According to the official Xinhua news agency, China has enjoined websites featuring or publicizing online games which glamorize mafia gangs, saying violators will be "severely punished." The Culture Ministry said such games "advocate obscenity, gambling, or violence," and "undermine morality and Chinese traditional culture."

"The ministry ordered its law enforcement bodies to step up oversight and harshly punish those sites that continue to run such games," the report said, citing a ministry circular.

China has about 200 million online game players and more than 300 million Internet users, the largest number in the world. Thus, according to officials, the online game industry in China is expected to grow by between 30 % and 50 % this year, with a sales revenue of 24 billion yuan ($3.51 billion) to 27 billion yuan.

Furthermore, the Chinese government has closed hundreds of websites in an ongoing crackdown on online porn and "vulgar content" that in some cases has netted dissident sites. The campaign is part of a broader tightening of the media ahead of October's 60th anniversary of the founding of Communist China. However, the government backed down on a plan to require that Green Dam filter software be pre-installed on all new computers to block supposedly pornographic or other vulgar content.