China’s Ministry of Culture disputes rumors that game console ban could be lifted

It seems China won’t be lifting its long-running ban on video game consoles anytime soon. The Dongfang Daily spoke to representatives from the country’s Ministry of Culture, who underscored that doing away with the ban hasn’t come under consideration. That’s sure to disappoint gamers in China after, just days ago, their hopes were raised when an anonymous government source told the state-run China Daily that discussions to “open up the game console market” were ongoing.

The representatives also emphasized that undoing the ban — which has been in effect for over a decade — wouldn’t be up to the Ministry of Culture alone. Rather, it’s a complex process that necessitates input from various influential parties. Sources for the original China Daily story echoed that sentiment, suggesting that agreement would have to be reached on all sides for the console ban to be dismissed once and for all.