Indie game
China does have a small but growing indie game scene. The growth of China's indie game scene is considered to have been through hobbyist programmers starting around the 1990s and into the 2000s after the console ban where personal computer games became more popular. An early well-known indie developer, Coconut Island, was founded in the mid-2000s, and through its success, starting a number of game jams around the country starting in 2011, and eventually established the China Indie Game Alliance, one of the country's largest developer communities. Further interest in indie game development came with the popularity of mobile games in the country. The 2014 title "Monument Valley" developed by Ustwo in the United Kingdom is considered to have been an influential title as it was able to tell an emotional story through the game medium, and drew more interest in the indie game scene. Indie game development is challenged by the governmental approval process, requiring resources that many indie developers do not have. As with mainstream commercial games, indie games must be approved and get a license to be sold, or otherwise may be offered freely, which does not require a license. This has led to a black market around obtaining licenses, using non-China-controlled platforms like Steam to distribute games, or other questionable means to get their game into players' hands. As Valve has been working with Perfect World to create a China-specific client for Steam, which would be limited to games approached by the Chinese government, several indie developers fear this may harm the indie scene within China.