The government of China has implemented a crackdown against online games which feature organized crime themes, reports the New York Times:
On Monday, the Ministry of Culture issued a notice banning online games that feature Mafioso kingpins, marauding street gangs or any sort of hooliganism predisposed to organization.
The decree, which promises “severe punishment” for violators but fails to specify the penalties, also prohibits Web sites from including links to Internet games that glorify organized crime.
Such games, the ministry said, “embody antisocial behavior like killing, beating, looting and raping,” and their availability “gravely threatens and distorts the social order and moral standards, easily putting young people under harmful influence.”
As GamePolitics has reported, video games are a frequent target of Chinese government scrutiny.
Comments
In the news, China continues to blame everything but the real issues for their problems, and continues to deny access to online experiences.
China sucks.
What would the China Government know about "social order and moral standards?"
These games are evil because they promote the idea of freedom and liberty! Malevolent forces of justice and honor must be quelled at all costs!
"The Communist government in China sucks"
*fixed*
Austin, I change that because we have Chinese living in your country who don't like their country's government. "China sucks" sound kinda racist so saying their government suck sounds better and more specific
. Beside, China doesn't suck got to appreciate the language, ancient history, cuisine, and their culture.
I'm one of those people that love Chinese history and the language itself. You be suprised how many Western people study Chinese history, and Chinese language (I wonder if that's Dynasty Warriors fault, or the Kung Fu film that take place in ancient China that made westeners study Chinese)
I remember reading this off Kotaku just before GP put this on. Here's the link.
Anyway, I always hated their government for numerous reasons. I could list them all. But this is what I hate, banning game with "gangs" in em.
Always has to be someone that is so scared of being racist or seeing racist comments, they begin to look WAY to far into comments and begin to think that even the slightest comment very well could be racist. I know you mean well man, but seriously...get a life, and grow a pair dude. I do agree however, that chinas government is a very serious threat to the world. My heart goes out to those poor people over there. Very sad indeed.
uh, dude I do have a life. I work at NIH as a summer student (also doing research on how the Wii can help with Parkinson's Disease). Sometime a comment that doesn't look racist can be racist to some or more people. People can intrepret "China suck" as a racist comment. I'm trying to politically correct and also be more specific which China they refering to, the government or the whole people who are Chinese. Sometime some word can sound racist when it intentionally it's not meant to be racist.
Example:
fuck China (does this sound kinda racist? It may not to you but to some other people, yeah it may depend on how they intrepret this message. So I think changing it to "Fuck the communist in China" sounds more specific and not racist so the people who are easily offended will not think it's racist)
China is nothing but a freedom hating pricks (now anybody can intrepret this as all chinese are freedom haters which may sound racist and promoting stereotype. Changing it to "Chinese government is nothing but a freedom hating pricks" will not sound racist and pointing out to the government.)
or
The Iranian are evil (would this comment refer to the government or the Iranian citizen themselves? People may intrepret this as a hate message to Iranian. If the comment said "The Iranian government are evil", that would sound more specific and less racist.)
Now you see what I mean or do you need more example to see what I mean.
But of course the whole America Teen Japan is awesome lets look past the Little Girl Panties vending machines or trains having to force men and women to ride separately because Japanese men can’t stop this almost genetic behavior.
Let's not forget Chinas' oh-so wonderful 'one child per family' rules that led to hundreds of baby girls being drowned. Or that I had to help teach a boy who ran here from China because he was going to be shot for his parents crimes (they had already been killed).
China's so much in the moral high-ground here, isn't it?
And where in Japan are there seperate sex trains? I've been there twice and never seen any.
Oh, and the underwear vending machines, a lot of japanese businessmen/women work for long periods away from home, there are underwear vending machines for both sexes, they stay in business hotels during the week, for example, they work in Tokyo all week and go home for the weekends. Because it's not always possible to go home, and Japan has problems with both typoons and earthquakes, there are occasions when they cannot go home, and need to pick up goods when the shops are closed. There are vending machines for pretty much everything in Tokyo in particular, but in all major Japanese cities, including coffee, videos/DVDs, Fish and Chips (yes, from a machine), ties, shirts, though I didn't see trousers.
Edit: Sorry, but you really are talking without much experience here.
Your referring to the dying rooms which is not a good thing but let’s not take the focus off something China is sensitive too which is Rape and I can totally understand why they feel those games should be banned.
Interesting, I must never have encountered those particular lines on my travels. I didn't think it was impossible that they existed, I'll admit, but then much of my travelling was out of rush-hour, so that might explain it.
I suppose the thing with atrocities is that, yes, Japan commited some terrible acts, but I can't really think of an army that didn't, it does, however, indeed explain some of the Chinese reticence against the Japanese porn industry.
