Roco Kingdom History: From 2010 Browser Game to Open World

Roco Kingdom started as a free Chinese browser game on July 15, 2010, made by Tencent's Morefun Studios for young players. It grew into a full franchise with cinema films, animated series and a musical, then returned in 2026 as a 3D open-world creature collector that launched in China on March 26 and was announced worldwide at Gamescom on August 25, 2026.

By the Roco Kingdom Shop team · Updated October 6, 2026

For players in Europe and the US, Roco Kingdom looks like a 2026 newcomer. In China it's a childhood classic. Here's how a browser game for kids became one of the biggest launches of the year.

2010: a browser game for a generation of kids

The original Roco Kingdom (洛克王国, Luòkè Wángguó) launched on July 15, 2010 as a free-to-play web game, developed and published by Morefun Studios, a Tencent studio. It was aimed mainly at children, and it worked: players created a young mage, studied at a magic academy and collected creatures in a colourful fantasy kingdom ruled by King St. Andrew, with the academy run by headmaster Griffin.

That's why so many players in China now in their twenties talk about Roco Kingdom the way Western millennials talk about their first Pokémon game.

The 2010s: films, cartoons and a musical

Roco Kingdom quickly grew beyond the browser. The franchise produced:

• four cinema films, with the fourth setting records for a domestic animated film in China;
• three animated TV series and several TV specials;
• a live-action series in 2014;
• a stage musical in 2013 at the China National Theatre for Children.

A spin-off, Roco Kingdom: Martial Arts Tournament, won a Golden Dragon award at the China Animation & Comic Competition in 2012. The series also ran collaborations with well-known names such as Cardcaptor Sakura, Digimon and Sanrio.

2023–2026: rebuilding Roco Kingdom as an open world

In 2023, Morefun Studios confirmed the series would move to an open-world format. The result is a 3D game built in Unreal Engine with more than 400 Jinies, turn-based battles on an 18-class counter system, a magic academy and cross-platform play.

After testing in China, the new Roco Kingdom launched there on March 26, 2026 on PC, iOS, Android and HarmonyOS. The numbers were huge: over 15 million players within 13 hours of launch, more than 30 million registered users in nine days, and around 13 million daily active players in its first month.

2026: Roco Kingdom goes global

At Gamescom Opening Night Live on August 25, 2026, Morefun Studios and Tencent announced the global version for PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, iOS and Android. The first worldwide test, the Quack Quack Test, opens on October 27, 2026. Details are in our release date guide.

Why the history matters

When people call Roco Kingdom "a Pokémon clone", they miss sixteen years of its own world-building: its own mascot in Dimo, its own academy setting, its own films. The global launch isn't a new brand testing the waters. It's a long-running Chinese franchise finally getting a worldwide release.

History FAQ

Sources: Wikipedia (series history, films, awards, player numbers), Tencent and Morefun Studios announcements, Gamescom 2026. Roco Kingdom © Tencent.