Are games censored in China?
Mia Horton
Updated on January 19, 2026
Censorship of video games in China often relate to unfavorable views of war, history, and the government. Several video games have been banned in China for these reasons.
Does China have gaming restrictions?
Gaming restrictions for minorsOn August 30, China introduced new restrictions to limit the time under-18s can spend gaming online. The restrictions now allow young gamers to only play on public holidays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 8pm to 9pm.
Does China ban video games?
Beijing has strict censorship rules on all forms of media, and video games receive some of the strictest scrutiny. Among the things that have been banned in video games are crimson blood, ghosts, skeletons, and too much skin and cleavage.What games are not allowed in China?
Games that depict drugs, sexual themes, blood, organized crime or defamation of the Chinese government are almost always banned. Because of the large size of the Chinese video game market, many studios edit the content of their games to conform to the government's standards.Why is gaming banned in China?
Why Does China Dislike Gaming? According to a South China Morning Post report, the Chinese government sees video games as something that brings extreme addiction to the people. The state-sponsored media coined the term "spiritual opium" after comparing its effects to an addictive medication back in August.China's Strict Censorship Of Video Games
Is Call of Duty allowed in China?
Call of Duty Online, a free-to-play game for China that originally launched in 2015, is closing down. Tencent, which operates the game there, announced that the game will close, and users will be encouraged to move over to Call of Duty Mobile.Is fortnite banned in China?
One of the financial victims of the crackdown has been Tencent, which owns 40 percent of Fortnite. In addition, China has not given Tencent Holdings a license to officially launch the game in the country, leaving the game to operate in beta mode, where Fortnite is banned from charging players.Where is GTA banned?
These countries include Argentina, Greece, Thailand, and most of the Middle East. Some GTA players got around the ban with the use of different VPNs. However, it does carry a legal risk depending on the country. Needless to say, certain players were not happy with their country's restrictions.What happens if you play games for more than 3 hours in China?
Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSHANGHAI, Aug 30 (Reuters) - China has forbidden under-18s from playing video games for more than three hours a week, a stringent social intervention that it said was needed to pull the plug on a growing addiction to what it once described as "spiritual opium".