Last year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified gaming as a disorder in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). According to ICD-11, people with gaming disorders are unable to control the amount of time they spend playing video/digital games.
New Delhi: PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), the mobile game that has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, has finally released in-game health warnings. PUBG had been banned in certain cities of India, and players were jailed in Rajkot earlier this month.
Last year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classified gaming as a disorder in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). According to ICD-11, people with gaming disorders are unable to control the amount of time they spend playing video/digital games. These people also allot more time to gaming as opposed to other everyday activities and get shrouded by negativity. It is also because of the fact that PUBG is a violent game.
Also read: You can be arrested for playing PUBG in these cities
There have been several reports of untoward incidents in the country as a result of PUBG addiction. Two youths were recently mowed down by a train in Maharashtra while they were engrossed in PUBG. Although the makers of PUBG have issued statements that the game is merely for entertainment, the addiction of PUBG has reached new heights.
Also read: Fatal obsession for PUBG: Youths engrossed in video game mowed down by train
Now in what seems to be a move to ensure accountability, PUBG has apparently come up with in-game health warnings and started locking out users after a certain number of game play hours. While some people have reported to have been locked out after four hours of gaming, some have been locked out after six hours.
According to screenshots shared by players, the game now also gives advice on the sitting posture that needs to be adopted while playing, reminds players to stay hydrated, asks players to take a walk after every 45 minutes to help blood circulation and constantly tells players that PUBG is only a game.
Interestingly, the game is also believed to ask if the player has attained 18 years of age. The number of hours allowed to play might be dependent on how old the player is.
PUBG has not released any official word about the warnings, but several gamers have taken to social media to post screenshots of warning messages.
Statutory warnings may be a strategy adopted by the makers of PUBG to get the ban on the game in certain Indian cities removed. PUBG officials have released a statement in response to the ban and have said they wished to have "a constructive dialogue with the relevant authorities and explain the objectives of the game to withdraw the prohibition".
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