Eye-field

目田 (mù tián) eye-field

“‘Freedom’” beheaded becomes “eye-field.’”

“The people do not need freedom.” —Eye-Field Clan King (Weibo)

“Freedom” (自由 zìyóu) minus the topmost portion of each character in the word. “Eye-field” was invented by World of Warcraft (WoW) players in China. In the summer of 2010, gamers were dismayed to learn that many words were blocked in the latest version of the WoW Chinese server [Chinese], including some that were part of their characters’ names. This caused difficulty logging in, annoying many who had spent considerable time developing their characters. “Freedom” was among the newly-blocked words, so “eye-field” was used as both a substitute and a veiled jab at the government.

Netizens sometimes write about the eye-field clan king (目田氏王), who, with one small change made to each character in his name, becomes “freedom and democracy” (自由民主). The “clan king eye-field” (氏王目田) appears frequently as well.

Example:

省略号级暴打wotagei型: Ocean sails rely on the helmsman. Living things rely on the sun to grow. Hong Kong shitizens rely on "clan king eye-field" thought. (November 3, 2014)

大海航行靠舵手，万物生长靠太阳，港灿P民靠的是氏王目田思想 [Chinese]