(FORTUNE Magazine) – Is there no limit to the amount of time, energy, and money people will expend on multiplayer videogames? In the U.S., obsessive online gamers are spending so much real money to get ahead in their virtual worlds that a new gray market has sprung up--fantasy lands are sustaining actual careers. And new consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony promise even greater levels of addiction--er, enjoyment. But perhaps there is a limit. In China, at least, the government is taking steps to curtail playing time, and the press revels in accounts of bad behavior (even murder) linked to gaming. That's prompting Shanda, China's biggest gaming company, to remake itself as an entertainment conglomerate, maybe even the new Disney. To enter this strange new world, turn the page.