The
company Epic Games threw in the towel this Monday with the Chinese version of
its popular video game Fortnite, after three years trying to establish itself
in the world market for online games, due to the measures adopted by the
government to combat the addiction of young people. to digital entertainment. hollyhealthfitness
The
company had announced two weeks ago that on November 15 it would close the
Chinese version of the game, noting that "the Beta test of Fornite China
has come to an end."
Users
in China said on Monday that they could no longer access the game, and posted
farewells on the Weibo social network. "Friends who have played with
me, we will see you again if luck permits," wrote one user.
Another
identified as Zheng, 24, told AFP that "first I'm going to cry a
little" because of the game he had used for two years in college.
The
decision ends Fortnite's extensive trial period created for China, where there
is strict surveillance of violent content. The action video game, with
shootouts and world-building, is one of the most popular in the world with more
than 350 million users, higher than the population of the United States. tc bolts
The
video game started in China in 2018 on a trial basis, but it never received a
final authorization from the government for its release and commercialization.
3 hour limit
The
decision to suspend the game comes as China tightens the rules for the digital
sector. Video games represent an important source of income in China, but
are criticized for being addictive for young people.
In
August, authorities imposed a drastic limit of three hours of video games per
week on those under 18 years of age, when some could spend entire days glued to
the screen.
Fortnite
is free to download but generates billions of dollars in revenue from the sale
of additional items for the characters, particularly the costumes.
The
game quickly became a worldwide phenomenon, to the point that some games are
followed live by millions of viewers. techgeeksblogger
In
September, hundreds of Chinese video game producers, including Tencent, pledged
to better monitor their products to avoid "politically harmful"
content and restrict the age of gamers to comply with government regulations. bolts
Neither
Epic nor Tencent, the Chinese gaming and messaging giant, initially responded
to AFP's inquiries about Fortnite.
Beijing's
attempts to tighten control over the economy hit several industries,
particularly tech firms. healthbeautystudio
Given
this, Microsoft announced in October that it would close the Chinese version of
its social network aimed at professionals LinkedIn, while Yahoo decided weeks
ago to withdraw from the country. Both companies cited growing obstacles
to doing business in China.
Foreign
tech companies have had to balance to comply with strict local laws and
government censorship of content. techiescity
Google
shut down its Chinese search engine in 2010 after refusing to comply with
Beijing's requirements to censor search results.
