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Animal Crossing: New Horizons was released back in March 2020, and it became a major hit almost immediately. However, the Chinese community was denied the right to enjoy this life-simulation title, since it was never officially released in the country.
However, this fact has baffled many in the Animal Crossing community for years now. Why was Animal Crossing: New Horizons never released in China and why was it banned from its gray market as well? The reasons behind this move were purely political.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons was banned in China for political reasons
For years, Chinese activists have been taking to the streets to protest against the nation's overwhelming grip on the former British colony. These protests have often led to a lot of violence as well. These protests were not limited to the streets and found their way into the internet as well, where people posted about the protests to increase awareness. Chinese gamers also took to the virtual gaming platform to increase awareness and continue their protests.
New Horizons allows players to create custom designs in the game and also speak to other players in the same server. Chinese players used these features to spread awareness and continue their protests within the Nintendo title, holding virtual protests along with other players in the same server region.
It is worth noting that New Horizons was never officially released in China. However, players found different ways to purchase and access the game through the nation's gray market, and used it to protest for their democratic rights.
Unfortunately, the Chinese government soon imposed a strict censorship across the nation, wherein the only servers available to players were those of their native Tencent. Even then, many players have found their way around the ban, obtaining foreign Switches or searching for the correct keywords to access the title on their existing Switch.
It is highly unlikely that China will ever lift the ban from New Horizons, since the customization features are one of the primary attractions of the title. However, as always, ardent fans of the title will find their way around all obstacles to design their very own New Horizons island.
