A semi-official trade lobby calls on the government to “further improve the level of protection” against gaming addiction in minors.
China has a love-hate relationship with its own video game industry. On the love side, it’s the biggest game market in the world and generates a ton of money. On the hate site, the government doesn’t like it when its younguns spend hours upon hours every day playing Honor of Kings.
One non-government trade lobby, The China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association seem especially concerned with how much time youths spend gaming. According to a report from the South China Morning Post (via GamesIndustry.biz), the semi-official trade group just wrapped a meeting on Monday where it called for greater protections against gaming addiction in minors.
“Minor protection is long-term and fundamental work,” said Ao Ran, secretary general of the group. “Our peers must resolutely implement the requirements of the regulators … and explore technical means, such as facial recognition.”
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China already has the most restrictive rules for minors and gaming. Gamers under the age of 18 can only play between 8 and 9 PM on weekends and statutory holidays, with facial recognition and national ID checks keeping kids to rule. Although there are ways around these lockouts, a November report confirmed that 75 percent of young Chinese gamers abide by the rules and limit their gaming, which has resulted in 39 million fewer players and a recession in the Chinese gaming market for the first time in 20 years.
Even with these restrictions, Ao said that the government must “further improve the level of protection and bolster these measures.”
These comments might be in response to a recent change back to business as usual in Chinese game approvals. The National Press and Publication Administration began issuing new game approvals last December after a year-and-a-half hiatus, with 87 new games being approved earlier this week. Approved titles include a new strategy game from Tencent based on the wildly successful mobile MOBA Honor of Kings, and a new PC game for NetEase based on Fantasy Westward Journey.
