Industry body proposes changes to games rating system

The Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (Elspa) has proposed a solution to the games ratings controversy.

The video games consortium has suggested a 'traffic light'-type system, similar to the ones used on food labels, as part of its voluntary games ratings code. It said this will “remove the potential for confusion” for parents buying video games.

A representative for Elspa said: “The world of gaming is fast moving and it is vital that we have a clear ratings system that is up to date with consumers’ needs. It has already been proven that everyone understands traffic light labelling, making it the perfect scheme for the industry to adopt.”

The move follows a Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) consultation to decide a standardised ratings system. This stems from a Government-commissioned report earlier in the year by child psychologist Tanya Byron.

She said the current two-tier system is confusing to parents. It uses the PEGI (Pan European Game Information) ratings system, which rates games as suitable for ages 3+, 7+, 12+, 16+ or 18+ as well as using a number of icons to indicate content such as sex or violence.

Some games are also rated by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). As with films, these are given an age rating of 18, 15, 12, PG (Parental Guidance) and U (Universal).

Dr Byron advised the introduction of a two-part system in which games are inspected by both the BBFC and by industry body PEGI before being released. BBFC logos would appear on the front of games boxes and PEGI logos on the back.

Elspa's proposal would maintain the PEGI procedure and age limits, but said it has taken a lead from the food industry by adding 'traffic light' colours. Higher age limits would be red, with more general audience titles tagged green.

Mike Rawlinson, Elspa managing director, said, “We're offering this idea as a direct consequence of the Byron review; the system needs to remove the potential for confusion and this is what we're doing. The system provided by PEGI is very robust, but we want to make it clearer that something that's for adults only should have that warning colour with it."

However, this was not welcomed by the BBFC. Sue Clark, a representative for the organisation, dismissed the effort, saying that colour was not the prevalent issue in the debate.

"There is a system in place already which people know and understand and which in fact uses the traffic light colours, and it's called the BBFC system," she said.

The Government consultation will finish on 20 November, with a final decision expected in the new year.