SHENZHEN-BASED tech giant Tencent Holdings on Friday launched “DreamStar,” a new party game that has been widely anticipated by users and pegged by analysts to pose a threat to domestic arch rival NetEase.

“DreamStar,” in which gamers play as cartoon characters to race in an obstacle course, is seen as Tencent’s move to take on NetEase’s massively popular game “Egg Party,” a surprise hit which has helped lift NetEase shares by over 40% this year.

JPMorgan analysts said that the launch of “DreamStar” could impact NetEase revenue by 2%-3%. The bank also cut its forecast for NetEase revenue by 4%-5% respectively. (SD-Agencies)