Pan European Game Information

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PEGI's logo

Pan European Game Information (PEGI) is a European video game content rating system. It was developed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE) and came into use in April 2003. The PEGI system is used in 30 countries. It is not associated with the European Union.

Participation is voluntary, at the discretion of the game developer. To obtain the ratings for any piece of software, the developer completes a questionnaire, which is then evaluated by the Netherlands Institute for the Classification of Audiovisual Media (NICAM) and ratings are given. It's based on the Dutch Kijkwijzer system as well.

There are two parts to the classification for any piece of software — the difficulty level.

[edit] Age ratings

PEGI has five age categories. In Portugal, local legislation conflicts with some of the ratings and they are changed accordingly. Finland changed its legislation to fully adopt PEGI beginning 1 January 2007.

Country	3+	7+	12+	16+	18+
Standard
Portugal

PEGI is a voluntary system. In the United Kingdom, if publishers of a game choose not to use the PEGI system it will be given a rating by the BBFC or in certain cases given no rating at all. However, it is not illegal for persons under the age to play the game, as it is a system of helping parents of children make informed decisions on buying the game. It is entirely the parent's choice whether to purchase a game for a minor.

[edit] Content descriptions

The seven content descriptors are:

The 18+ PEGI rating and violence descriptor on the cover of Max Payne 2

Icon	Content descriptor	Examples
	Bad language	Grand Theft Auto, Fallout 2, The Warriors, Killer 7
	Discrimination	Original War
	Drugs	Grand Theft Auto, Fallout 2, Deus Ex: Invisible War, The Warriors, NARC
	Fear	NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams, Silent Debuggers, the Silent Hill/Resident Evil games
	Sex	Singles: Flirt Up Your Life, Leisure Suit Larry, Fallout 2, Playboy: The Mansion, BMX XXX, God of War, The Sopranos: Road to Respect
	Violence	Grand Theft Auto, Fallout 2, Doom 3, Resistance: Fall of Man, Max Payne 2, Mortal Kombat, God of War , The Club , Counter-Strike: Source, Devil May Cry 4,Smackdown Vs Raw 2008
	Gambling	42 All-Time Classics, Fallout 2, God Hand, Street Hoops, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

The 'Gambling' content descriptor was first used on September 29, 2006 with the title 42 All-Time Classics.

[edit] Where PEGI is used

PEGI is used in 32 European nations, Israel, and South Africa^{[citation needed]}. Legally enforceable means the ratings are not simply "voluntary" or "advisory" but are enforced by some kind of local regulation or law.

Country	Officially supported via website	Legally enforceable	Local rating system	Notes
Austria	Yes	Partial		Austria uses the PEGI system since April 2003 [1]
Belgium	Yes	No
Bulgaria	Yes	No
Cyprus	Yes	No
Czech Republic	Yes	No
Denmark	Yes	No
Estonia	Yes	No
Finland	Yes	Yes	VET/SFB	VET/SFB is used if PEGI rating is missing.
France	Yes	No
Greece	Yes	No
Germany	No	No	USK	USK rating is legally enforceable. PEGI labelling can be found on some games along with the USK rating.[2]
Hungary	Yes	No
Iceland	Yes	No
Ireland	Yes	No
Israel	Yes	No
Italy	Yes	No
Latvia	Yes	No
Lithuania	Yes	No
Luxembourg	Yes	No
Malta	Yes	No
Netherlands	Yes	No
Norway	Yes	Yes
Poland	Yes	No
Portugal	Yes	No	IGAC
Romania	Yes	No
Russia	No	No		Used only for console games, or for PC games if the game is published by foreign publisher[citation needed]
Slovakia	Yes	No
Slovenia	Yes	No
Spain	Yes	No
Sweden	Yes	No
Switzerland	Yes	No
United Kingdom	Yes	Yes	BBFC	BBFC rating is frequently used on games rated '18+' by PEGI, such as Grand Theft Auto IV.

[edit] See also

• CERO, the Japanese computer and video game rating system
• ESRB, the North American computer and video game rating system
• ELSPA, the former British computer and video game rating system, replaced by the PEGI ratings.
• USK, the German computer and video game rating system
• OFLC (Australia), the Australian media rating system
• OFLC (New Zealand), the New Zealand media rating system.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website
• Official website focused on online games