Privacy@lemmy.mlby64bithero@lemmy.world
9 hours

Am I crazy not to trust Chinese developed games ?

There is no question over the last 10 years the quality and production level of Chinese developed games has seem to sky rocket. Many of these games even being free to play. But honestly I haven’t played a single one. For the same reasons I refused to download TikTok.

China is a well known surveillance state. I worry downloading and playing these games especially on a PC or mobile phone would just be a huge privacy risk.

Am I being to paranoid ? Are there some regulations I’m not aware of that might protect me anyway ?

I feel like I’m missing out on some really high quality visually striking games because of it

43
    • Auli@lemmy.caEnglish
      2 hours

      Do you not trust American made games?

    • BrainInABox@lemmy.mlEnglish
      1 hour

      I should not say crazy so much as racist. The idea of a westerner calling China a “well known surveillance state” without irony is farcical. What exactly are you worried will happen?

    • dwt@feddit.orgDeutsch
      2 hours

      I would say you are not paranoid, but the reasons you have equally apply to non Chinese Games and social networks.

      So to be consistent, either not play Games and get off of social networks, or do it.

    • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
      3 hours

      China isn’t any more of a surveillance state than the US and Europe already. Why would a Chinese game be any worse than the ways you’re spied on by people that can actually do something with your data? Wherever you live, assuming it isn’t China, your data is already being collected by people far more capable of doing something about it if they found something they didn’t like, and far more interested in doing so.

      Let’s face it, the CPC almost certainly doesn’t care about you, and it would be better for the PRC to have your data than your local government and corporations, that do care far more about you. I don’t see why fearing a developing socialist state so much makes any sense.

      • AlHouthi4President@lemmy.ml
        1 hour

        My question for the yankees who worry about “Chinese technology spying” on them: Can the CPC send death squads to your house?

      • UltraGiGaGigantic@lemmy.mlEnglish
        3 hours

        Im not meant to harbor hatred in my heart, but here we are living in the hater multiverse. When in Rome…

    • redrum@lemmy.ml
      7 hours

      Am I being to paranoid ?

      No, you are not enough paranoid if you don’t have the same or worse concerns about games developed in western countries. e.g. five eyes alliance.

      • arcterus@piefed.blahaj.zoneEnglish
        6 hours

        I think this is true for all games that access the internet. However, it seems an especially large number of Chinese games that make it to the West require an internet connection to function. Sometimes it makes sense (multiplayer mechanics, gacha, etc.), sometimes it doesn’t at all (some relatively popular single-player RPGs with no online play require a connection just to make a save file, for example).

        This is just to say I understand people being concerned if all they see are these Chinese online-required games everywhere when they can also find some random completely offline game made in America, Europe, Japan, etc. just as easily (or even a game with an optional online mode that can be disabled without the game breaking).

        • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
          3 hours

          Western games do this tol, though, even where it doesn’t make sense to. It isn’t a China specific thing, and China has less of an ability to do anything malicious with that data than your local governments and corpos.

    • RisingSwell@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      6 hours

      China isn’t going to spy on you any more than American games. Not saying they won’t, but like, you have a phone? That’s more of a privacy issue by itself than almost any game you could play.

    • asdasd201@lemmygrad.mlEnglish
      6 hours

      Are you also concerned over the Western states surveilling you from the games?

      • Lenin's Dumbbell @lemmygrad.ml
        6 hours

        I have a feeling this person has never considered doubting Western countries. Whether they know it or not, it’s the result of Western exceptionalism. The average Westerner believes their countries and institutions exist for good, and their enemies are inherently evil

        • SocialistVibes01@lemmy.ml
          4 hours

          The efficient propaganda, when the lambs can’t even say they were fed with it their entire lives

    • GasMaskedLunatic@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      8 hours

      The Chinese government should be no more a concern for privacy than any other government. The only one worse than any other for you specifically is the one in which you reside, which would be able to make the best use of that data. The only exception is if you’re a dissident or target of a foreign country.

      Security and economic contribution are a different beast.

      • Zerush@lemmy.ml
        6 hours

        Worse for an western gamer that big western companies logs their data, than that China do it, in China nobody gives a fuck of personal data from western users. Different for Chinese gamers.

    • monovergent@lemmy.ml
      9 hours

      There’s always the risk of spying if a game requires an internet connection, no matter who published it, but unless you plan to be in China later on, there’s not much that Chinese companies (or authorities, if that is of concern) can do with the data collected on you.

      I suppose some company could sell that data back to a US firm in a roundabout way. Anyway, take what I say with a grain of salt since I’ve hardly played or looked into any games requiring an internet connection.

    • MachineFab812@discuss.tchncs.de
      6 hours

      Crazy to game on anything you trust with important data in general. Same for internet browsing-in-general though. Good Luck.