Is the Video Game Ban Really Effective in Minimizing Gaming Time?

As of August 31, 2021, China has banned online gamers under the age of 18 from playing any video games on weekdays and restricted them to only three hours of gaming on the weekend. China possesses an expansive gaming industry, and this ban is the most prominent increase of restrictions there has ever been.

2019’s gaming restriction in China limited under-age players to 90 minutes on weekdays and three hours on weekends. Authorities stated that these time limits were put in place to help prevent children from developing video game addictions or obsessions.

Millions of young people ranging from elementary, middle, and high school, and young adults whether in college or not, consider it more than a hobby to play video games online. For many it is an escape, a sanctuary away from the repetitiveness and predictability of everyday life, where people can anonymously create their own worlds containing fantastical and inventive resources. They can also communicate and have an enjoyable time with friends and form new relationships, all while in the comfort of their own office chair and desk.

However, the limitations of navigating one’s passion through a screen most of the time is that the connections made only can be genuine to a certain extent, as players are disconnected from each other by the screen and are often in completely different places, which makes their formed relationships purely based on a game in the cloud, away from the real world.

Players’ time spent gaming, especially for those who are younger, is likely to bleed into the time where they should be studying or completing schoolwork, having face-to-face conversations with family and friends, and doing mindful activities such as reading, exercising, or taking a walk outside. It is becoming increasingly difficult within this day and age of technology for young people to find a balance between what gives them temporary happiness and what is good for them in the long term.

The responsibility of actively implementing the latest restriction falls on workers within the gaming industry rather than individual gamers, who will not receive any specific consequences.

The abrupt change has incited shock, frustration, and criticism from many gamers. When an activity an individual is passionate about is controlled or taken away to a significant instant, it would most likely cause the individual to fight back or attempt at creating a way around the obstacle. Gaming is considered large part of a lifestyle by many experienced young adults, and the sudden restriction within such a fast industry can add a flame to their tumultuous passion that pushes them to care about gaming even more.

Is “free time” even “free time” anymore if there are such heavy restrictions put on it, especially on one of the largest industries in China, the most populous country? Or is it in the citizens’ best interest to have policies set on leisurely activities for the sake of their well-being and to increase their focus on the expectations that must be met to live a fulfilling and healthy life?

Any activity an individual enjoys’ can be taken away, but that does not necessarily indicate that they will spend their now unscheduled time partaking in generally healthy activities as an alternative. There are numerous options for leisurely activities that can become easily addictive, such as watching television shows, movies, or scrolling through social media, which are all a part of their own massive industries around the world.