Minecraft Sparks Debate on 'Shutdown System' Abolition... Political Circles in Motion

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] Minecraft, which is popular among teenagers, is on the verge of becoming essentially an adult-only game due to the Shutdown Law, prompting active movements to abolish the Shutdown Law, especially within the political sphere.

According to political circles on the 9th, Heo Eun-ah, a member of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee from the People Power Party, will hold a seminar titled “Abolition of the Game Shutdown Law and Guarantee of Parental Autonomy” on the 13th at the Federation of Korean Industries in Yeouido, Seoul. The seminar will discuss plans to abolish the mandatory Shutdown Law and also address government policy directions aimed at developing the gaming industry.

The effectiveness of the Shutdown Law has been controversial for a long time. In particular, regarding the main rationale of the system, “preventing game addiction,” it has been continuously pointed out that there are many ways to circumvent the law, such as teenagers using their parents’ IDs or downloading content through overseas accounts, and that uniform access blocking cannot prevent game addiction.

Regarding claims that the system is necessary to guarantee teenagers’ right to sleep, a study by the Korea Creative Content Agency reported no significant correlation between gamers’ sleep time and game usage time, weakening the argument.

Minecraft has become a catalyst for renewed political interest in the Shutdown Law. Microsoft, which supplies the Minecraft Java Edition, recently announced a restriction on users under 19 years old only in Korea. Since it is difficult to distinguish who is subject to the Shutdown Law, they decided to block usage altogether.

In response, the Naver Minecraft fan cafe “Uridului Minecraft Gonggan” issued a statement saying, “Compared to overseas efforts to develop the gaming industry, Korea is shrinking the industry despite being an IT powerhouse and gaming powerhouse due to the enforcement of the Shutdown Law,” and warned, “If this continues, even Minecraft, once considered an educational and creative game and a leader in the metaverse, will fall into an unprecedented adult-only game market.”

Both ruling and opposition parties in the National Assembly are pushing for the abolition of the Shutdown Law. On the 5th, Representative Heo introduced the “Forced Shutdown Law Abolition and Game Perception Improvement Act (Partial Amendment to the Youth Protection Act),” which changes the term “game addiction” to “game over-immersion.” In the ruling Democratic Party, Representative Jeon Yong-gi has proposed a bill to abolish the Shutdown Law, and Representative Kang Hoon-sik has proposed a bill to ease it.

Presidential candidates are also supporting the abolition of the Shutdown Law. Jeong Se-gyun, a Democratic Party presidential pre-candidate, said, “The future cannot be regulated. Minecraft, a game enjoyed by more than 150 million people worldwide, is now subject to Shutdown regulations,” and criticized, “In this era of innovation, the ministry’s inertia is holding back the gaming industry.” Pre-candidate Lee Nak-yeon also supported the move, saying, “Korea is the birthplace of e-sports and the country with the most championships. I hope the government considers abolishing the youth Shutdown Law.”