China’s latest attempt to restrict young gamers from spending too much time playing online will be going into effect soon, as the government will launch its real name verification system for games nationwide by September at the latest. China has been at the forefront of countries attempting to restrict internet usage among young citizens, particularly when it comes to them attempting to play video games for any length of time, and has often made headlines for policy procedures and proposals that seem to go well beyond what’s necessary.
Developers and publishers have already found that bringing video games to China has been difficult, thanks to the country’s regulation board that requires companies to submit their upcoming titles to be reviewed before they are allowed to be distributed across Chinese locations. These reviews are infamously harsh and strict, sometimes limiting content so much that games simply can’t be adapted to be sold in China – or, in the case of World of Wacraft‘s early expansions, redesigned from aesthetics up to meet guidelines. Despite these restrictions, China’s gaming market itself is actually a lucrative one, which is why so many game publishers continue to push to bring their games to the country despite the extra work that includes.
China’s newest attempt to stymie youth video game addiction is the real name verification system that will see players forced to log into games using their real names, which will then be checked against an authentication system maintained by the Chinese government that will determine if they’ve played too much for the day. Though the system has been a known entity – its planning and development has been underway for a while now – it will surprisingly be ready soon, with a government official’s speech during ChinaJoy, reported by state media, confirming its implementation by September (translated via SCMP). The system won’t require players to game with their real names visible, but will rather let the government check their real name against ID numbers, presumably to monitor how many hours are being spent playing games, as the country has daily limits imposed on anyone under 18.
While China remains a top-tier location and competitor when it comes to esports, its policing of its video game players – especially its younger citizens – has remained a constant point of contention for its government and its people, with the Chinese real name verification system the latest in a series of increasingly strict policies. With that said, however, companies like Tencent have already been preparing for this with their own equally restrictive or invasive policies, with Honor of Kings’ verification system including facial recognition scans. It’s also unclear exactly how China’s real name verification system for video games will actually work, as details remain unclear.
Regardless of what exact shape the system takes, it’s clear that Chinese video game players will soon be faced with even more hoops to jump through in order to enjoy their hobby. While most of China’s restrictions target minors – citizens under the age of 18 – this policy will be country-wide, so it’s also a step up in terms of monitoring for the Chinese video game industry.
