"Solving" video game addiction is as easy as "solving" alcoholism. But China's state-run video game watchdog appears poised to call its recent efforts to curb gaming among children "successful."
The Financial Times and the Reuters reported that China's State Video Game Commission released a report on Tuesday stating that the country has somehow managed to "solve" the addiction of minors to games. The country has had new regulations since August 2021, when it tried to ban the use of toys in children which limited them to one hour of play on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The report from the China Game Publishers Association Publications Committee, or GPC, states that 75% of minors played less than three hours a week. The report also shows that China is willing to back away from tough regulations that have plagued the country's gaming industry. China's big game publishers are stepping up their efforts to crack down on the amount of time minors spend playing games, according to the publication of Reuters. Tencent even uses technology as invasive as facial recognition to prevent minors from playing at night.
The relaxed treatment of children's gaming addiction comes as tech companies Sony and Microsoft try to acquire more Chinese-made toys. Sony plans to invest over $140.000 in each company games that will work with her.
Microsoft on the other hand plans to create a team for it search of more Chinese games, according to unnamed sources cited by Reuters. The developers of the massively popular Genshin Impact, China's HoYoverse, have reportedly been approached by Microsoft to make it an Xbox exclusive in 2020, though apparently no deal has been reached.