Gamer in Asia: 5 essentials for surviving the Chinese internet cafe

I’ve made no secret of my distaste for the MOBA genre, but for the last few weeks I have spent a considerable amount of time honing my MOBA skills. It’s my hope that an increase in proficiency with the games will lead to enjoyment, or at least, less mind-numbing boredom. It was on Wednesday night that I decided it was time for a change of scenery; if I was going to learn MOBAs in China, I might as well visit the Mecca of MOBAs. That’s right, the infamous Chinese internet café, also known as the wang ba (网吧).

Now I am no stranger to the wang ba. When I first came to China in my impoverished, post-university days, it was here that I got my gaming fix. I am somewhat of a veteran on that battlefield, and I know the preparations required for a good wang ba visit. Below are the 5 things you will need for your expedition into the unknown.

(See: Gaming madness in china: beatings, beatings, and a little peeing in internet cafes)

1) Your passport

It is easier for me to enter France than it is for me to enter a wang ba, because new rules mean that all wang ba occupants need to register with an ID. I went to the cheapest, nastiest wang ba I could find, and they still enforced this draconian rule.

Do not forget your passport.

As far as I can tell, this information doesn’t go anywhere, but if you are planning on sending seditious, anti-party emails from a wang ba computer, you might want to reconsider. For those only looking to harmlessly kill online opponents, it’s just a minor inconvenience. That being said, take good care of your passport in these places, because you would not be the first person to suddenly realise that you passport has been pilfered and you are left ID-less in China. At that point, your League of Legends kill-death ratio will be the least of your worries.

(See: Gamer in Asia: how to buy a console in China)

2) A Chinese ID number

Online games on Chinese servers need you to register with a Chinese ID number, forcing foreign gamers to turn to a life of petty forgery. This actually sounds like a much bigger deal than it is; there are many methods to get an ID number.