SHANGHAI-BASED Giant Interactive Group Inc forecast revenue will grow slightly quarter-on-quarter in the first quarter, China's fourth-biggest game firm said at the weekend.
Nasdaq-listed Giant Interactive expects revenue between 448 million yuan (US$62.92 million) and 456 million yuan in the first quarter, against 435 million yuan in the last quarter.
The firm plans to launch a modern military game, which includes tanks and aircraft carriers and provides cheap virtual weapons, on March 28. It expects peak player demand to hit 1.5 million users, close to the firm's most successful existing game ZT Online, according to Shi Yuzhu, the firm's president and founder.
"Young players prefer guns rather than swords or wands and I believe the new game will give them a breath of fresh air," said Shi.
The average spending per player is 8 yuan to 10 yuan every month - making it the cheapest online game in China, according to Shi.
Average monthly revenue per active paying account for China's No.1 game firm Shanda's games is 58 yuan, five times that of Giant, according to reports from Morgan Stanley.