Century Interactive Entertainment

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Century Interactive Entertainment
Original Name	世纪互娱
Alias(es)	CIE; “game aircraft carrier” 577
Affiliation	Century Horizon Group
Occupation/Role	Online-game publishing, development, operations, platform services, and overseas distribution
Status	Active; its gaming business had expanded across five continents and ten countries by the latest retrospective. 577
First Appearance	Announced during Century Horizon’s corporate restructuring. 109

Background / History

Century Interactive Entertainment was created when Century Horizon reorganized into a group structure. Its online-gaming business, Taoyoubao business, and related personnel were transferred into the new company; the company was retrospectively dated to January 2003. 109 577

Its early market position was built around Miracle, whose success made CIE’s product launches major media events. On January 26, it held a heavily covered launch conference for two new titles, later revealed as Ragnarok Online and Crazy Arcade. 115 117

CIE later separated Taoyoubao into Century Taoyoubao Network Technology Co., Ltd. so that the company could focus exclusively on games. 156 It subsequently expanded from game publishing into self-developed titles, game platforms, technical services, overseas operations, and strategic cooperation with domestic and international developers. 347 470 560

Major Milestones

Period	Event	Details
January 2003	Establishment	Century Interactive Entertainment was formed as Century Horizon adopted a group structure. 109 577
2003	Press-conference expansion	CIE developed a repeatable launch format combining promotional videos, cosplay, celebrity performances, player Q&A, product cross-promotion, and competitor comparisons. 151
2003	Legend of Mir 3	CIE acquired publishing rights and source code for Legend of Mir 3; it planned the open beta around its Miracle anniversary campaign. 143
2003	Minor-top-up crisis	Public backlash over underage purchases led CIE to present a rectification plan and a “Game Health Declaration”; its summit invitation and award eligibility were withdrawn. 187
2004	Game Hall	CIE established the Game Hall division for game testing and game-mode analysis, recruiting 20 senior players through an internal selection process. 245
2005	Korean publishing agreements	CIE announced agency agreements for Audition, KartRider, Dungeon & Fighter, and Crossfire. 326
2005	Shiyou Platform 2.0	The company integrated Century-series games and products under a single account, then reorganized the platform by game genre. 359
2007	Century Game Center	CIE launched Century Game Center (CGC), combining games, community functions, ratings, and communication into a one-stop platform. 504
2009	Blizzard acquisition	Century Horizon acquired Blizzard and established Century Blizzard; CIE later received four years of exclusive mainland-China operating rights for World of Warcraft. 555 557 577
2010	Developer-platform cooperation	CIE reached strategic agreements with major developers including Nintendo, Sony, Koei, Ubisoft, SNK, KONAMI, and CAPCOM to bring non-exclusive titles to the Century Games platform. 560

Business Structure

Division	Responsibilities	Key Personnel
R&D Division	Self-developed online games, including Three Kingdoms OL, Sanguosha OL, Wuxia OL, Wuxia World, and Honor of Heroes. 347	Xu Changlong — division head; Chu Xuan — deputy. 347
Generation Division	Published and agency-operated games, including Miracle, Legend of Mir 3, Ragnarok Online, Crazy Arcade, Audition, KartRider, Dungeon & Fighter, and Crossfire. 347	Zhou Xiao — COO overseeing operations, including this division. 347
Overseas Division	Overseas promotion for self-developed titles; established branches and operations across North America, Japan and Korea, Southeast Asia, and Europe. 347	Zhou Xiao — COO. 347
Social Division	Social-product operations within CIE. 347	Li Wu — division lead. 347
CGC Business Unit	Development of Century Game Center using the Shiyou Platform as its foundation. 470	Zhou Xiao — project lead. 470

