From July 1, all mobile games published in China must obtain permission from the State Administration of the People’s Republic of China for Press, Publishing, Broadcasting, Cinematography and Television (SAPPRFT) before entering the market. The Chinese developer community turned out to be dissatisfied with the innovation. We tell you why.
First of all, the restrictions imposed by SAPPRFT are very strict. And they are not fully spelled out in the law itself. So, it turned out that Chinese games should not contain English expressions. It is noteworthy that the law itself does not mention this (although it contains a vague wording according to which games “should not include political, military and religious content”).
It is already known that one of the games did not pass the test because it contained English words – mission start (mission start) and warning (attention). Another project was banned for exactly the same reason: it contained English words. This time go (forward) and lucky (lucky).
Another point that outrages the community is that verification is slow. For “simple” games, that is, casual and plotless, the process should take 20 working days (according to other sources, 18 days, – approx. editorial offices). However, one of the developers, whose game was rejected due to the presence of English words, claims that he waited 4 months for the result (approx. editors: the tightening of the rules for publishing mobile games became known even before the law was released – in March 2016).
One of the developers was so dissatisfied with the law that he is going to sue SAPPRFT. This is Chinese indie developer Chen Yu. In an interview with Sixth Tone , he commented: “The new restrictions will force indie and small studios to leave the market. They have no chance of surviving.”
Source: Tech in Asia