According to BBC, China gamers under the age of 18 will now face restrictions on when they can play, how long they can play, and how much they can spend on games, according to official government guidelines that were released on Nov 5 with the intention the curb online gaming addiction.
China used to be the world’s largest gaming markets and US gaming revenue just surpassed them for the first time this year after china implementing the new rules.
Under the new rules, all online gamers must register their ID details with service providers before being allowed to play. Gamers under the age of 18 will be banned from playing online games between 10:00pm and 8:00am.
On weekdays, They are allowed to play for 90 minutes a day. While, weekends and public holidays they may play up to 3 hours per day.
The new guidelines also restrict the amount of money that youngsters spend on online video games, on items such as virtual weapons, clothes and pets.
Those aged between 8 to 16 yo can top up 200 yuan (around RM118) per month to their online gaming accounts, while the maximum amount for those between the age of 16 to 18 yo would be 400 yuan (around RM237).
These new rules are China’s latest attempt to curb video game addiction among youngster, which is believed to be the reason behind an increase in nearsightedness and poor academic performance.
Video game addiction is considered a clinical disorder in China, with an increasing number of youngsters choosing to ignore their studies, social lives and family . According to Daily Mail, games addicts can spend up to 17 hours in their games and even wear nappies so they do not have to take toilet breaks. This is just too much!
What if Malaysia also implementing the same rules? Tell us what do you think?
Source : BBC | Daily Mail | The Guardian