Some online games used “bloody, violent and obscene” content to attract players, hurting their “physical and psychological health”, the culture ministry said.

The ministry said it would toughen the approval process for new online game companies and step up oversight of content.

For their part, online game developers should limit the number of virtual marriages and player-versus-player combat and improve technology to restrict the amount of time teenagers can spend on the Internet, the ministry said in a statement posted on its website Wednesday.

The number of Internet gamers in China reached 217 million at the end of June, or 64.2 percent of the nation’s total online population, according to the government-linked China Internet Network Information Centre.

Earlier this month, another ministry rejected an application by Chinese Internet portal NetEase seeking approval for the game World of Warcraft.

NetEase violated a rule banning new account registration and collection of subscription fees during a trial period that started July 30, when the firm was ordered to “revise harmful content” in the game, the General Administration of Press and Publication said.

Source : Konaxis