Online gaming and fighting corruption might sound like an
unlikely pairing, but in one part of the country they are now just
a click apart.
The local government in east China's Zhejiang Province recently
launched the nation's first-ever cyber game to combine
anti-corruption education and entertainment.
Incorruptible Fighter, which can be accessed via www.cnlzyx.cn, is the story of a
man who fights corrupt officials and purifies himself by improving
morality and ethics.
After weathering various hardships and weeding out the bad guys,
he finally gets to embrace a corruption-free world in which people
live peacefully.
As the game progresses, the character wins credits by punishing
corrupt officials and assisting upright ones. He must also seek to
improve his own morality within the virtual world.
Instead of looking for jewels or magic potions, players in this
game must learn about culture, history and local folklore to
progress to higher levels.
"We want game players to have fun but also learn about fighting
corruption, folklore and history," said Qiu Yi, an official with
the Ximen Sub-District office, Haishu District in the affluent city
of Ningbo, which is in charge of the online game project.
The game's 165 characters, both good and bad, are modeled on
well-known historical figures from Chinese history.
In addition, all of the scenery featured in the game has been
copied from real landscapes in Ningbo, which heightens the reality
for the players, Qiu said.
Even local delicacies and handicrafts that are found in Ningbo
are used as the various props and magic potions in the game.
One gamer surnamed Sun said: "I feel a great sense of
achievement when I punish lots of evil officials. And it's fun to
see so many familiar scenes depicted in a cyber game."
The game's creators made a special effort to avoid any gory or
bloody scenes, and the game service is cut automatically after two
hours of consecutive play, in line with the national policy to help
prevent youngsters becoming addicted to online gaming.
Since its launch on July 25, more than 7,000 people have
registered to play the game, Hua Tong, one of the principal
developers, said.
Such has been the level of interest that the website is
currently undergoing a redesign to accommodate as many players as
possible.
But some experts have questioned the value of the game in
helping to fight real corruption.
"Government officials should be the ones getting anti-corruption
education, not local youngsters," Wang Xiongjun, a researcher in
governance at Peking University, said.
(China Daily August 2, 2007)