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After the shocking decision to halt all video game approval processes in March 2018, the first signs of things getting back to normal has appeared. The Chinese government has finally reviewed a new batch of games for the first time since the license freeze. [Thanks, SCMP!]
According to State Administration of Press and Publications Deputy Head Feng Shixin, “The first batch of games have been reviewed. We will hurry up to issue licenses. There is a big stockpile of games for review, so it takes a while. We will continue to work hard. [We] hope everyone can be patient.”
Earlier in the month, a new regulatory body was established to review ethical issues in video games, which hinted that the licensing process may have been about to resume. The actual announcement and continuation, however, is likely to help rescue China’s video games market growth, which saw its smallest amount of growth in 2018 compared to years before.
The first games to be approved are likely to be domestic titles, with overseas games to follow. While Chinese gaming demand hasn’t dropped in the past months despite the lack of new titles, Chinese players will probably be happy to find a few more popular titles to purchase in the near future.
