Why is Minecraft not allowed to be played in South Korea until age 19? – review addiction

Sandbox Minecraft, which is often called “Lego online ”is a game that is rated 7+ almost all over the world and is often used in the school curriculum. Everywhere, except for South Korea: there it is actually awarded an R rating, and access is prohibited to those who have not reached the age of 19.

The roots of this oddity go back to 2011 – in the so-called “Cinderella Law”, which prohibits children under 16 years of age to be in online games from midnight to six in the morning. The law hit services like Playstation network and Xbox livebut did not affect console and mobile games.

Operators had to look for ways to restrict access to their games, but the new system could be incompatible with the old servers. And instead of opening new servers, Microsoft simply imposed an age limit: it took 19 years or more to play on Xbox Live.

Korean teens, however, could still play Minecraft Java Edition through their accounts. Mojang Studios, not Xbox Live. But recently, due to security concerns, Microsoft began asking users to transfer their Mojang Studios accounts to Xbox Live.

Thus, Minecraft “received” an R rating overnight.

The Cinderella Law is still in effect, although its effectiveness is regularly challenged by one or the other party or commission. In particular, studies have shown that the sleep time of adolescents has increased by only 90 seconds since its introduction. But cybersportsmen suffered, for whom it became more difficult to train.

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