During August and September, not a single video game was able to get permission to release in China. This may be due to updated (and stricter) licensing rules. Now titles should contain the “right set of values” and take care of the history and culture of China.
This was reported by the South China Morning Post portal. His journalists managed to get acquainted with the memo that the regulator sends to Chinese developers. It listed the updated rules for issuing licenses.
As before, games cannot violate the laws of China, disclose state secrets, promote violence, etc. In addition, stricter and more specific items have appeared in the list of requirements.
“In some games, moral boundaries are erased. Gamers can choose to be kind or evil… But we believe that games should not allow them such a choice. This needs to be changed,” the note says.
According to the document, Chinese censors will be dissatisfied with LGBT-themed titles and games with effeminate men. Projects that rewrite history are also at risk of falling under the knife. Especially when it comes to the Nazi regimes in Japan and Germany. The same applies to games in which users “destroy barbarians,” which the regulator can equate to propaganda of colonialism. We will have to speak with caution on the topic of religion.
The possible suspension of the issuance of licenses in China became known a month ago. But almost immediately it became clear that it was not about a complete cessation, but only about slowing down the process.
All this is happening against the background of the increasing control of the Chinese authorities over the games. Over the past couple of months, the country has adopted several laws and regulations regarding the industry. For example, they limited the playing time for teenagers, forbidding them to spend more than three hours a week on games. Also last week, 213 companies, including Tencent and NetEase, signed an agreement to combat addiction to video games.