'Plague Inc.' Has Been Pulled From The China App Store

Outbreak management sim Plague Inc. has been pulled from the China App Store. In a statement, the game's developer Ndemic Creations explained that the situation is out of its hands, and that the team is already working on ways to get the game back to Chinese players.

"We have some very sad news to share with our China based players," read the statement on the studio's website. "We've just been informed that Plague Inc. 'includes content that is illegal in China as determined by the Cyberspace Administration of China' and has been removed from the China App Store. This situation is completely out of our control."

Ndemic added that it's not sure if the removal of the game is linked to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak that China is dealing with, though it seems likely that this is the case. Sales of the game, which sees players attempt to spread a deadly virus across the globe as quickly and efficiently as possible, soared in China in the first few weeks of the outbreak.

This forced Ndemic to issue a warning to new players. The studio explained that, while Plague Inc. was designed to be realistic and informative, it certainly shouldn't be used as the sole tool to understand the coronavirus. Ndemic made it clear that anyone with concerns should always get their information from local and global health authorities, as "it's a game, not a scientific model".

With that said, Ndemic defended the game's educational merit in its most recent statement, stressing that "Plague Inc.'s educational importance has been repeatedly recognised by organisations like the CDC."

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"We are currently working with major global health organisations to determine how we can best support their efforts to contain and control COVID-19. Our immediate priority is to try and make contact with the Cyberspace Administration of China to understand their concerns and work with them to find a solution."

Ndemic ended its statement by assuring fans that nothing is changing outside of mainland china. The studio will continue to support Plague Inc. on all platforms, while also "working hard" to find a way to bring the game back to players in China.

Topics: PC