Games

Published / Agency-Operated Titles

Title	Notes
Miracle	CIE’s breakout title; it reached 200,000 concurrent players on the first day of open beta. 577
Ragnarok Online	Announced alongside Crazy Arcade during CIE’s early product launch period. 117
Crazy Arcade	Early casual competitive title; later received cross-promotion with Miracle. 117 147
Legend of Mir 3	Acquired from Wemade despite Chen Hao’s reservations about its quality; CIE secured its source code. 143
KartRider	Korean agency title announced in CIE’s major 2005 project slate. 326
Audition	Korean agency title announced alongside KartRider, Dungeon & Fighter, and Crossfire. 326
Dungeon & Fighter	Published title that later showed strong potential in the horizontal-fighting genre. 535
Crossfire	Published FPS title that later became one of CIE’s successful agency-operated games. 535 577

Self-Developed Titles

Title	Notes
Sanguosha / Sanguosha OL	Collectible-card game; generated 100 million yuan through combined online and offline sales. 227
Three Kingdoms OL	Free-to-play title using item-based monetization and recharge cards converted at a 1:10 ingot ratio. 156
Wuxia OL	Self-developed wuxia card game under Tianxuan Studio. 224 347
Wuxia World	Major MMORPG project; surpassed 1 million concurrent users, with 83.35% of players paying. 359
Honor of Heroes	Entered commercial operation with ranked matches, battle passes, and bonus systems. 497
Alliance of Gods	Entered commercial operation alongside Honor of Heroes and became part of CIE’s MOBA portfolio. 497 557

Operations and Strategy

Player-Centered Launch Events

CIE’s press conferences evolved into a recognizable industry model. Its events used game trailers, live performances, celebrity endorsements, player interaction, previews of future products, and cross-promotion between Century titles. 151

• The Miracle anniversary linked Miracle, Ragnarok Online, and Crazy Arcade through shared rewards and exclusive items. 147
• CIE’s conferences were described as a “standard answer” that other game companies and industries could study and imitate. 151
• Its open player meetings emphasized direct interaction between developers and players, setting a benchmark for the industry. 317

Monetization and Retention

• CIE used free-to-play, item-based monetization for Three Kingdoms OL. 156
• It introduced first-top-up bonuses, updated recharge cards, and other purchase incentives across Sanguosha OL, Three Kingdoms OL, Wuxia OL, and Crazy Arcade. 224 225
• A March update nearly tripled the same-day revenue of Three Kingdoms OL and Crazy Arcade within a week. 227
• Chen Hao later introduced ranked systems, battle passes, seasonal rewards, and “time travel” resets intended to extend game lifespans while retaining parts of player progress. 469 470

Platform Ecosystem

• Shiyou Platform — Unified Century-series games and products under one account; version 2.0 categorized games by genre. 359
• Century Game Center (CGC) — Planned as a platform combining game purchases, downloads, acceleration, gameplay, teaming, discussion, ratings, and reviews. 470
• Game Hall — Internal unit responsible for testing games and analyzing game modes while cultivating future management talent. 245
• GameShield Defense Firmware — Anti-cheat and game-protection product later recommended by a former CIE employee as a solution to Lineage II’s cheats and private-server problems. 286 353
• World Tour Accelerator, Century Security Browser, and 4399 Open Platform — Products announced to reinforce CIE’s online-game ecosystem. 286

Independence Policy

CIE rejected IDG Capital’s offer of 200 million USD for a 30% stake. Chen Hao stated that the company would neither seek financing nor go public, maintaining that it was “definitely not for sale.” 155 156

Following the 2003 crisis review, Century Interactive Entertainment was formally listed among Century entities that would remain non-public. 199

Overseas Expansion

CIE created an Overseas Division to distribute self-developed titles internationally. 347

• In Southeast Asia, Wuxia World and Three Kingdoms OL ranked first and second in the online-game market. 415
• In Europe, Sanguosha OL and Wuxia OL attracted comparatively larger audiences; European media called CIE a “wolf from the East.” 415
• Four major CIE games entered North American open beta on July 10, supported by a Times Square martial-arts and Three Kingdoms-themed promotional performance. 416
• CIE prepared Three Kingdoms OL’s international-server expansion, Rise of Kingdoms, around a global-faction “national war” concept. 418
• After Century Horizon acquired Blizzard, CIE’s North American branch supplied operations, promotion, and partnership personnel for Century Blizzard. 557

