Several months ago, Sequoia Capital China, a venture capital firm, noted that traffic had dropped dramatically on Chinese websites in which it had invested. The list included Toutiao, a news provider, Sina Weibo, a news and microblogging site, and online education courses. "Every business has been affected," complained one venture capitalist. "It's about competing for time."

The reason for the sudden drop in viewership was the soaring popularity of "Honor of Kings," the latest online game from Chinese internet colossus Tencent Holdings. The game had attracted 60-100 million active users -- at least half of whom were playing every day.

Sequoia is not alone in noticing the title's unprecedented popularity and staying power. Zhuhai-based Meizu Telecom Equipment, a mobile phone manufacturer, plans to roll out a line of cellphones designed with the game in mind, according to Li Nan, its senior vice president.