PUBG Has Been Banned In Jordan And It Probably Won't Be Alone

It seems that violent games like PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds will always be at the center of some sort of controversy. Ever since PUBG became the immensely popular force of gaming it is today, various governments around the world have taken aim at it. Jordan is the latest to do so, with the country's Telecommunications Regulatory Authority announcing that is has made the decision to ban PUBG.

In a statement published to the TRC's website, the organization says that it has received a "many comments and complaints from a large number of citizens and some concerned authorities about the negative impact of the game." It went on to explain that it based this decision in part on study from the World Health Organization that names PUBG as a violent game that leads to addiction and social isolation in children playing it.

GamesIndustry, which uncovered the TRC's statement, notes that it isn't aware of such a report. The WHO hasn't remained silent on gaming, though – earlier this year the WHO did recognize gaming disorder as a legitimate issue, which it classifies as "a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior, which may be online or offline." While that doesn't seem to call out violent games directly, it does cover TRC's concerns over potential addiction.

In any case, PUBG doesn't seem to be the only game that the TRC has in its sights. In an interview with local outlet Roya News, TRC Director of Beneficiaries Affairs Eng. Mohammad AlWathiq Shaqrah claimed that the organization is planning to ban as many as six other games, including PUBG's chief competitor Fortnite.

So, if this ban in Jordan ends up sticking, it sounds like PUBG will eventually be in good company. Jordan isn't alone in taking issue with PUBG – just recently, PUBG Mobile was replaced in China by the government-approved Game for Peace, though the two titles share a lot of similarities with one another. This probably won't be the last we hear of governments around the world hitting PUBG with a ban either, so stay tuned for more.