Skip to content

BBC: Tencent Launched System to Limit Children’s Online Game Playing

BBC reported that Tencent, the Chinese technology giant, responded to the national trend of combating online game addiction and will implement a strict new regulation to identify young game players. Starting in mid-September, Tencent will require players of “King of Glory” to register in their system with their real names, which will tie them to the database that the Public Security Bureau maintains. The system has the ability to identify the young players and limit their play time. Tencent published a notice which stated that it will limit the play time for children less than 12 to one hour and children 13 to 18 will be limited to two hours. Their system will make it easier to identify younger players more accurately so they can “better guide younger players to play games sensibly.” This move sets a precedent in the world’s largest gaming market.

“King of Glory” is a popular competitive game based on Chinese historical figures. The game is tailored to the mobile platform, which greatly increases its popularity as many young players don’t have a game controller or a personal computer at home. The game program is free for players to download, but the player needs to pay to upgrade the characters or to upgrade the level of difficulty of the game. China’s official media People’s Daily criticized the game last year, saying the game is addictive like poison. Xi Jinping also mentioned that these type of games cause damage to children’s vision. Recently, after it was sold on the market, another online game that Tencent launched, “Monster Hunter World,” was banned for unknown reasons. Chinese officials have previously banned a number of online games for their violent, drug, or sexual contents.

Source: BBC, September 7, 2018
https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/chinese-news-45443871