Balatro’s PEGI 18+ Rating Overturned After Developer Appeal

Poker-themed roguelite Balatro gets reclassified from its original PEGI 18 (Pan European Game Information) rating to PEGI 12 status due to a successful appeal submitted by the game’s publisher, Sold Out Sales & Marketing.

Released as a deck-building roguelike, Balatro incorporates poker mechanics but wraps them in a fictional world, making use of creative elements that soften the focus on gambling. A year ago, the game faced a significant setback when it was removed from sale in some countries due to PEGI’s initial ruling, which stated the game “contains prominent gambling imagery and materials that instruct about gambling.” However, developers from Localthunk, the studio behind the game, pushed back, criticizing the rating as overly harsh given the game’s imaginative setting.

It is worth noting that PEGI is a rating system that helps consumers make informed choices about the content of video games based on age appropriateness. Its main goal is to give players, particularly parents, guidance on whether a game is suitable for children and what themes or content may be present. The system includes ratings from PEGI 3 (for young children) to PEGI 18 (for adult content). The PEGI rating considers various factors such as violence, sexual content, drug use, and, in the case of Balatro, gambling.

The Balatro case follows a similar reclassification of Luck Be A Landlord, another title that was adjusted from a PEGI 18 rating to PEGI 12 due to the inclusion of fantastical and non-realistic gambling elements. PEGI has now announced that, based on these recent cases, the PEGI Experts Group will create more nuanced guidelines for categorizing games that feature gambling themes. The updated criteria will allow for a more flexible approach, incorporating age ratings as low as PEGI 12 for games with simulated gambling while still maintaining the higher PEGI 18 for titles that reflect more realistic gambling scenarios, such as those seen in casinos.

A couple of games were less lucky with PEGI, as Balatro and Luck Be A Landlord. Lords of the Fallen was initially rated as PEGI 16. However, after further review of the game’s content, including its violence and mature themes, its rating was updated to PEGI 18 in certain regions. Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 was also initially rated as PEGI 16. However, after public outcry and further examination of the game’s mature themes and sexual content, its rating was increased to PEGI 18.