Gaming companies are finding big treasure in foreign lands

Online games have become a new driver for Chinese companies' growth in overseas markets as exports advance by leaps and bounds.

The overseas revenues of online games independently developed by Chinese companies surged by 57.7 percent to reach $3.99 billion in the first half of the year, according to a report jointly released on Wednesday by the Beijing-based Game Publishing Commission and market consultancies CNG and IDC.

Southeast Asia used to be the most important export destination for Chinese game companies at their earliest stages. The type of games exported was also quite limited, with action role-playing games making up the majority.