去年10月起，在泰国的社交网络上

一款中国游戏突然爆红

引发了远在千里之外的一家成都公司的焦虑

由于每天有130万人下载

服务器直接被“干崩了”

Last October, a Chinese game suddenly went viral on social networks in Thailand, causing anxiety for a Chengdu-based company. With 1.3 million daily downloads, the game's servers crashed.

 

 

2022年6月，一款以“火锅”为主题的模拟经营游戏在海外上线。上线后，这款产品迅速登上越南、泰国地区App Store、GooglePlay双渠道免费榜和畅销榜单前列，在全球刮起了一股火锅旋风。2022年10月，更是在泰国创下了每天130万人的下载量，流量压力太大，导致服务器直接“卡BUG”。

In June 2022, a simulation business game themed"hotpot" was launched overseas. After its release, the game quickly climbed the free and bestseller charts on the App Store and Google Play in Vietnam and Thailand, creating a global hotpot frenzy. In October 2022, it set a record in Thailand with 1.3 million daily downloads, causing server overload and bugs.

全球玩家争做“火锅店老板”

这款《幸福路上的火锅店》背后的创作团队来自成都，玩家可以在游戏中扮演一位火锅店老板，开发各种火锅、菜品，接待顾客、培养厨师和服务员，还需要装修升级店面等。

The development team of the game, "My Hotpot Story," is from Chengdu. In the game, players take on the role of a hotpot restaurant owner, developing various hotpot dishes, serving different customers, training chefs and waitstaff, and upgrading the restaurant's appearance.

你接待的顾客也并非没有灵魂的纸片人，他们在餐桌上聊着应酬、升学这些富有中国生活气息的话题。游戏中玩家雇佣的员工同样如此，每个员工都有着对应的背景故事，性格与台词也各不相同。

The customers you serve are“lively people”; they engage in conversations at the dining table about socializing, education, and topics that reflect the Chinese reallife. Similarly, the employees hired by players in the game also have their own background stories, distinct personalities, and dialogues.

比如最受欢迎的NPC小王就最爱摸鱼偷懒。“海内外玩家感情是共通的。”游戏团队的负责人于冲表示，面对海内外表达上的差异，团队会专门在海外社交平台进行科普，方便玩家更好地理解游戏中的中国元素。

For example, the most popular NPC, Xiao Wang, sometimeslack off and be lazy. "Emotions among players, whether domestic or overseas, are universal." said Yu Chong, the head of the game team. In the face of cultural differences, the team conducts educational outreach on overseas social platforms to help players better understand the Chinese elements in the game.

中国游戏出海难在哪里？

对于很多游戏公司来说，目前的海外市场已并非是“蓝海”，竞争日益激烈、本地化困难重重。根据中国音数协游戏工委(GPC)与中国游戏产业研究院主导编写的《2022年中国游戏产业报告》，2022年，中国自主研发游戏海外市场实际销售收入为173.46亿美元，同比下降3.70%。在海外收入前100的游戏中，模拟经营类仅占4.47%，“火锅店”游戏能够突破重围，不仅在泰国拿下优异的成绩，也深受欧洲用户欢迎，背后做了哪些努力？

For many game companies, the current overseas market is no longer a "blue ocean." Competition is increasingly fierce, and localization presents numerous challenges. According to the "2022 China Game Industry Report" compiled by the Game Publishing Committee of China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association (GPC) and the China Game Industry Research Institute, the actual sales revenue of Chinese self-developed games in the overseas market was $17.346 billion in 2022, a 3.70% decrease compared to the previous year. Among the top 100 games in terms of overseas revenue, simulation business games accounted for only 4.47%. How did the "hotpot restaurant" game break through and achieve outstanding results in Thailand while also gaining popularity among European users?

研发团队在差异化和本地化上下足了功夫。于冲表示，火锅店拥有题材优势，首先欧美地区用户对“火锅”并不完全陌生，降低了解释成本。面对竞品，同类型的模拟经营类游戏也很难做到像火锅一样拥有如此丰富的菜品，于冲说：“你很难在西餐里找出几百种食材，这是题材优势。”

The development team put significant effort into differentiation and localization. Yu Chong stated that the hotpot restaurant concept had an advantage since users in Europe and America were not entirely unfamiliar with hotpot, reducing the need for explanation. In the face of competitors, it is challenging for other simulation business games to have such a wide variety of dishes like hotpot. Yu Chong said, "It's hard to find hundreds of ingredients in Western cuisine, so this is the thematic advantage."

游戏团队也做了十几种海外语言的翻译，特别针对故事情节和菜品做了大量本地化处理。于冲表示，本地化不是简单的翻译，中国的菜品有一些是海外没有的、当地人也不吃，这就要求要适当地修改名字和介绍。针对内容版本也要“一地一策”，如泰国节假日多可以多做活动等，美术风格、语言风格也都要进行针对性调整。

The game team also performed extensive localization work, including translation into over a dozen foreign languages. They specifically focused on adapting the storylines and dishes to local tastes. Yu Chong emphasized that localization is not simply translation; some Chinese dishes are not found overseas and are not eaten by the local population, requiring appropriate modifications to names and descriptions. Content versions also need to be tailored to each region, such as organizing more activities during Thai holidays. Art styles and language also require targeted adjustments.

对于和于冲团队一样的中小游戏企业来说，出海本地化是长期性且投入高的工作，所有本地团队都需要时间磨合，很多时候意见来源于翻译公司。对此，于冲表示希望和业内一起探索更好的商业模式，共同推进本地化的“降本增效”。

For small and medium-sized game companies like Yu Chong's team, international localization is a long-term and resource-intensive endeavor. It takes time for local teams to harmonize, and often, input comes from translation companies. Yu Chong expressed a hope to explore better business models together with the industry to promote cost-effective localization.

这款游戏能走红海外的原因很多，最重要的还是离不开“火锅店”这一主题。于冲认为，火锅饮食文化的发展更像是中国人从古至今对幸福生活追求的缩影，动人的故事在哪儿都能引发共鸣。“这种幸福正是我们想要传达的。只要讲述的是真实的中国，我认为任何题材都能火。”

There are many reasons why this game achieved international success, but the most important one is undoubtedly the theme of the "hotpot restaurant." Yu Chong believes that the development of hotpot dining culture reflects the Chinese pursuit of a happy life throughout history, and touching stories can resonate anywhere. "This happiness is what we want to convey. As long as it tells a true story about China, I believe any theme can succeed."

《灵感中国Inspiration》是由四川日报报业集团打造的国际传播视频栏目。栏目定位于海内外“Z世代”群体，面向全球探索、发现、挖掘、传播古蜀文化、旅游地理、川菜美食、动漫网游、国潮中医、现代艺术、科幻传奇等中国名片。