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Gamers bracing for Apex Legends to be censored in China

Electronic Arts’ partner Tencent already replaced PUBG Mobile in China with a more patriotic battle royale game

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Even without an official release in China, Apex Legends is still popular with gamers there. (Picture: EA)
This article originally appeared on ABACUS

For a country obsessed with battle royale games, you’d think that EA’s decision to bring Apex Legends to China would be celebrated. They’re even making a mobile version in a country dominated by smartphone gamers. That’s good news, right? Well, not necessarily.

How Fortnite and PUBG made battle royale the hottest trend in gaming

Rather than celebrating EA's announcement, many Chinese gamers have been jeering the announcement online.
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“For the Chinese version of the game, I think a good name is ‘Peace One Belt One Road Legends.’ Does this have enough socialist core values? Does it sound like the melody of socialism?" a Weibo user wrote.
Chinese gamers are cynical because EA's Chinese partner Tencent recently killed its most popular battle royale game PUBG Mobile in China. In its wake, Tencent released Game for Peace, a wholesome, hyper-patriotic shooting title nearly identical to its predecessor.

PUBG, the battle royale pioneer

However, to please China’s censors, Game for Peace is positioned as a military training exercise game. It’s littered with propaganda for the Chinese government and the Chinese Air Force, as opposed to the more anarchic feel of traditional battle royale. It also removes the blood and gore, replacing it with people who wave goodbye and vanish into thin air (instead of just dying valiantly in battle like a true warrior).

It’s no wonder gamers are worried about what a Chinese release of Apex Legends might look like.

Even without an official release in China, Apex Legends is still popular with gamers there. (Picture: EA)
Even without an official release in China, Apex Legends is still popular with gamers there. (Picture: EA)
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“I advise Apex Legends to collaborate with the Chinese Navy and be renamed Huawei Legends,” one Weibo user sarcastically suggested.
EA hasn’t specified how it will bring Apex Legends to China, but the company has reportedly been in talks with Tencent about it. This is perhaps the most natural route for the game to get a China release since Tencent, the largest gaming company in the world, already publishes other EA titles in the country.
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