Post by leunas on Dec 26, 2006 23:43:57 GMT -5
Gamers in Finland better start taking a good look at those age ratings a little more closely, as the Finnish government has tweaked their media classification system to make Pan-European Game Information ratings (PEGI) equivalent to actual laws.
The Finnish Parliament decided to move the power for rating games from their movie ratings group, the Finnish Board of Film Classification, to the PEGI. In a nutshell, Finnish law will now reference PEGI ratings almost exclusively with regard to their laws on video game regulation. This is some sobering news for those gamers who were hoping to grab an 18 rated game, at least in Europe.
This also makes some changes to Finnish game ratings in general. Game Politics notes in their coverage that Finland's previously given age ratings of 11 or 15 will now be rated as 12 or 16, as per PEGI's standard. It doesn't seem so bad, given that's it's only a few months difference, but conscientious parents might just keep some games away from previously eligible gamers.
There is one bright side to this, however, as some games that are normally rated as Teen by America's Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) happen to have much lower ratings with PEGI. If you're in an area under PEGI jurisdiction, then you can find amusement in knowing that a game like Need for Speed: Carbon has a 3 rating there compared to ESRB's Teen rating.
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