Chinese Heroes vs. World of Warcraft
- From: cnw <cnw@xxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2006 10:47:04 +0800
Chinese Heroes vs. World of Warcraft
www.chinaview.cn 2006-08-29 14:57:42
BEIJING, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- There is still no release date for "Chinese
Heroes," a government-backed online game.
Begun in September 2005, the patriotic Internet game showcases100 national
heroes in the hope of infusing young gamers with traditional Chinese values,
such as altruism and patriotism. The heroes all have cute cartoon images.
The game aims to wean young players from the grip of the dramatic, violent
games with stunning graphic interfaces that are immensely popular with young
people the world over.
But can members of the Communist Party of China (CPC) or ancient generals
really become new game heroes and brush aside the challenge from Internet orcs?
"Five heroes have been developed, but we have not yet decided the launch
date," said Zhuge Hui, a spokesman for Shanda, a major Shanghai gaming company
that the government has tasked with developing the new game.
The first group of heroes includes Zheng Chenggong (1624-1662), a Qing
Dynasty general who liberated Taiwan from the Dutch, and Lei Feng (1940-1962), a
faithful CPC member and a national example of altruism.
Shan Hui, chief designer of the game, said the heroes gather on "Hero
Square," where gamers can click their statues to learn about their experiences
and carry out tasks like moving bricks and catching raindrops on a building
site. Gamers will be asked about the heroes' life stories to earn scores.
"We hope the game will teach players about Chinese ethics," said Kou
Xiaowei, an official with China's General Administration of Press and
Publication (GAPP), main sponsor of the initiative.
However, gamers being treated in the Beijing Internet Addiction Treatment
Center were skeptical about the games, which they said sounded "too simple" and
even "comical."
"The game sounds boring to me, it's a turn-off," said Wang Yuhang, a
14-year-old boy in the center. Eighty out of the 100 teenagers at the center are
addicted to an American online game called the World of Warcraft (WoW), one of
the most popular in China.
According to the company's financial report, on a typical evening in China
there may be anywhere up to 630,000 gamers playing WoW simultaneously online in
the country. While the American game reaps huge profits, "Chinese Heroes"
remains blocked at the drawing board stage.
"Teenagers seek adventure and fulfillment in dramatic and skill-demanding
games like WoW. If hero games do not focus on killing and domination, gamers
will definitely not play them," said Tao Ran, director of the center.
According to Tao, China has 15.4 million young netizens, two million of whom
are Internet addicts, and the number is increasing rapidly.
"Internet legislation is miles behind the development of the industry. Games
need to be strictly classified and Internet bars that illegally solicit young
gamers must be severely punished," he said.
The online game industry, which will generate 2006 revenues of 1 billion
U.S. dollars, is likely to grow by 35.5 percent annually from 2006 to 2010,
according to statistics from China's General Administration of Press and
Publications (GAPP). Enditem
Editor: Pliny Han
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