Tencent was able to use the power of its massively popular messaging and social networking services to dominate China’s video game market while it was still in its infancy. From there, the company used this position of power to make itself the go-to partner for foreign companies looking to bring their games to the $24.36 billion Chinese video game market, which further solidified it’s dominance. Knowing this, it’s no surprise that Tencent has partnered with Haier and Intel to create the Windows 10-powered Blade BOX, the first Chinese console that isn’t a blatant clone of an existing console.
Tencent, Intel and Haier jointly unveiled the Tencent Games Platform (TGP) BOX at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES Asia) held in Shanghai on Wednesday. The TGP BOX is called the Blade. Haier was responsible for the console’s hardware production, while Intel provided an advanced computing platform and innovative technologies, such as Intel sensing and smart home technology. As one of the world’s largest game operators, Tencent provided system development, game content import and incubation. The first Blade BOX looks like a sports car. It is equipped with TGP BOX mode and a Windows 10 operating system, with a sixth-generation Intel core i3 /i5 / i7 desktop processor. In TGP BOX mode, players can not only quickly download or update massive games from the game store, but also start a local game or live stream gaming sessions. So far, the TGP console has imported many Tencent games, such as League of Legends, FIFA Online 3, NBA 2K, Monster Hunter, Need for Speed, etc. In addition, the platform will also introduce more high-quality games from third-party developers this year.