China’s top gaming industry association declared that the problem of children’s video gaming addiction has been “resolved”, the clearest signal so far that Beijing will ease its curbs on the approval of new titles.
China’s Game Industry Group Committee, which is affiliated with the government’s gaming regulatory body, released a report on Tuesday that found 70 per cent of minors played less than three hours of games a week. “Minors’ gaming addiction has been basically resolved,” the body wrote in a report co-authored by Beijing-based research body CNG.
Beijing sent a shockwave through the gaming industry in August 2021 when it restricted children to only playing online video games for one hour on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The move came after state media highlighted the mental and physical health toll gaming addiction was having on China’s youth, labelling online games a form of “spiritual opium”.