450°

Sony, Microsoft Could Make Billions if Chinese Ban is Lifted

While Apple, Samsung and Google are free to ship their devices nearly anywhere, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo have been prevented from selling their most successful hardware items — video game consoles — in China. That could change in the near future.

According to China Daily USA, Chinese authorities are reconsidering their decision to ban game consoles in 2000.

The ban, which has prevented the legal sales of PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Xbox 360 and other game consoles, was implemented after seven Chinese ministries concluded that video games could potentially harm the physical and mental development of children.

flankhim4098d ago

Nah. They will just re-manufacture counterfeit systems with worse quality.

PirateThom4098d ago

This isn't like the NES where they can mess about with a lock out chip.

4098d ago
flankhim4098d ago

@lorettajason3

Another chinese post!

blackbeld4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

Nice!

Finally they lift that crazy ban.

Chinese folks also deserve some entertainment not only hard labor. They work to much more then 10hours a day. Chill out please.

Daoshai4098d ago

@blackbled

Actually China only allows a maximum of 48hrs a week. The average is 44 hours I believe. I'm from Nippon where a lot of workers end up with many more hours, but I believe that is changing now.

The ban is more about keeping the public sheltered than depriving them of entertainment.

Bereaver4098d ago

Well, I live in Shanghai and I've said it many times before.

You can already buy 360's and PS3 anywhere you want pretty much. Just because it's "Illegal" doesn't mean you can't buy it. They don't really enforce the law. Take a look here.....

http://s.taobao.com/search?...

Or here

http://s.taobao.com/search?...

SolidStoner4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

the fun part is that 50 % of world consoles and equipment comes from China! Yup just checked.... everything about consoles in my house is made in China!!! :)

jony_dols4098d ago

I'd say that both Sony & Microsoft are waiting till they their next-gen consoles are better secured against piracy, before officially releasing in China.

Kurt Russell4098d ago

SOWWY YOR PWINSESS IS IN NUVA CARSHOLE!

+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 4098d ago
Knight_Crawler4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

Actually no they wont as I am pretty sure Chine will be in 100% control on which games will be allowed in China.

So No Halo, Killzone or Call Duty in China just good old fashion family game rated E for everyone.

Edit: at blackbeard - true plus the Asian community is not crazy over shooter like the west is and they enjoy RPG's more.

Would be interesting to see what Chinese people are into, Japan loves JRPG's and Korea loves dancing and strategic games like StarCraft so I wonder what Chinese people are into.

Edit#2: Also how will PSN and Xbox Live work in China? I know the government likes to keep tab on everything that goes through the internet so they would want full access to PSN and XBL and I do not see MS or Sony agreeing to this...Google has had a hard time in China and are thinking about pulling out since the Chinese Gov wants to control every thing that comes in and out of China through the web.

blackbeld4098d ago

No shooters, but they can life with that.

They still can enjoy Fighting games, RPG's, racing games, sports games, etc.

Wenis4098d ago

They aren't allowed to make/let games in their country that 'dishonor' the Chinese military as well, or games that dispute China's 'territorial integrity'. But I guess that probably goes for all forms of media/speech in China at the moment..

Oschino19074098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

They have a F2P PC version of COD in china that's basically a mash up of Modern Warfare games.
http://m.pcgamer.com/2012/0...

Also you can get PS3s and such in China, they openly sell them in backstreet stores and local shops. I even have a few online British friends who live in China (Beijing area) and anyone playing COD can see most major Chinese cities have some lit up areas on the world map.

I think the deal with Chinese Government is they don't want other countries making money off of their people without getting a nice slice of the pie for themselves.

Bereaver4098d ago

Most people will just use the Hong Kong servers. Yes, even though Hong Kong is in China, it's still kind of different. And they do have Hong Kong servers. (well at least ps3 does, not sure about xbox)

_-EDMIX-_4098d ago

Favorite comment "they openly sell them in backstreet stores" LOL

HappyGaming4098d ago

@_-EDMIX-_ I remember in the PS2 era they openly sold copied PS2 games and chipped PS2s in Greece :P

kevnb4098d ago

"They aren't allowed to make/let games in their country that 'dishonor' the Chinese military as well, or games that dispute China's 'territorial integrity'. But I guess that probably goes for all forms of media/speech in China at the moment.."

What do you think would happen if there was a game that disrespected the US army?

slaton244098d ago

chinese = karata= fighting games

BISHOP-BRASIL4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

@Kevnb

I understand what you are saying, I agreed, but as much as US government would protest and try to ban it, they don't actually have the laws to do so. Even more, they have the laws protecting the creative force rather than the government... Yes it can still be banned, but at the very least, a legal struggle would take place before it happening, they would have to go around the freedon of speech law and try to put it in a light that makes such content look harmfull to the country, it's easier said than done.

