Children under the age of 18 in China will only be able to play online games at set times, China's video game regulator has said.
The National Press and Publication Administration told state-run news agency Xinhua that playing times would only be allowed for an hour on Fridays, weekends, and holidays between 8pm to 9pm, the BBC reports.
It also instructed gaming companies to prevent children from playing outside these limited occasions.
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Inspections of gaming companies will increase as a result, in a bid to ensure time limits are being enforced, the regulator added.
The new rules come following earlier limits, which saw children's online gameplay reduced to 90 minutes per day, rising to three hours during the holidays.
It comes amid ongoing concerns about the impact of excessive gaming on the young.
What do you make of the move - should the UK do something similar? Have your say in our comments
Earlier this month, a state media outlet branded online games as "spiritual opium" while an article published by the state-run Economic Information Daily claimed many teenagers had become addicted to online gaming and it was having a negative impact on them.
The article prompted significant falls in the value of shares for some of China's biggest online gaming firms.
Meanwhile, Chinese gaming giant Tencent announced in July it was rolling out facial recognition to stop children from playing online during the nighttime, between the hours of 10pm and 8am.