Major Arcs

• Early backlash over new games — The announcement of Ragnarok Online and Crazy Arcade disappointed players expecting a major 3D title, while Shanda and media outlets amplified negative public opinion. CIE responded by concentrating on launch quality rather than public arguments. 117
• The Miracle anniversary campaign — CIE distributed 10 million yuan to Miracle players, announced Legend of Mir 3, held the King of Miracles Championship, and unveiled The Forgotten Continent expansion. 143 147
• Underage top-up controversy — The company admitted mistakes, submitted a rectification plan, lost industry-award eligibility, and suffered declining player and card-sales figures before organizing a counteroffensive through its own press conference and the 17173 Game Power List. 187
• World of Warcraft dispute — CIE initially secured World of Warcraft publishing rights, but Blizzard later terminated cooperation and partnered with The9. CIE demanded 77.69 million USD in damages and released material exposing Blizzard’s conduct. 240 295 296
• Online-game hegemony — CIE announced multiple Korean agency projects at once, intensifying industry competition and prompting media discussion of an emerging online-game monopoly. 326
• Platformization — The company expanded Shiyou into a unified account ecosystem, then developed CGC as a broader game-distribution, community, and service platform. 359 470 504
• Global-game-market ambitions — The Black Hole Plan proposed interoperable game content across computers, mobile phones, handhelds, and browsers, with exclusive content used to consolidate users. 543
• Blizzard integration — Following Century Horizon’s acquisition of Blizzard, CIE regained mainland-China operating rights for World of Warcraft and supported Century Blizzard’s production-and-sales integration. 555 557

Known Scale

Metric	Reported Figure
Monthly revenue	More than 500 million yuan. 360
Shiyou Platform registered users	More than 15 million. 360
Shiyou Platform verified users	More than 8 million. 360
Employees	Nearly 10,000, approximately 30% of Century Horizon Group’s workforce. 543
Wuxia World concurrent users	More than 1 million. 359
Wuxia World paying-user ratio	83.35%. 359

Relationships

• Century Horizon Group — Parent group; CIE originated from the transfer of Century Horizon’s online-gaming operations and personnel. 109
• Chen Hao — Founder, chairman, and principal strategist; shaped CIE’s independence policy, platform plans, expansion strategy, and Black Hole Plan. 156 470 543
• Zhou Xiao — Early vice president; later COO overseeing operations and overseas publishing, CEO during the CGC launch, and leader of strategic developer cooperation. 117 347 504 560
• Lu Tao — Technical leader during early releases and later CIE CTO. 117 347
• Lin Lang — Served as CIE general manager during the group’s restructuring. 347
• Wang Xing — Identified as head of Century Interactive Entertainment during the group’s annual-meeting retrospective. 577
• Blizzard / Century Blizzard — Formerly a contentious publishing partner; became a Century Horizon subsidiary, with CIE taking responsibility for mainland-China World of Warcraft operations. 295 557
• 17173 — Century-controlled game-information website used to promote CIE launches, host live coverage, and organize player-voting events. 115 199
• Giant Network — Partner in Giant Century Network Technology Co., Ltd.; CIE held a 40% stake and supplied product planning and technical support for Zhengtu. 244

Notable Quotes

“Create Happiness with Heart.” 226

“A Century production is guaranteed to be a masterpiece!” 326

Trivia

• CIE’s player reputation was built around the saying: “If Century produces it, it must be a masterpiece!” 200
• Its early launch events were influential enough that competitors began treating CIE’s conference structure as a model for their own product announcements. 151
• CIE’s core game portfolio was displayed in Century Horizon’s exhibition hall as separate publisher-operated and self-developed branches. 577