China Ends Game Approval Freeze And Grants First License After Nearly One Year

The Chinese government has given approval for the publication of 45 new video games. (Photo: Pixabay)

JAKARTA - On Monday, April 11, Chinese regulators issued a video game publishing license and granted approval for 45 new games by Baidu and XD Inc's Party Star.

The National Press and Public Administration publish the list on its website. Reuters reported that China had granted licenses to XD's "Party Star" earlier in the day.

The freeze on new game approvals comes as part of China's efforts to fight online game addiction among young people, and to crack down on games that depict "wrong values," including same-sex relationships.

Hundreds of Chinese game companies have pledged to strictly adhere to new rules introduced, including facial recognition technology to prevent minors from playing when they shouldn't.

Chinese regulators stopped approving game monetization licenses in July last year, which had a huge impact on Tencent Holdings and NetEase, and put thousands of companies in the game industry out of business.

The freeze is almost the same as the previous suspension in 2018 when China stopped approving new video game titles for a nine-month period as part of an overhaul of the regulatory body that oversees the sector.

Here is the complete list of approved games. A total of 45. No Tencent or NetEase.

Here comes the full list of games approved. A total of 45. No Tencent nor NetEase. pic.twitter.com/CSizPaoreR

— Josh Ye (@TheRealJoshYe) April 11, 2022

Interestingly, Reuters technology correspondent Josh Ye said that neither Tencent nor Netease games were on the list.