Chinese get strict about addiction
Chinese authorities have already made actions against gamers who spend more than three hours playing addictive online games like World of Warcraft. This is an attempt to minimize and tone down youngster’s possible addiction to the virtual games. Teenagers in China was said to be forgetting their “social responsibilities”, Chinadaily, a publication in China has reported a national crackdown on Internet cafes that provide access to games like Dungeon’s and Dragons, Lineage and the World of Warcraft. This the latest attempt of the most populous country to cope with the teenagers increasing interest for artificial worlds and the freedom of expression it provides.
The President, Hu Jintao has ordered regulators in promoting a “healthy online culture”, encouraging the healthy environment in online gaming but not overusing it to the point of addiction. “Measured gaming is good for the brain, but gaming addiction hurts the body.” Said by the National Business Daily which reported that the country has more than 30 million online gamers and 10 % of them are minors. The government doesn’t seek to totally forbid gaming, but to promote a healthy use of it.
The 8 million players in the World of Warcraft as reported by Blizzard, 3.5 % are Chinese, making it the most popular online game in China. The authorities have also forbidden any authorization of opening new Internet cafes in the country up to the end of 2007. Last July 16, tougher regulations have been enforced to gaming companies that operate in the country to screen their gamers, requiring them to enter their ID numbers. The program then monitors the online time of players identified as under 18 and prompts them at the three-hour mark with a message asking them to stop and “do suitable physical exercise,”