If you’re living in Korea and under the age of 15, there’ll be no more late-night StarCraft for you.
The nation of South Korea has had some troubles with internet and gaming addiction recently, leading to a serious government crackdown to fight the issue. The treatment looks incredibly intense, and may even use drugs developed to fight substance abuse.
So it’s not all that surprising to hear that the Korean government is taking steps to limit gaming, especially in the youth. According to the Chosunilbo, Korea’s National Assembly unanimously passed a law on Wednesday that would limit the time that children under 15 could spend playing games online.
The law will set a mandatory curfew at midnight, preventing anyone under 15 from gaming until 6:00 am. Adults, however, can feel free to game until the sun rises.
While the law has been passed, particulars are still under debate – Korea’s Culture Ministry says that the law should only apply to PC games like MMORPGs and the ever-popular StarCraft, but the Family Ministry wants it to apply to every platform including consoles.
I’m not sure how a law like this would even be feasibly enforceable, but hey, let’s let Korea give it a try and see how it turns out.
(Via Kotaku)