In China it's already illegal, so if the government want to enforce a ban, they'll just do it. They don't need to go around and developers couldn't appeal to anyone.

But we know all countries have laws that don't actually get enforced. I don't know of anyone that tried to make a game that would offend the Chinese army (also we had to read the law to see if it specifies what is considered offensive and/or how far offensive to be considered a "dishonor"), so I think we don't know if they would actually ban anything...

The way I see, for all governments, it has little to do with honor and a lot to do with money and public support... If something will burn a hole in the pockets of the Estate or if it will turn the population against the government I would bet at least some politicians would try and (eventually) get such material banned. They always do.

EDIT: Bad grammar... Still not perfect, sorry.

violents4098d ago

@kevnb

If i remember correctly we already had a COD game where russia invaded the US after a failed espionage attempt on a terroist group made the american take the fall(ie contraversial scene called the russian, i belive) and then we had a game called homefront, where the US was being invaded and you are a normal citizen trying to defend your country.

In the middle east they ban games like these all the time because it shows US forces invading thier countries, The US has never banned a game for making us look bad and dont try and act like they do. They dont have the laws to ban things like that because no matter how much you dont like it, by our constitution we are allowed to say what ever we want about our government, good or bad.

+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 4098d ago
yeahokchief4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

remember when sony's stock was at $9? this could change that.

wow. it already jumped up to $15.

that son of a bitch parappa the rappa was right. you gotta believe.

Mutant-Spud4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

@ bereaver,
Interesting, the prices in that link convert to roughly what we pay at retail for a PS3 in Australia, so I'm guessing game consoles aren't exactly "black market" items in China?

4098d ago Replies(2)
MysticStrummer4098d ago

"They will just re-manufacture counterfeit systems with worse quality."

If they copy one of the original 360s with even worse quality, there might be an international incident.

kevnb4098d ago

queue more ignorant posts...

lfclee4097d ago

I agree they will copy everything including consoles and there is absolutely nothing the console manufactures can do because of the Chinese laws , crazy or what !

+ Show (5) more repliesLast reply 4097d ago
GribbleGrunger4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

I've been thinking about this since the first mention of China opening it's doors to consoles. They closed that door because of violence in games and it would stand to reason that IF they did open those doors, it would likely be the consoles with a more 'casual' appearance that makes the most from it. Kinect seems the perfect fit, but Sony and Nintendo being Japanese isn't going to help their cause. I might be wrong but I would be very surprised if Sony made more from this than Microsoft. If, of course, it happens. I'm willing to consider any counterpoints though.

ChronoJoe4098d ago

Doesn't make much sense. Sony's products are made in China and typically sell pretty well in China.

Furthermore, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery - they currently have xbox 360 / ps3 knock offs because Japanese consumers desire ps3s / 360 systems.

With that said not much of the 360 lineup will appeal to a chinese market. 360 exclusives are very westernised and the PS3 offers many more games that're popular in the rest of Asia (Korea / Japan etc). So if anything I imagine it'll be the other way around to what you expect. I don't see this benefiting Microsoft all that much unless they want to come up with new content to back a Chinese launch.

Daoshai4098d ago

Chinese boycott Japanese products all the time. We do not have a very good relationship with the Chinese and at the moment its pretty harsh.

I believe China will come out of its shell sometime soon though. I'm sick and tired of my family (parents and grandparents) with their unnatural hatred towards the Chuugoku.

hellvaguy4098d ago

"Doesn't make much sens

It makes perfect sense when you think of it this way. The Chinese have an oppressive communist government that is opposed to any form of freedom of speech. You cant use the regular internet there. It's a heavily government censored internet.

NateCole4097d ago

Well they are not that much more friendlier to the US.

EddieNX 4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

Sony , Microsoft and Nintendo could make billions*

@shut up and take money - Indeed , just seemed like a bit of an ignorant headline lol.

Nintendo and Sony would probably shaft China.

shutUpAndTakeMyMoney4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

fixed.. We both know MS will still have USA and sony wiiU the rest of the world.

Belking4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

We don't know nothing because nothing has been lifted.

adorie4098d ago (Edited 4098d ago )

China's game industry will make the US look like Japan's, once fully established. they are pushing it too, fast tracking it even. China is nothing to joke with.

Daoshai4098d ago

@adorie

You are giving china way too much credit for its economy. The US dwarfs it, the average person in the US makes 10x that of a China.

solid_warlord4098d ago

Don'f forget the UK...UK is Xbox territory.

Ezz20134098d ago

@solid_warlord

you do know UK is in europe right ?!

europe is ps3/wii land

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4098d ago
DA_SHREDDER4098d ago

I hope i meet the most sexy and beautiful Chinese woman in my nerd life online some day.

PopRocks3594098d ago

Hey, as long as they can all make better products and give us more content, power to all of them.

