Update: A Microsoft spokesperson responded to PC Gamer's request for comment, saying, "The transition of Minecraft from Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts is underway globally: including players in Korea, the transition from Mojang accounts to Microsoft accounts globally, including players in South Korea. We are working on a long-term solution for existing and new players under 19 in Korea and will provide more details later this year." He stated.

Original article Minecraft, an incredibly kid-friendly sandbox game, has been handed an essentially adult-only age rating in South Korea.

This bizarre restriction stems from the country's "Cinderella Law," which shuts out children and teenagers who want to play the game with their peers until the wee hours. This law, which has been in effect since 2011, prohibits anyone under the age of 16 from playing online video games between midnight and 6 a.m. (Thanks, GamesIndustry.biz).

Instead of bothering to implement after-hours screening and separate servers for Xbox Live, Microsoft changed its Korean policy in 2012, requiring that anyone wishing to create an account must be at least 19 years old. in Minecraft, with a Mojang account that does not require age verification This has not affected the game so far, as it allows users to sign in with a Mojang account, which does not require age verification.

That has now changed, with Minecraft's official website warning players in December 2020 that they must sign in with an Xbox Live account to access the game. While this transition was initially voluntary, an additional warning for South Korea appeared in March, telling that anyone wishing to purchase the game must be at least 19 years old. As such, "Minecraft" is currently rated 12 or older by the country's Game Rating Management Board, but the rating was raised to 18 or older when signing in to Xbox Live became mandatory.

Understandably, many Korean players are quite upset about this. A petition posted on the government's official website has garnered over 88,000 signatures, demanding that South Korea repeal the Cinderella Act and Minecraft's inadvertent restrictions.

"The (law) has finally reached Minecraft, which is considered the epitome of educational and creative games," a machine translation of the petition says."

"South Korea will be [the only gaming market] where even Minecraft will be reduced to an adult game.

The petition argues that the curfew is unnecessary and ignores the benefits that games bring to youth. It also points out how easily this law can be circumvented. Microsoft has yet to comment.

In more positive news, an ultra-rare version of Minecraft that has been running for less than four hours was recently found on a Twitter user's dusty old hard drive.