Why an Unknown Publisher Is Investing Millions in Its Gamescom Showcase

Walking through Gamescom, the massive, eye‑catching booths are usually anchored by household names—Capcom, Xbox, Sega, EA, Ubisoft, and the like. This year, however, a sizable portion of Halls 6 and 7 will be dominated by a brand most visitors probably haven’t heard of: 4Divinity. "It’s huge by any measure," says Philip Doust, director of 4Divinity’s UK arm, describing the company’s Gamescom footprint.

The publisher will showcase six titles in the closed‑door B2B zone, five of those in the associated trailer showcases, and four on the public floor across two separate stands, the larger of which covers 800 square metres. The ambition extends beyond size to spectacle. "We’ve hired one of the top booth builders at Gamescom and spared no expense," Doust adds. One of the highlighted experiences, for the 80s‑style RPG *Showa American Story*, features a recreated Hollywood Hills set—rebranded as Neo Yokohama Hills in the game’s alternate timeline where Japan rules the United States.

"We built a seven‑metre‑tall Golden Gate Bridge with Japanese lanterns, and a fully stocked diner that visitors can walk through to try the game. It’s all about immersion," he explains. When asked about the cost, Doust refuses exact numbers, calling them "crass," but confirms that the investment runs into the millions. "The scale of our footprint alone shows we’re committing resources at that level.

It signals how seriously we’re taking the Western market, something not every Chinese‑based company can claim." The reason this publisher can afford such a splash is its corporate backing. 4Divinity is part of Singapore‑based GCL Global Holdings, a conglomerate that also owns an imitation‑diamond jewellery line.

GCL’s core business began with physical game distribution through Epicsoft, a company with nearly two decades of experience. While physical distribution is waning—especially after recent Sony announcements—GCL still maintains the operation as long as discs are viable, acknowledging the decline and the need to pivot toward digital. 4Divinity was launched in 2022 as a co‑publisher helping Western developers bring games to Southeast Asia. Doust notes that finding a Western title that performs well in China is difficult.

The company succeeded with *Atomic Heart*, which saw strong sales in China, and repeated the feat with *Stalker 2*. However, those successes were outliers and could not sustain the growth expected of a Nasdaq‑listed group. "From a growth standpoint we needed a global publishing model," Doust says.

Consequently, 4Divinity began signing Chinese‑developed games for worldwide release. The effort started before Doust joined in late 2024, with a handful of indie titles and the ambitious *Showa American Story*. Today the portfolio has expanded to eight games slated for release within the next two years, marking a rapid growth phase.

The current slate shares common traits: all are primarily single‑player experiences lasting 15‑20 hours, priced in the mid‑tier range. This focus was not pre‑planned but emerged as a coherent strategy aimed at the "squeezed middle" of the market—a niche also pursued by US‑based ProbablyMonsters. "Players today don’t have time for 200‑hour live‑service games, and they’re not willing to spend $80 on a single‑player title.

A $40‑$50 price point for a solid experience hits the sweet spot," Doust explains. Developing such games is costly, typically $5‑$20 million, regardless of whether the studio is in China or the West. Adding operating expenses means a title often needs to sell around a million copies just to break even—a challenging target given discoverability issues. 4Divinity’s approach also differs in its emphasis on new IP.

Every title shown at Gamescom is a brand‑new property, many of which are debut releases in both China and the West. Larger publishers tend to avoid betting on unproven IP, especially as AAA development becomes increasingly risk‑averse and franchise‑driven. "Unless you already own a franchise, it’s hard to get a foothold," Doust says, noting that some emerging Chinese studios are beginning to break that mold. The turning point for 4Divinity was the success of *Black Myth: Wukong*.

GCL handled the game’s physical PS5 distribution worldwide and acted as publisher in Taiwan, leveraging its Singapore base to bridge the gap for the Chinese developer Game Science. The title’s triumph highlighted a broader opportunity: after China lifted its console ban in 2016, many Chinese developers who had been working abroad returned home, forming new console and PC studios.

*Wukong* was among the first to capitalize on this shift, and more are following. Financially, *Wukong* was produced for roughly 300 million yuan (about $44.6 million) and reportedly sold 30 million copies, delivering a massive profit margin. Development costs in China are considerably lower, and Chinese gamers are highly price‑sensitive, shaping 4Divinity’s regional strategy.

Doust believes that while major Western publishers have retreated from this segment for financial reasons, player appetite for affordable, narrative‑driven games remains strong, creating a supply drought that 4Divinity aims to fill. His mission is to match Western demand for fresh, reasonably priced experiences with the output of Chinese developers. "When I started working with Jacky Choo, GCL’s chairman, I asked: what common themes link East and West? Loyalty, trust, defiance, revenge—these universal motifs let us market the same asset with different cultural lenses," Doust says.

He argues that few have executed this cross‑cultural marketing effectively. Even without active promotion, games tend to cross borders, a phenomenon Doust calls the "do‑nothing" business model: marketing primarily in China, with a ripple effect abroad, typically yielding an 80/20 sales split (80 % in China, 20 % elsewhere). *Wukong* followed that pattern, selling 20 million copies in China and 3‑4 million internationally.

Doust hopes to shift the ratio to 60/40 through deliberate cross‑border campaigns, a modest but meaningful improvement. To illustrate the two‑way approach, 4Divinity’s only non‑Chinese title, *Guns Of Eschaton*, was launched by a Cyprus studio founded by a former Wargaming employee. The first promotional push took place at Bilibili World in Shanghai—a move no Western publisher typically makes so early in a campaign. The early buzz elevated China to the second‑largest wishlist market for the game, behind the United States, confirming the viability of the strategy.

The massive Gamescom presence mirrors this dual‑market plan. By showcasing the titles in Cologne shortly after a ChinaJoy debut in Shanghai, 4Divinity aims to generate simultaneous momentum rather than waiting for Chinese success to trickle westward.

Gamescom serves as the Western coming‑out party, allowing the company to consolidate its multiple campaigns into a single, high‑impact event. "If we’re using Gamescom to introduce our portfolio and ourselves to the West, why not go big?" Doust concludes.