playBlog

One of the more interesting experiences we’ve had making our first game was getting ratings from the various international rating boards.

Basically, we created a 10-minute reel that had to show typical gameplay and highlight elements that the boards should take into account when rating the game (thus our plan of just showing the main menu and credits for 10 minutes was scuttled early).

We’ve always knew we’d have a challenge because we are a hardcore shooter with a goofy edge– we definitely didn’t want to go out as an “M” game, but we also know we’re not a good choice for those who dig The Wiggles (full disclosure: I stopped listening to them when David Lee Roth Sam Moran became lead singer).

Anyway, let it be on record that pre-schoolers should not be shooting other people in the face (either in games or in real life). In fact, we’ll go as far as to take a stand and say “especially in real life”.

So, anyway, we submitted the packages, crossed our fingers and hoped that they would think the images of faces getting shot off was suitable for appropriately-aged children.

Here are the results…

OFLC (Australia) - PG ["mild violence"]

I am actually a little insulted that we’re only getting a “mild violence” from the Aussies. “Mild”? Really? Someone remind me never to get into a sawblade fight in Australia– if this is “mild” to them, then melees there are apparently way more extreme than I would have expected.

PEGI (Europe, excluding Germany) - 7+ ["violence and fear"]

I like that we don’t just get a “violence” notice, but we also get “fear”. That’s awesome. Our game begets “FEAR”. Slightly more awesome than that is that “gaming fear” apparently only affects you until you are 6.

Them Europeans, man. They be hard core.

USK (Germany) - 12+

In order to distance themselves from the rest of the continent, the Germans figure they’ll create their own ratings board and just add 5 to the PEGI rating, it would seem.

Or maybe they’re overly sensitive because “Knight Rider” has gone off the air for the second time.

CERO (Japan) - 12+

There is no textual remark on the certificate justifying the rating, just a higlight of one terrifying icon of a severed hand holding a deadly shiv:

Because of this, I give the Japanese Rating Certificate a rating of 16+ ["implied iconic terror"]

GRB (Korea) - 12+

Similar to the Japanese, the Koreans go iconic with their justification:

Huh. I find it odd that they have a special icon for games that are based on Logan’s Run, and perhaps even odder that that’s the one we qualify for.

In retrospect, I wished we qualified for the “praying for transgenders” notice. Maybe next time.

ESRB (North America) - E10+ ["Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence"]

We’ve

We got some great news for our upcoming Madballs in…Babo:Invasion game today– the friendly folks at the ESRB have bestowed us the E(veryone) 10+ rating for Animated Blood and Fantasy Violence (and to be fair, we have lots and lots of both of those things).

It’s the rating we wanted all along, so we’re very happy about this.

Hopefully, the other ratings boards will give us similar ratings such that we may give everyone from pre-teens to grumpy old men all over the world the chance to spill some animated blood through fantastic violence.