honor of Kings, and Tencent’s Valorant Mobile and Delta Force sat near the top of both charts. See this week’s App Store China game chart, the most popular games in China and which game companies are Chinese-owned.[12]
Questions readers ask
Is Roblox banned in China?
Roblox is not officially available in mainland China. It launched a separate Chinese edition, LuoBuLeSi, with Tencent in July 2021, but pulled it from app stores on 8 December 2021, calling it a test version and saying it would build the next one; no date has been given. Without a licence, the global Roblox app cannot be offered in China’s app stores.
Is Fortnite banned in China?
Fortnite is not available in China. A Chinese test version ran from 2018, without in-app purchases, and Epic Games closed it on 15 November 2021 after stopping new registrations on 1 November.
Why is Pokémon Go not in China?
It was never licensed. In January 2017 China’s censor said it would not approve augmented-reality games like Pokémon Go until it had assessed their risks to public safety and national security, and no approval has followed.
Is Minecraft available in China?
Yes. Microsoft and NetEase announced a China edition in May 2016, run by NetEase. It is one of the most downloaded games in China: number 10 on the App Store China free games chart on 1 November 2026.
Can you use Steam in China?
Steam China (蒸汽平台), run by Valve with Perfect World, has operated since February 2021 with a small, licensed catalogue; it launched with 41 games. Global Steam is not licensed in China. Many players lost access to it on 25 December 2021; Valve did not comment and the cause was never confirmed.
Why are some games not allowed in China?
Because every game released or monetised in China needs a licence (版号) from the National Press and Publication Administration, and foreign companies must apply through a Chinese partner. Content involving drugs, gambling, organised crime or sex is not approved, and games must also meet real-name, minor-protection and data-storage rules. Games without a licence are simply not offered in Chinese app stores.
How many hours can children play video games in China?
Under rules in force since 2021, online games may serve under-18s only from 8 to 9 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays: one hour a day, three hours in a normal week.
Sources
- Pocket Gamer.biz, Roblox removes Chinese app LuoBuLeSi (December 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Censorship of Roblox (LuoBuLeSi launch and 8 December 2021 shutdown) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- CNBC, Fortnite to shut down in China amid video game crackdown (2 November 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Engadget, China won’t allow ‘Pokémon Go’ unless it’s deemed safe (10 January 2017) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Pocket Gamer.biz, NetEase bringing Minecraft to China (20 May 2016) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- SteamDB, Steam China launched (9 February 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- NME, Steam ‘ban’ in China may have actually been a DNS attack (December 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- SoftBank Group, Tencent to acquire majority stake in Supercell; publishing arrangements in China (21 June 2016) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Entering China’s mobile gaming market: a guide to licensing and regulatory approval (September 2026) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Niko Partners, China’s NPPA approved 1,771 video games in 2025 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Xinhua, China tightens measures to prevent online gaming addiction among minors (30 August 2021) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Apple App Store China, top grossing and top free iPhone games, 1 November 2026 (our weekly chart) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
Update log. 1 November 2026 — reviewed. Next review due 1 February 2027. Suggest a correction