Age Verification and Playtime Restrictions in Asia

Asia has become the global laboratory for aggressive regulation of minors’ access to online games, with China, South Korea, and Vietnam implementing some of the world’s most restrictive playtime and verification regimes. China’s measures are the most stringent: since 2021, minors under 18 are only allowed to play video games for one hour on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays. Enforcement relies on real-name verification, identification documents, and even facial recognition, with devices and applications integrating a “minor mode” that automatically restricts access when time limits are reached. By the end of 2022, approximately 75% of Chinese teenagers reportedly spent less than three hours per week gaming .

South Korea’s approach has evolved significantly. The country once enforced a “Shutdown Law” prohibiting children under 16 from playing online games between midnight and 6 AM, but repealed it in 2021 due to the proliferation of mobile devices that rendered the regulation obsolete. Instead, South Korea shifted to a parental control mechanism that allows parents or guardians to choose and register their children’s playtime. Japan has taken a softer approach, relying on industry self-regulation and warnings during gameplay; the Kagawa Prefecture once suggested that people under 20 should only play for 60 minutes on weekdays and 90 minutes on weekends, though there is no enforcement mechanism. Vietnam is now considering limiting children under 16 to 60 minutes of gaming per day across all games from a single company, down from the current 180 minutes, alongside requirements that social media accounts of under-16s be registered and managed by parents or guardians using a verified Vietnamese mobile phone number .

These restrictions have profound implications for game developers and platform operators. Real-name verification systems require significant technical infrastructure and data collection, raising privacy concerns under laws like the GDPR and Indonesia’s Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) . The effectiveness of such measures remains debated; Australia’s social media ban for under-16s, implemented in December 2025, saw over 85% of children still using social media three months later, prompting the government to propose doubling maximum fines for non-compliant companies to AUD 99 million . The UK is considering similar restrictions on online games and live streaming services, including limiting app usage time and implementing online curfews. For the gaming industry, the trend is unmistakable: age verification and playtime controls are becoming mandatory compliance requirements, not optional safeguards