Hi everyone, we've begun to give games ratings so that you know if a game is appropriate for you or not.

The new ratings are Family and Teen. Family is for everyone, Teen is for 16+. This rating appears on the page for the game.







If you feel strongly that a game should be rated Teen, please complete the Complaint Form.

Safe gaming!

That's good. I know there have been some games with questionable content that I played, not realizing it. I dislike playing games like that, because I feel it takes away from the experience. I'll make sure to steer clear of those, because I don't find them very fun. Thanks!

Pretty *stares* Maybe I should see how many have already been rated T XD

awesome job!!
*goes to check the games* XD

Impressive. This might lessen up the worries of those who would download (and buy).

oh so this is the one if you are having probem with the game then? about the cards... nice! ^________^

Hmm, Teen is for 16+? I thought Teen is often 13+... Quintessence:TBV is rated Teen, but by that it seems to be 13+, so is it Family Friendly?

Everyone matures differently and can handle situations different; it's not like there is some magical day where you are suddenly ready for teen games.

The rating is just a guideline, so the player knows what to expect in the game.

Still, I find it very strange that Fatal Hearts is rated family friendly with all its blood and dark themes while Heileen, which is a simpler visual novel that is more love/crush/relationship-based, is rated Teen.

I haven't played Fatal Hearts so I can't comment on that game but I can see why Heileen would be rated Teen. It didn't bother me but there are a few less than innocent scenes in it that wouldn't be kid-friendly. But like Amanda said, if you strongly feel that a game should be rated Teen, you can use the complaint form.

I've played Fatal Hearts and that game is definitely teen, same goes for Heileen

It's possible some games haven't been rated yet. If you feel a game should have a particular rating, please use the form Amanda linked to in her first post to notify her.

This is a good idea.

Though, maybe putting in a half-way point would be good, too? Like "Family-Friendly", "13+", and "Teen"? Because there may be a not-so Family-Friendly game, but it wouldn't be suggested for only 16+, either. Just saying.

That's a good point. There are a lot of games that might be appropriate for one age of teenager, and another for another age. An in-between rating would be useful.

Don't think of it as "what age is teen?" Think of it as "is this appropriate for children?" (family-friendly) "or for a more mature audience?"

Well, the thing is, there are multiple levels of "appropriate". The current ratings system leaves out an important category of mid-appropriate. Like, what happens if a game is just not quite appropriate for all, but not super inappropriate. I think that another rating might make the system more fleshed out and less likely that a little kid might get a less than innocent game or something. =/

Exactly.

Like, what if there's a game that is really only appropriate for someone with a maturity level of 12+. But, since it's closer to "Family Friendly" or something, they consider it "Family Friendly". A nine-year old thinks it looks cool, buys it, downloads it- Uh-oh. (probably won't happen, just an example)

Personally, I think the two rating is fine. If you use too many categories, it gets difficult to know which label to use since different people have different opinions of what is appropriate and not appropriate.

IMO you're not a young adult until you reach 16. Everything else is moot

Yeah, I don't see the issue with having only 2 ratings.

Having too many gets confusing. Sides, maturity is NOT by age. You can have adults who are highly immature and you can have kids who are mature.

I think Family friendly (ie G rating) and teen content (pg-Pg13) are just fine. I mean, the system works ~okay with movies (even if I find some of their decisions to be highly arbitrary but that's off topic).

(note: my game/movie rating sensitivity is offline since my parents have been dragging me to pg13-R films since I was tiny. rofl)