Chinese online gaming revenue jumped 61 percent to $2.75 billion in 2008 off the back of a 26 percent rise in the country’s number of gamers, according to a new report from research firm Niko Partners.

Massively multiplayer online games generated 77 percent of annual games revenue, with casual titles making up the balance of 23 percent.

Niko expects market revenue to swell to $3.8 billion in 2009 and to reach $8.9 billion in 2013, by which time the country should be home to more than 119 million online gamers.

The company also said China’s 170,000 internet cafés offer access to 23 million PCs and that sales of game consoles, which are illegal in China, remain strong.

“Niko’s conclusion is that China’s online market has plenty of room for growth in the next five years, and much of that growth will come from beyond the major metropolises where the number of internet cafés, home PC penetration and internet usage are all on the rise,” said the firm’s managing partner, Lisa Cosmas Hanson.

Last month San Francisco-based Pearl Research offered similar data for the Chinese online games market, which it said saw 63 percent growth in 2008 to $2.8 billion. It also predicted that the market will grow to $5.5 billion in 2012.