Chinese gaming giant Tencent announced that it would use a facial recognition system to prevent minors from playing computer games at night past curfew. This way, Tencent is trying to root out what the Chinese government defines as "excessive and unhealthy gaming habits."
In 2019, China passed a law aimed at preventing unhealthy underage gaming. It includes a ban that prohibits minors from playing video games from 10:00 PM to 8:00 AM, as well as limits playing time to 90 minutes per day. The official reason for passing this law says that the authorities introduced this innovation to reduce gaming addiction among kids.
However, gamers found ways to bypass all restrictions successfully, so this is how the idea to track minor players was born. From now on, you will have to scan your face and enter the Network under your real name to play from 10:00 PM to 8:00 AM. Anyone who does not pass the scan check and does not confirm their age will not be able to play. The law also prohibits minors from spending $28 to $57 per month on microtransactions (based on age). The system will initially run in 60 games.
Tencent calls the new system "Midnight Patrol" and says it scans players' faces and compares the result with an extensive database of faces and names. Users marked as minors will be blocked from accessing games whenever they play for the maximum amount of time or try to play during prohibited hours.
Tencent is one of many Chinese tech companies involved in enforcing harsh censorship laws that prohibit a wide range of speech that authorities consider dangerous.
