After 15 years of banning video game consoles in China, the country has finally decided to abolish that law and open up the market to gaming consoles.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that China’s Ministry of Culture released a statement advising that companies such as Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo can now manufacture and sell consoles anywhere in the country
The console ban came about in 2000 due to concerns that having a gaming console present would affect the physical and mental development of the countries youth. Whilst there was a trial run allowed in the ‘free trade zone’ the companies that made these consoles had to jump through an enormous number of hoops to be able to participate in that trial including signing contracts to build new manufacturing facilities in China.
Now that those restrictions have also been abolished I guess China now has an important decision to make: Xbox One Camp or PlayStation Camp? It’s unlikely that they will allow all manufacturers to start filling the shelves right away so it will be interesting to see which company gets the head start.
Mobile gaming has absolutely boomed in China, due partly to the lack of console gaming available, so after this many years of growing accustomed to mobile gaming, just how successful will these companies be in trying to market their console to gamers who mostly have grown up in the absence of one?
Only time will tell.
