Glossary · Economy

Chinese Gacha & Monetisation Terms

8 entries · global-server edition

Chinese games talk about money with their own vocabulary, and the English build rarely carries it over. Learn the eight words that decide what you pay, what you grind, and when the guarantee arrives — plus the label each one usually wears in English.

Start with the summary, then read the entry you need. Every definition is the general term used across games; the exact numbers of pulls and guarantees belong to each game's own guide.

Term	Usually rendered as	What it is	Usual misread
Baodi	pity	guarantee after N pulls without a rare	a discount or a luck boost
Jing	spark, ceiling	fixed pulls that buy the featured unit	the literal well
Shouchong	first top-up	one-off cheap pack with bonus currency	a free gift
Yueka	monthly card	small recurring purchase, daily payout	a game subscription
Zhanling	battle pass	seasonal reward track	an expansion
Ke	to whale, to top up	spending money on the game	a unit of weight
Gan	to grind	trading time and stamina for progress	liver damage
Chouka	pulls, gacha	paying to draw from a pool	physical trading cards

The same game can offer all four. What changes is not the shop but the contract: whether progress is bought with time, with a capped amount, or with no limit at all.

Baodi

bao di · guarantee

Baodi is the pity guarantee: after a set number of pulls without a rare, the next one is guaranteed.

Do not readIt as a discount or a rate-up. The guarantee only sets the worst case; average results still land earlier.

English UI“pity”, “guaranteed within N pulls”, sometimes “safety net”.

In gamesShown as a counter next to the banner. Check whether it carries over between banners — that single detail decides whether skipping is safe.

RelatedJing, Chouka

Jing

jing · well

Jing, literally a well, is the hard ceiling: a fixed number of pulls that buys the featured unit outright.

Do not readIt as the water well in a quest, or as a second pity counter. It is the worst-case price tag for the featured character.

English UI“spark”, “ceiling”, “exchange after N pulls”, or a mileage shop.

In gamesUsually a separate currency earned per pull. Saving to the ceiling is the standard plan for players who cannot rely on luck.

RelatedBaodi, Chouka

Shouchong

shou chong · first top-up

Shouchong is the first-recharge bonus: a cheap one-off pack that pays double currency the first time you spend.

Do not readIt as a welcome gift. The bonus is tied to the first purchase and usually disappears once used; the currency is still bought, not given.

English UI“first purchase bonus”, “first top-up double”, “starter pack”.

In gamesPinned to the top of the shop with a countdown. If you plan to spend at all, this is the cheapest currency in the game.

RelatedYueka, Ke

Yueka

yue ka · monthly card

Yueka is the monthly card: a small purchase that pays premium currency every day for thirty days.

Do not readIt as a subscription to the game. It buys currency over time, and the value collapses if you stop logging in.

English UI“monthly card”, “monthly pass”, “30-day supply”.

In gamesOne of the few purchases with a clear value ratio. Missing days is the usual way players lose money they already paid.

RelatedZhanling, Gan

Zhanling

zhan ling · battle pass

Zhanling is the battle pass: a seasonal reward track with a free lane and a paid lane.

Do not readIt as an expansion or a content pack. The paid lane adds cosmetics and currency to tasks you were already doing.

English UI“battle pass”, “season pass”, “supply pass”.

In gamesEnds with the season. If you buy late, check how many tiers are still reachable before the reset.

RelatedYueka, Gan

Ke

ke · krypton

Ke means spending money on a game. Kejin is paying; a big spender is a ke lao.

Do not readIt as “gram” or as a chemistry reference. In game chat it always means money, and “I ke” is a statement of spending, not of weight.

English UINo label — English builds say “top up”, “purchase”, or nothing at all.

In gamesUsed both neutrally and as a taunt. “Whale” is the closest English insult; “spender” is the neutral version.

RelatedGan, Shouchong

Gan

gan · liver

Gan means to grind: trading time and stamina for progress. The word is “liver”, because heavy grinding damages it.

Do not readIt as a health warning or a literal organ. In chat, “I'm ganning” means “I'm farming”, often late at night.

English UI“grind”, “farm”, “daily loop”. The pun does not survive translation.

In gamesThe free route to the same goal as ke. Games that respect your time cap the daily gain; games that do not expect gan to fill the gap.

RelatedKe, Yueka

Chouka

chou ka · draw cards

Chouka is pulling from a gacha pool — literally “drawing cards”, one pull or ten.

Do not readIt as a physical card game. No cards are printed; the card metaphor is only the interface.

English UI“summon”, “pull”, “wish”, “recruit”, “convene”.

In gamesThe single verb that spends currency. Everything else in this cluster exists to make that verb feel safe or urgent.

RelatedBaodi, Jing

09 FAQ

Is baodi the same as jing?

No. Baodi guarantees a rare result within a number of pulls; jing guarantees the featured unit by spending a fixed number of pulls. A game can have both, and the two counters are usually separate.

Does a monthly card count as a subscription?

No. It is a one-off purchase that pays out daily for thirty days. You are not billed again unless you buy another card, and the remaining days are lost if you stop logging in.

Is “ke” an insult?

It depends on direction and tone. Calling yourself ke is neutral or self-mocking; calling someone a ke lao can be respect or a jab. In English, “whale” is the loaded version; “spender” is the safe one.

Why do Chinese games use so many currencies?

Because each currency isolates a loop: premium currency buys pulls, event currency buys event rewards, and mileage buys the featured unit. Mixing them up is the usual reason a purchase feels like bad value.