Sony blames censorship blamed for soft Chinese PS4 sales

We don’t know how many games consoles have been sold in China – but the noises coming from Sony suggest it isn’t as many as had been hoped.

SCE CEO Andrew House has told Reuters that the region’s famously strict censorship rules have proved a hurdle for PS4 in the potentially huge market.

"We are still challenged somewhat with a censorship regime that we have to work with. This can be time-consuming," House explained. "I don’t think it has been a kind of a rocket launch start."

Both PS4 and Xbox One have been released in the country, while Nintendo has seemingly opted out of launching in China. In July it was estimated that between them PS4 and Xbox might manage 550k console unit sales by the end of the year.

Yesterday Sony announced a 17 per cent price cut for PS4 in China. There have also been indications that the currently quite regimented requirements for selling game hardware in the country are to be eased.

The Shanghai Culture Department ban the release of any games containing the following content:

• Gambling-related content or game features
• Anything that violates China’s constitution
• Anything that threatens China’s national unity, sovereignty, or territorial integrity.
• Anything that harms the nation’s reputation, security, or interests.
• Anything that instigates racial/ethnic hatred, or harms ethnic traditions and cultures.
• Anything that violates China’s policy on religion by promoting cults or superstitions.
• Anything that promotes or incites obscenity, drug use, violence, or gambling.
• Anything that harms public ethics or China’s culture and traditions.
• Anything that insults, slanders, or violates the rights of others.
• Other content that violates the law