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Joystiq

China adding new restrictions on online games August 1

by Griffin McElroy on Jun 23rd 2010 11:30PM

Though China's online game market continues to exponentially increase in value, the nation's Ministry of Culture plans on slapping another round of restrictive regulations on MMOs and other online titles on August 1. The new regulations are designed to protect minors from "unwholesome" content while playing online, while also introducing measures which will prevent them from succumbing to the sweet, sweet siren song of online gaming addiction.

One major rule in the new regulations limits the purchase of in-game goods and services to virtual cash -- a regulation which seems to do away with the microtransaction business model altogether. Moreover, minors aren't permitted to conduct virtual transactions whatsoever. So, when you see that level 80 Mage that's still sporting his starting gear, don't be too confused -- he's probably just 14 years old.

Source: Gamasutra

Tags: China, mmo, online-gaming, pc, politics, regulation

Reader Comments (27)

I'm not sure if I should laugh hysterically or if I should shed solitary tear.

Why not just say minors can't play games at all, lets take that a step further and lock them in a gray room in which a sandwich shall be pushed through a slat under the door(no fewer than three times a day) that way they grow up to be good productive drones.

These sound distinctly like policies that while I'm sure to some extent the intentions are "good" they are being made by someone who has never actually seen or played a video game let alone an MMO, having obviously grown up playing hoop & stick.

@Scuffles
The members of Hoop-and-Stick Anonymous would like to have a word with you about your callous attitude.

@Scuffles
Sadly, some people already do this. Wired ran a story a few months back about a family who sent their kid to an internet addiction detox camp. The camp personnel basically drilled him like boot camp, treated him worse than crap, and beat him when he couldn't keep up. He died. The real sad part is that the ads for the place made it seem like some kind of legitimate psychological/philosophical, progressive type of place, and his parents had no idea what they were putting him into.

An MMO in which you can't trade, hmmm I dont think any of those exist.

That's crazy. You've got to be an adult to spend the money you earned in a game?

@Haggard
No. It means you can ONLY spend in-game currency and not real world cash, which I have no problem with at all. And to the ever ignorant griffin mcelroy: you are aware that getting gear in WoW is obscenely easy, right? This is not EQ or AO. There is no work, or need to spend cash, involved.

China lay down restrictions? Surely you jest.

Clearly this government doesn't think to highly of the people they lead in any respect, video games are just another nail to that coffin.

Hello black market trading of "virtual" currency.

Be glad everyone that you live in a country were you don't have to worry about this stuff.

hate to say it but this but this is coming to Australia, Europe and USA as well.. just do a little research. I'll provide some info if anyone is interested.

@logicplay

If what you say is true why not just give the info?

@logicplay
FACT! G-Man is really Gordon Freeman.

I'll prove that only if you guys actually need proof...

So, wait.

Does that mean you can't use in-game gold to acquire in-game food, as an example?

If you're a minor, I mean.

Well, can't say I'm surprised. Also wouldn't be surprised if these new regulations are enforced just as well as building codes and such in China, especially if the bribe-money starts flowing.

Heck, I wouldn't be particularly surprised if the regulations were passed specifically to force companies to pay more bribes.

Now, I would definitely be surprised if we all woke up tomorrow and everybody had superpowers or something. That would be surprising.

He can't be wearing anything! His starting gear is broken because he can't buy repairs!!!!

Woo my country of residence! Boo China!

*Socialism: Giving socialists a bad name since the 19th century!

Some would actually consider this is a protection for MMOs... There are other more extreme factions in Chinese government and social opinions that otherwise want to put much servere restriction on MMO(or gaming in general). Let's say policy making in China is a mysterious process.

So minors will be paying monthly to stand still and not interact with anyone else technically rendering everyone else as a useless entity to the player? Jeez go play single player :|

Too bad that they are probably only prohibiting non-virtual cash transactions in-game, in-China, because that means the companies that do cash-to-virtualcash business outside of China probably won't be under these restrictions. With all Blizzard has done to try to minimize gold farming, it'd be ironic if the Chinese government banhammered it worldwide.

This reminds me if the BP oil spill situation, so, some people are saying if the US government starts laying down strict rules towards oil companies, those companies will just turn around and leave America.

That is just stupid. Look at MMOs in China, similar situation whereby there's a crap load of money involved, China is laying down rule after rule, restriction after restriction, but will MMOs leave China? Absolutely not. Same for the oil company situation, they won't leave, because there's too much money at stake.

Sure the playing field is different, but at the core, there is still so incredibly much money to be made, one company leaves, another will eagerly swoop in and take its place.

(jeeze i'm so off topic here :p)

I can understand not wanting kids to waste their money on virtual goods. Further, I can understand that China has a problem with.. freedoms.

Not that any recent FBI taskforces are going to take away any of that free stuff we've been getting. Not at all.

Oh well, guess I can't have my free games and music and my free speech too.

As if millions of free to play MMO's suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced.

You have to click on the reply button of the first comment in the tree!
I was just joking though :)

I just dont know what to say to this...

As far as I know, the new restriction also includes the forbidance of compulsory PVP and more. I don't know if that means the player has to accept before you want to kill one's character...

its not a bad idea regulated by China. Its for the benefit of children only.
http://www.online-baccarat-games.net/

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Breaking News

China adding new restrictions on online games August 1

Reader Comments (27)

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:35PM Scuffles said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:49PM aristokrat said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 3:08AM sigma8 said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:38PM Lennoko said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:38PM Haggard said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:13AM mietha said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:46PM Jamvaan said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:48PM aristokrat said

Posted: Jun 23rd 2010 11:57PM chrono5577 said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:03AM logicplay said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:13AM Yothe said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 1:27AM liquidsoap89 said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:04AM Dalrint said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:14AM Mutagenaric said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:22AM rTwelve said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 12:43AM GuardianLegend said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 1:50AM vmenge said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 2:35AM ybfelix said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 2:46AM kooda said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 3:11AM sigma8 said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 4:14AM ructus said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 4:36AM Its X with Guns said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 10:28AM Mabui said

Posted: Jun 24th 2010 1:11PM vmenge said

Posted: Jun 25th 2010 4:39PM Xplicit said

Posted: Jul 1st 2010 7:20AM stevefox said

Posted: Aug 30th 2010 1:27AM anishsws said

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