Show all comments (90)
80°

Nintendo's Massacre Of The 3DS And Wii U Is Finally Complete, Regrettably

Hanzala from eXputer: "The cruel hammer of Nintendo has fallen. Farewell, 3DS and Wii U, you surely brightened my life and many others; you won't be forgotten."

280°

Xbox's Preservation Step Sets A Much-Needed Example, Especially For Nintendo

Hanzla from eXputer inquires: "If Xbox can care about preserving its games and legacy, what exactly is wrong with Nintendo, trying to kill game preservation single-handedly?"

purple1015d ago

Ahh yes the good old game preservation of saving all your games to a removable hhd on the Xbox 360, taking it round your mates house, setting up multiple tvs to
Be met with “save data corrupted, please re download”

Or how about removing 360 games
From the store
, download them now or else, and, better hope to god that save data doesn’t corrupt, or it’s lost for ever

Nice one ☝️

Zeref5d ago

It's better than what Nintendo and Playstation is doing. It might not be perfect but at least they are TRYING. Unlike the others.

DarXyde5d ago

Trying? Take off the blinders for a moment, mate.

1. A failure to preserve games is just that: a failure to preserve games. Don't try to sugarcoat it: NO ONE is doing it properly. Better than awful is nothing to write home about.

2. At the time of this comment, isn't it the case that you need an internet connection to play Xbox games even if you buy physical discs that are hardly in circulation anymore? I don't have a Series X and I can't verify, but I think that is correct. I'm fairly certain you can at least play PS5 games at version 1.0 (not much of a win really when many games require day one patches). I think Microsoft's all digital, licensing approach is by far more aggressive than anyone else's. They really try to push you to game pass where you lose your entire library by umm.... Skipping a month of payments.

I don't think anyone is doing it right whatsoever. Don't get me started on Nintendo, who goes after anyone looking to preserve their games better than they ever would with extreme litigation.

Don't be a simp for any of these companies. Get it together.

PhillyDonJawn5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

@DarX never speak on Xbox again. You lost all credibility with your internet connection comment. Smh you have 0 clue and misinformed yet speaking on something you don't no squat about.

Einhander19724d ago

What has Sony done exactly? You guys keep deflecting to Sony but I am not actually seeing any results, and ai am certain nothing that you can come up with even comes close to what Microsoft has done and what they have tried and failed to do, like tie all your disks to your account on xbone.

Microsoft removed their whole indie section when they moved to the xbone because they were going to only allow games on the service that came from a publisher, id@xbox started after xbone launched and it only exists because Sony embraced indie and Microsoft was forced to cancel their plans and reverse course.

And every single game that was part of games for windows live including disk games (I have gta 4 on disk that won't work) so hundreds of games that use that DRM no longer work unless the company themselves patched it out which of course very few did.

MrBaskerville4d ago

Not trying. Tried. they killed of the backcomp program years ago. They set something up again, but sounds like it's more of an attempt to save the current library on whatever they are planning next. With luck they save everything and more, but let's see. I could see them killing off parts of the OG xbox and 360 libraries. Can't imagine that they would allow us to play Forza 5-7 in the future.

With that said, I do like what they've done and really wish they could have done more.

shinoff21834d ago

Zeref

So killing off physical media is trying what exactly. Ms don't really give a fk if you think they do your kidding yourself.

Profchaos4d ago

They are not trying this team is established for forward compatability the team is. It interested in preserving Xbox or 360 games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
isarai5d ago

Is that why Hellblade 2 is digital only?

Zeref5d ago

Just because it's digital only doesn't mean you can't preserve it. Just put it on an external and you have the exact same functionality of what a disc does.

MrNinosan5d ago

Guess you're trolling, but if you actually think that's how it works, I'd recommend buying some braincells.

mkis0074d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Volitile vs nonvolitile data. A disc will not corrupt either. A drive can be corrupted.

Einhander19725d ago

This is just a scammy PR move to distract from the fact they are going digital only and trying to push streaming and subscriptions only.

No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft.

Without discs there is no preservation, preservation can't be done by the rights holders it can only be done by the consumers, anything else is a lie.

5d ago Replies(3)
Einhander19725d ago

Anyone remember xblig which Microsoft removed their whole 360 indie section removing hundreds of games from people?

5d ago
5d ago
Zeref5d ago

Do you know you can put your games on an external and preserve them that way? There are no benefits to discs. ZERO. Idk why some of you are still obsessed with them.

DarXyde5d ago

Because games like Persona 5 exist. It's STILL V1.00. On Playstation, that's a win because 1.00 is installed on the disc—no need to download anything.

If a game does not require any updates, it's all on the disc.

Extremely low bar in the modern era, of course. It's not much of a win by any stretch.

But for now, physical media does have a purpose, at least on Playstation.

