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Ministry of Culture issues new regulations prohibiting "unwholesome" content, requiring online players to register with their real names.

The Chinese government takes a hands-on approach to its game industry, mandating things like what kind of content can appear in games or how long people can play them. A new set of regulations continues that trend, notably banning minors from participating in virtual currency systems common in microtransaction-driven games.

Chinese minors are still able to play games such as Free Realms, but they won 't be able to buy new items and features.

According to Xinhua News Agency , the new regulations will prohibit "unwholesome" content, require companies to develop methods of limiting playtime of minors to prevent addiction, ban those under 18 from using virtual currency, and require that online players register with their real names. While it's unclear exactly how broad the government's definition of "unwholesome" will be, the law specifically prohibits online games from advocating violence, pornography, gambling, cults, or superstitions. The regulations were announced by the Ministry of Culture this week and will take effect August 1.

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