Chinese game developers hit by new censorship rules
Chinese game developers are complaining about new regulations issued by the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) that demand all titles must be approved by SAPPRFT, including those which have already been released. Some developers said the use of English words has seen their work deemed "unsuitable". Chinese censorship rules have tightened in other media sectors, especially surrounding foreign content.

A raft of new censorship rules have kicked in this week in China around mobile games and developers are already voicing frustrations online.

The State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) of the People's Republic of China announced a rule that meant all games had to be pre-approved by SAPPRFT before going live.

SAPPRFT has also allowed a three month grace period in which existing games must be submitted and post-approved.

However, one games developers grievances have been shared around the internet as his game was denied for having English words in it.

According to Techweb in China, fairly generic English gaming words like “mission start”, “warning” and “boss” were used and therefore deemed unsuitable by the censorship bureau.

According to reports, other developers had also had games denied for the same reason, while traditional Chinese character were also being banned. Others were complaining that the process was taking too long.

Chinese censorship rules have tightened across other media recently too, specifically around the publishing of content from foreign businesses. The ‘Regulation for the Management of Online Publishing Services’ was launched earlier this year to restrict the ease at which foreign media can publish directly online in China.

This tightening of rules has also meant that foreign internet behemoths, such as Facebook and Google, are still finding it tough to launch in the country, despite many instances where the likes of Zuckerberg has met with officials to improve relations.