Einhander19725d ago

That is factually not how game licensing works, try plugging your hard drive into someone else xbox, It's not going to work, and it won't work if the licensing servers ever go down.

Einhander19724d ago

Anyone remember games for windows live.

I have around a dozen games, some on Steam itself that will not work because Microsoft shut off the licensing servers.

BehindTheRows4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I do. I STILL have games (Gears of War being the big one) I cannot access because Games for Windows LIVE is total garbage and no one has held Microsoft accountable.

Zeref4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership.

Chevalier4d ago

"You don't have an Xbox apparently. Because you can 100 percent plug in your external and play games from it on any Xbox console lol. You just have to be logged in to prove ownership."

Damn how many times do people got to explain your idiocy to you? You can take a copy of Persona 5 like someone used as an example and play that game on ANY console WITHOUT logging in which means I can lend the game to a friend without internet and they can play my game. Can you lend your hard drive to anyone without logging in for them to play? NOPE. That is a huge difference and if you think otherwise then sorry you're an idiot.

Tacoboto4d ago

"No gaming company has pushed harder to remove ownership than Microsoft."

Ubisoft is literally erasing games people bought from their libraries... My PS1-3 discs are useless on modern hardware. Nintendo's re-published and resold almost their entire Wii U library, and the eShop is completely dead with no BC mechanism in the Switch software. Microsoft publishes everything they make today day one on Steam and Xbox/Windows. Sony only brings to PC the titles they think you might want some years later and Nintendo won't even design a functional long-lasting joystick.

You're absolutely trolling and not serious if you think Microsoft today is the worst offender.

shinoff21834d ago

Yay steam

Not everyone fks with computers though. The disc is still the best way as a console player. Period.

Tacoboto4d ago

How do Sony and Nintendo feel about these discs from 2001-2013?

Don't be stupid, you know Xbox is the best at this today.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 4d ago
Hofstaderman5d ago

Nobody wants this. Sales or the lack of it in the case of XBOX is very telling. I wonder how the adorably all digital series X will fare. Adorably dismal perhaps?

crazyCoconuts4d ago

Only time will tell, but for from someone like me suspecting that Xbox is trying to gracefully exit the console market, that "forward compatibility" team is trying to get Xbox games playing on Windows PCs. I mean, it's nice that they're not planning on exiting with a "enjoy your games while the hardware still works" message, so that's nice. They still have a brand to protect via Microsoft so probably feel obligated to have a better exit strategy.

Xeofate4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

That is not their plan, their plan is to transfer users accounts to the cloud.

Phil Spencer himself said as much a few months back, plans could have changed but I think people are reading way too much into one statement where Phil said he would allow Epic on xbox because he wants to be able to sell xbox games directly on other platforms. Aka, instead of selling Sea of Thives through PSN he wants to have an xbox store to sell his games on PlayStation without giving PlayStation any money.

Again, it's extremely unlikely that Phil plans to put PC on xbox and licensing would prevent them from just giving out other publishers games purchased on xbox copies of thier games on PC, Microsoft does not own their games.

crazyCoconuts4d ago

The thing that doesn't align with the cloud strategy is the giving up on exclusives. You'd still need strong exclusives for cloud streaming - it's still a "platform" , just with a lower upfront hardware investment. I feel like they've learned what PS learned with PSNow long ago. We're not ready to stream games and it's only gonna lose them money to try at this point

FinalFantasyFanatic4d ago

I would love that, I'd buy up some of the Xbox games if they could run on PC, like the Rare Replay, Lost Odyssey and Dead or Alive Ultimate, probably a pipe dream though.

Show all comments (43)
90°

Nintendo's War Against Player-Made Content Will Hurt The Company In The End

Danish from eXputer: "Nintendo has historically gone against player-made content and emulation of its games. This has done much to harm the company's image."

XiNatsuDragnel12d ago

I agree nintendo hire some these folks to help in your games it'll help imo.

banger8811d ago

They need to stop announcing these mods and fan remakes until they're finished. Finish it, upload it, and then if Nintendo dmca's it tough shit. Once it's online, people can share it around, even if the original download gets taken down.

Jingsing11d ago

True, but most modders need constant admiration during the process to motivate them.

PRIMORDUS10d ago

Yup, once it's a torrent nothing can be done Nintendo is helpless at that point. But it would be wise if they just had a site on the dark web, it's also easy to use with Tor and no one will bother you.

mastershredder10d ago

This is all coming from the mouth of short-sighted fandom and grifting madness.
No.... it wont. There is a clear defined reason why they don't. This is nothing new. Make your own shi7 from your own original ideas especially if you are trying to capitalize of it it. Duh.

Yeah, hire people that have zero respect or understanding for an established process. Wow. Yep. Totally makes sense.

shinoff218310d ago

Those guys that made that sonic game got a gig from sega or something along those lines and that game was dope as hell. One of the best sonics as of late.