Shares of Perfect World (Nasdaq: PWRD), Shanda Interactive (Nasdaq: SNDA), and Shanda Games (Nasdaq: GAME) fell 9%, 11%, and 18%, respectively, yesterday, after posting disappointing quarterly results.

Rivals NetEase.com (Nasdaq: NTES), Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA), and Changyou.com (Nasdaq: CYOU) closed marginally lower on an otherwise higher market day, clearly in sympathy.

Investors in the mercurial online gaming market in China shouldn't panic. In fact, it's almost comforting to see Perfect World and Shanda falter in entirely different ways.

Shanda Interactive's revenue grew 49% in the fourth quarter, fueled once again by its publicly traded Shanda Games appendage. Margins contracted on the way to the bottom line, but Shanda Interactive's $0.88-a-share showing topped Wall Street's target of $0.84 a share.

Both Shanda stocks took a hit, after Shanda Games projected a double-digit sequential decline in net revenue for the current quarter. Analysts had expected a sequential uptick.

Perfect World, on the other hand, has no problem with its near-term goggles. Its guidance for the current quarter calls for a sequential advance -- and a 46% to 51% year-over-year leap -- on the top line. Mr. Market is parked at the outlook's low end. Perfect World's tumble owed to fourth-quarter profits that fell short of Wall Street estimates. The company had blown analysts away in each of the year's first three quarters.

In other words, there's good news amid the rubble. The sector isn't falling apart at the seams. The companies are learning to march to their own beats. One developer's weakness doesn't have to be contagious. One studio's strength can be its own.

Shareholders suffering after Monday's plunge may not welcome that sort of nuance, but it's as good a sign as any that the online gaming industry in China is evolving. In the long run, that's a good thing for investors who can tell the difference.

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