PEGI Agrees to Lower Balatro and Luck Be A Landlord’s Age Rating

The Pan European Game Information (PEGI), a European organization tasked with rating video games, has lowered the age rating of indie hits Balatro and Luck Be A Landlord to 12+. This is a major win for the two titles, which have been struggling because of their gambling themes.

In addition to that, PEGI agreed to rethink its stance on gambling-inspired content in video games.

Balatro’s Age Rating Has Been Lowered

Balatro is a deck-building roguelike title that has taken the world of video games by storm. Although the game is heavily inspired by poker, it features a variety of twists that spice up the gameplay.

In any case, Balatro features no real-money gaming. Developer LocalThunk has previously discouraged real gambling and has taken the bold step to ensure that Balatro remains free of the real-money gaming industry’s influence.

This decision came amid claims that Balatro was a conspiracy to lure younger people into gambling. Although LocalThunk has been working hard to refute these misconceptions, this still caused the PEGI rating of the game to be abruptly changed from 3+ to 18+. In addition to that, Balatro was banned in certain countries amid problem and youth gambling concerns.

Luckily, PEGI has now agreed to take a step back and reduce the rating to 12+.

PEGI Also Changed Luck Be A Landlord’s Rating

According to PEGI’s official announcement, the PEGI rating for Balatro was changed to 12+ in the wake of its publisher’s appeal. The Complaints Board agreed that the fantastical elements in Balatro distinguished it strongly from traditional poker.

In addition to that, PEGI amended the age rating of Luck Be A Landlord, the title that inspired the creation of Balatro. Luck Be A Landlord has had its fair share of troubles too and was previously restricted on Google Play over alleged policy violations. Even if Luck Be A Landlord doesn’t contain any actual gambling, Google insisted that the app must have its age rating review.

PEGI to Review Its Approach

In the meantime, PEGI said that it will revisit its terms for games featuring gambling teams. Currently, the association gives any games that glamorize simulated gambling a PEGI 18 rating. The organization agreed that this might not be always appropriate and said that it might shift toward a more granular approach.

As such, PEGI is likely to develop a different set of criteria to handle titles that feature gambling themes. The organization said that it will likely keep games simulating traditional casino games with an 18+ rating, while applying an 12+ games for other games that include gambling themes.