Honor of Kings: World, the highly anticipated open-world RPG spin-off of Tencent's popular MOBA, Honor of Kings, has received approval from Chinese regulators. This approval, part of the first batch of games cleared for release in 2025, signals an imminent launch. While a concrete release date remains unannounced, this regulatory green light suggests a relatively swift arrival.
As its name implies, Honor of Kings: World expands the familiar Honor of Kings universe into a fully explorable open world. Its impressive graphics and open-world gameplay were prominently featured during the iPhone 16 showcase.
For those unfamiliar, Honor of Kings is a globally dominant MOBA, surpassing even League of Legends in certain regions. Previously limited to China and Asia, its immense popularity now extends worldwide. For MOBA skeptics, Honor of Kings: World might be the perfect entry point into the genre.
A Significant Development
This approval is significant, considering the previous gaming licensing freeze in China. This freeze significantly impacted the country's massive game development and publishing sector before its recent lifting, resulting in a surge of game releases.
The recent wave of approvals, exceeding even the highest monthly totals from last year (according to the South China Morning Post), offers valuable insight into the upcoming game releases. This raises the question: will 2025 witness a flood of Chinese game releases, potentially leading to some titles being overshadowed? Only time will tell.