I'll agree that a lot of the 'Eastern Westernisation' that goes on in Japan is quite eye opening, they do, have some pretty wacked out stuff, but then, the percent of Japanese shops that are actually dedicated to that kind of stuff is a lot less than many people have the impression, so I'll accept the concerns about Japanese rape media in China, and their reason for banning it, but, in my experience, there were a lot less of that culture about than many reports would leave you to believe, especially once you get outside the cities themselves.
As for apologising for comfort women, I'll agree that still refusing to apologise is being somewhat of a stumbling block, but America and China are up against not just a honour problem, but a political one for Japan, an apology would mean a final confirmation that it happened, and that would shame Japan. Whilst honour isn't quite as life and death as it used to be in Japan, that kind of dishonour could have knock on effects for the government. Always the problem with election, is that the first thing on any elected persons mind, is their own re-election.
I didn't think you would take it this far, but you did. Insinuating that japanese men have groping and rape encoded in their genes. Look, I know you can make well-reasoned arguments if you try, you just seem to take everything to the extreme. All of your posts are so abrasive that it's hard to take you seriously.
For example, the sexual culture in Japan is obviously different than North America (train groping is a not uncommon occurrence, the whole upskirt photos thing, etc.), but then you take that and turn it into the 'Japanese Culture of Rape', which is so insanely hyperbolic.
Now, on to your hate of Obama. We get it, you don't like him. Making sarcastic references to him as God King Messiah only hurts your arguments. Noone here thinks like that, noone here believes that Obama is infallible or a perfect president. If you could make sensible arguments as to why you don't like him, that would be great.
My last point is about how you love bringing up the 2 above things over and over again, no matter how distanced they are from the actual topic in the article. You managed to take an article about China banning certain games, and change it into another tirade about the japanese. Why? You also have the ability to turn any political story (in the US) into a rant about Obama. Why?
This is my last impassioned plea for you to put your prejudices aside, and prove that you DO have something to add to the discussion besides rants.
I explained before where this whole rape-obsession thing comes from with the Japanese. Quick summary? Cultural. We're talking many people who are stuck in a stiff outline, do your best to get to a good school, do your best to get to a good university, do your best to get a good job, do your best inside a thirteen-in-a-dozen environment. Read a manga with workers like that and you'll see their mentality depicted quite nicely. Or check Black Lagoon.
That's your word of the day, my children: Hooliganism.
Just rolls off the tongue.
I guess my idea of adding China, along with New York and Cuba, as cities for Mafia Wars wouldn't sit too well with them then, huh?
After all, one would think adding a country known for HOOLIGANISM would make sense to such a game, eh?
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
I've been told that the word 'hooligan' was originally a racist term for people of Irish heritage.
That would make me a racist against myself considering I'm of Scotish, Irish, and English decent.
Which makes me the epitome of self-hate. After all, the Scots hate the English. The English hates the Scots. And the Irish can't get along with themselves, let alone anyone else. :)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hooliganism#Etymology
Nightwng2000
NW2K Software
http://www.facebook.com/nightwing2000
Nightwng2000 is now admin to the group "Parents For Education, Not Legislation" on MySpace as http://groups.myspace.com/pfenl
Let's break this down.
Oh yeah, the Scottish and the Irish hate the British, and the British hate them back. As for Irish hating Irish, as long as your family didn't mix north and south, you're fine. On a related note, if you descended from northern irish, I hate you (just kidding).
Well we all know China sucks when it comes to making laws about video games.
http://www.magicinkgaming.com/
China? Criticizing anti-social behavior? What a joke. Don't they still have the Triads to deal with?
And what about guilds in WoW or other MMO's? That's like, pure "hooliganism predisposed to organization" right there (you know what I'm talking about, don't try to deny it).
They're only doing what they believe is right. They're the cliche big brother government that forces their citizens to do something, not purely out of megalomania but because they think it's the right thing to do, to protect everyone and - more than likely- to ultimately help them maintain order. Or at least they probably like to think so.
That said, I still think this is alarming as it could be part of China cracking down on Western games, much like the WOW WOTLK fiasco. They're scared of other cultures somehow undermining their own.
They may think it's right, but thinking it's right doesn't make it so.
As for the second point, sounds lie ktheir culture will begin to stagnate, much like isolationist era America.
So really with China our reactions is not going to make them change the only change that can provoke a reaction in China is it’s own denizens who seem to get killed whenever they respond against the Government.
"So really with China our reactions is not going to make them change the only change that can provoke a reaction in China is it’s own denizens who seem to get killed whenever they respond against the Government. " - this makes me sad to hear
that whole undead thing is funny. I remember hearing from a chinese doctor that a lot of organs end up on black market in china. cultural sensitivities aside, it seems like anyone will go against their morals for money.
and just because japan has made efforts to stop groping on trains doesn't mean china doesn't have a similar problem. The absense of evidence is not evidence of absense.
daughters are drowned are you serious?
