Video Game Ratings Part I

Since the adoption of movie ratings in 1968, we have placed age appropriate labels on everything from music to TV programs. With every industry doing things differently, it's easy to get confused about what your child is ready for. Regardless of whether your child is or is not ready for more mature movies or cd's, they might not be ready for mature video games.

The Entertainment Software Rating Board http://www.esrb.org/ was established in 1994 to help parents determine which video and online games were appropriate for their children. To date they have rated over 7000 games for Nintendo, Sega, Sony and others.

Currently there are 6 ratings: early childhood, everyone, teen, mature, adults only, and rating pending. There are also 25 content descriptions that will be listing somewhere on the box. These include blood and gore, use of tobacco and alcohol, suggestive themes, and mild violence.

"Early Childhood" is appropriate for a child 3 and up. There is nothing contained in the game that parents should find offensive.

"Everyone" is geared toward 6 year olds and up. Even so, these games may contain violence and crude humor. Starting with the "Everyone" label, it is important for parents to look at the Content Description labels.

"Teen" games are appropriate for the average 13 year old on up. Violence, strong language, and suggestive themes often appear in teen games.

"Mature" games are for persons 17 years of age and older. Violence and language are generally stronger than in teen games, as is sexual content.

"Adult" means 18 or older. Some parents might not understand what difference one year makes, but adult games can depict graphic sex and violence. These aren't games for mature kids, these are games for ADULTS. Where "Mature" games are similar to R movies, it is safe to say that "Adult Only" is similar to an X rated film.

There is also "Rating Pending" which means that the ESRB has not rated the product yet. This is NOT an X rating, and doesn't mean the game is bad for children. It is merely the absence of a rating.

The rating a letter receives makes up only half of what the ESRB does. They also list a variety of situations in a game that parents might find undesirable. These are called "content descriptions." If the game is rated, any content descriptions the ESRB believes apply to the game will be found somewhere on the package.

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