After 14 years of playing only on PC and mobile, Chinese gamers will now be able to enjoy the fun of playing on other game platforms like Xbox and Playstation.
A ban on selling and manufacturing video game consoles was implemented by the Chinese Ministry of Culture in 2000 because of "state security, nation's glory, social disturbance, and copyright infringement."
The ban was temporarily suspended last year and the Xbox, PlayStation, Wii, and other video game consoles were made available in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, a small free-market region that the government uses as a testing ground for social and economic reforms.
After the success of the pilot marketing in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, The Chinese Ministry of Culture decided to completely lift the ban on the video game consoles.
The complete lift of the video game ban gave hope for the giants in video game consoles namely, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. The giants are now looking to expand their business outside the Shanghai Free Trade Zone and into mainland China.
However, the 14-year ban on consoles will still have an effect. The Chinese is now much more accustomed to mobile and PC gaming. The free-to-play and in-game purchase methods of marketing of mobile games are also the trend in the country. There are also a lot of problems that may arise for the foreign video game consoles, such as the rise of local video game consoles, downloadable or pirated games, and the prices of the game consoles.
Another hindrance is the fact that Chinese gamers can only connect to the multiplayer feature of the foreign video game consoles through Hong Kong servers, which can result to lagging. There are also restrictions on the games imposed by the Chinese government.
China is considered as the most lucrative gaming market, with an estimated average of $22.2 billion. Currently, its gaming market is being dominated by mobile and PC games.
Despite the challenges and the new ground to break, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo won't be ones to turn a blind eye on the possibility of higher sales in the region.