I don't see how this country even HAS a moral ground to stand on. Banning videogames. No one ever heard of the Chinese Mafia before?
Stupid.
"that whole undead thing is funny. I remember hearing from a chinese doctor that a lot of organs end up on black market in china. cultural sensitivities aside, it seems like anyone will go against their morals for money."
Actually, I'll vouch for that statement. Back when Magic the Gathering 10th edition came out, they had an article on their website about the cards Terror and Diabolic tutor. Both cards had new artwork commissioned. Both art pieces had depictions of skeletons, and the ministry of culture, technology and yada yada (I can't remember the whole title for the life of me, nor do I care) banned the new artwork. They had to revert to the mirrodin and odyssey printings, respecively for each card. To be fair, though, Skeletonize out of Shard went to press unaltered. I wonder if there's a shift in ideology.
Also, having been in China, There's a fair amount of sleight of hand in their tv media. When I had the opportunity to watch tv there, there were several channels that had movies depicting Japanese Soldiers during world war 2. It seems as though they try to perpetuate the wound, even though it was, what, 72 years ago that the rape of nanking happened? I wish they'd move on.
Also, while in China, I saw several cyber cafes that catered to WoW players, down to the epic battle artwork on the walls. I think they're producing a knee-jerk response, tbh. I've also noticed that when the government tries to control the lives of their citizens, the citizens push back. Exhibit A: Prohibition in the USA. That failed.
If anything, I think that this will backfire on them. Not necessarily right away, but these things usually need to percolate anyways.
I feel that prohibition failed because Americans had guns and irish people. Irish people to brew, and guns to make sure the brew got to the good people in speakeasies.
Here's an odd part, this is from a person a Kotaku: "Funny considering the CCP's (and the KMT's) rise to power came with no insignificant help from gangs and organized crime."
I guess the communist government forgot during the Chinese civil war they used gang to do their work.
Well, I'll give them props for one thing. They did the one thing Jack Thompson can't ever do. Ban Grand Theft Auto.
Now we can all watch as crime and youth biolence DOES NOT go down.
I would love to see Jack Thompson try to side with China.
I wonder if, in light of this new development, they will bring back shock treatment to "cure" people addicted to videogames.
You know what a coincidence China government just banned "gangs" game just after GTA: Chinatown war was just announced to go to Japan (and other part of Asia). I think I know the real reason why they ban those kind of game.
GTA Chinatown war= the game is racist to Chinese people.
They didn't say it was racist because it would be hypocrisy and a lot of people would laugh at them for saying that. They used the word "gang" game just to cover up the real reason of GTA Chinatown War. I bet they did that because the game has Chinese people in there and to them it's racist.
Technically, isn't this one way of banning, at least, Grand Theft Auto IV? It has an online feature where you do work for the mafia. It wouldn't be hard to argue that GTAIV would be included in that list of banned titles.
----
Papa Midnight
http://www.thesupersoldiers.com
I'm willing to bet the DS game Chinatown Wars isn't even sold in that market.
It's not even like mafiosos have a concurrent interest with video games. They'd rather uh, gamble for fun.
GameSnooper
China is nanny state end of story
You run out of bullets not enemies
What China really needs is a good and long civil war. For now, it´s hard to see when chinese people is gonna to realize they are being governed by assholes. The same for islamic countries. And I´m not just saying this just for internet or games, but civil rights as well.
The cynical side of videogames (spanish only): http://thelostlevel.blogspot.com/ My DeviantArt Page (aka DeviantCensorship): http://www.darkknightstrikes.deviantart.com/
"or any sort of hooliganism predisposed to organization."
So are they going to ban Civ games as well? Because when I think of organized hooliganism I generally think of governments, China included.
-Ultimately what will do in mankind is a person's fear of their own freedom-
(sing-song) It's not gonna wooo-oooork....
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Game on, brothers and sisters.
Except this is Communist China. Unlike in Western nations, they will happily kill as many people as they can to make their social policies work. Don't like the Great Leap Forward? Starve. Protest? Die/disappear. Complain? Get your head bashed in.
All you're allowed to do in China is support the Party. Nothing else.
When your goverment start to look problems in fiction instead real life, is not a good time.
- Rodrigo Ybáñez García
I blame Communism.
Remember kids: Organized crime is bad, but random impulsive crime perpetrated by individuals is okay.
Yeah China! That'll show those Chinese organized crime families! This will have them headed for the hills! You guys are the best! XXOOXX
(facepalm)
What? No one notes how they describe rape and murder as "anti-social"?