New ratings logos green-lit for UK

By Johnny Minkley Published 17 June, 2009

How they'll look on the box.

In the wake of confirmation that PEGI will be the sole system for rating games in the UK, the body has unveiled the final design of its new logos.

All games released in the UK will feature one of five age classifications - 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18 - with 3 and 7 shaded green, 12 and 16 amber and 18 red. A new 'traffic light' system was originally proposed last year, after recommendations made by that nice lady off the telly Dr. Tanya Byron.

Though circular in the original proposal, the final logo designs are square, which is believed to be due to the BBFC - yesterday unceremoniously relinquished of its games ratings duties - objecting to similarities with its own widely-recognised logos.

Meanwhile, PEGI's (frankly still-confusing) black and white doodles of clenched fists, speech bubbles and the like are to be retained to provide consumers with extra info on content.

'New ratings logos green-lit for UK' Screenshot contains

This game has drugs, sex, violence, gambling, fear, discrimination, bad language and online gameplay. A full house.

It's not clear exactly when the new logos will adorn games packaging, but ELSPA boss Michael Rawlinson said everyone would be pulling double shifts down t'pit to ensure "smooth and rapid transition".

As a result of yesterday's decision, jobs losses are expected within the BBFC. A source told Eurogamer that this was expected to number "up to 10".

Picture of Johnny.

About Johnny Minkley

Eurogamer TV's Johnny Minkley is a veteran journalist with a lifelong passion for games and the games industry. He uses Twitter more than most people use air.

Read more articles from Johnny by visiting the Johnny Minkley archive page.

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Comments (65) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Eighthours #1 3 years ago

    Those icons are stupid. No parent knows what they mean.

  • Triggerhappytel #2 3 years ago

    They still look shit. They need a bit of colour to make them noticeable - much like the red on the BBFC ratings, as it goes. In fact, just keep the feckin' BBFC ratings, because parents won't know to look for/won't understand these.

  • Eraysor #3 3 years ago

    It'd be far better if they just had a text description like the ESRB system. People will assume the spider means a game is not suitable for arachnophobics, and various other misunderstandings.

  • Oh-Bollox #4 3 years ago

    Fucking hilarious.

    "This game contains fear."

  • TwinFire #5 3 years ago

    Waste of time

  • AphoticCosmos #6 3 years ago

    Yay for adding some fucking colour to the age ratings, took them long enough, but there needs to be a HUGE chart in every game shop displayed by law to explain just what the hell each one of those icons means. I understand them, but I suspect that most people buying GTA V for their 7-year old in a few years wont have the foggiest clue.

  • gabsta69 #7 3 years ago

    i like how fear appears to be represneted in the form of a spider - i think a picture of Keith Chegwin would have been better.

  • ACCH #8 3 years ago

    Oh Christ they have to colour them too? I was hoping Britain was going to use the exact same logos as the rest of Europe. Hopefully they wont put the ratings on the spines of the cases anymore atleast

  • Tryum #9 3 years ago

    It's like traffic like :
    -Green, you can pass away this game
    -Amber, you should pay attention
    -Red, you must make a stop at this game ;)

  • Kazzahdrane #10 3 years ago

    As a result of yesterday's decision, jobs losses are expected within the BBFC. A source told Eurogamer that this was expected to number "up to 10".

    7/10 jobs to go at BBFC confirmed!

  • Chufty #11 3 years ago

    The age rating logos are actually quite good. The colouring is logical and it's instantly recognisable what they mean.

    Ignore the content ratings, they are just for additional information and dont need to stand out.

  • Bilbo_bobbins #12 3 years ago

    not one parent will understand this at all.

    IDIOTS for changing from BBFC. It makes more sense to have the same ratiings for all media.

    what is going on in these fat cats head? NOt much, thats what.

  • Twin_snakes #13 3 years ago

    I thought that they were putting boxes with info in writing on the back of the cases as well, i could have swore they had it on their website.

  • chrisjm #14 3 years ago

    the discrimination icon is racist in itself as it implies it only happens one way...

  • Triggerhappytel #15 3 years ago

    "the discrimination icon is racist in itself as it implies it only happens one way..."

    Yeah, I thought that when I saw it yesterday. God forbid they could have a white person singled out by two black people!

  • Thalanos #16 3 years ago

    Edit: Checked the PEGI website. Ignoring the random content logos, this actually looks like a pretty good system. The Extended Consumer Advice should clear up what the logos actually mean.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/09 @ 11:34

  • zisssou #17 3 years ago

    Spiderman

    'this game contains spiders'

    Fear 2

    'this game contains spiders'

  • DFawkes #18 3 years ago

    "the discrimination icon is racist in itself as it implies it only happens one way... "

    Reminds me of that episode of South Park where they object to the flag because it's a white guy hanging a black guy, so they change it to a string of colours hanging the guy. Turns out the kids objected to a person being killed, they didn't even regard the race.

    Point being I wasn't sure what that meant until you said, I just saw 3 guys. Should've just had a picture of Mel Gibson ;) I'm kidding, I'm sure he was sincerely sorry for any offense he caused.

  • LiamK #19 3 years ago

    "Yeah, I thought that when I saw it yesterday. God forbid they could have a white person singled out by two black people! "

    This way saves on ink. Besides, what do you want? Non-representative colours? Oh no, that blue man is being ignored by the magenta people!

  • Sunyavadin #20 3 years ago

    People only look at BBFC logos - they are the SOLE recognised body in this country. Nobody has even HEARD of PEGI OR knows what their logos are, especially these new ones - WTF????

    I honestly thought this was a late april fool when I saw the logos.


    The recognisable BBFC colours and shapes EVERYONE spots. They stand out.

    This is a deliberate attempt to get more underage game sales.


    *Edit*
    Okay, gonna make my best guesses about the icons, top left to bottom right:
    Online connectivity, A red Faction game, Frustrating
    Unsuitable for Arachnophobes, Contains wholesome heterosexual relationships, Possibly addictive
    Ethnically diverse (Unsuitable for BNP members), Randomised, Online services provided by PEGI
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/09 @ 12:02

  • Artemus #21 3 years ago

    GTA5 is gonna have one ugly box.

  • kinky_mong #22 3 years ago

    So they ignored the part of the Byron Report stating that parents thought the discrimination icon meant multiplayer mode? Well done all concerned.

  • GiarcYekrub #23 3 years ago

    EDGE has the actual rating logos

  • CallousB #24 3 years ago

    Parents understand the BBFC logo..they won't understand this...it still makes it look more skill level based than anything else.

    U,PG,12,15, 18 would be far better. I'd sooner see PEGI pay a small fee to the BBFC to licence their logo/age brackets rather than go this route.

  • Freki #25 3 years ago

    "not one parent will understand this at all. "

    I am a parent, I understand it...

    Also, what is there not to understand? A colour coded age box on the front of the case? It isn't exactly rocket science.

  • AphoticCosmos #26 3 years ago

    "Also, what is there not to understand? A colour coded age box on the front of the case? It isn't exactly rocket science."

    Nobody doubts that the age ratings are easy to understand, but the additional information logos are still a bit convoluted to say the least. The discrimination one in particular is rubbish.

  • Fodder #27 3 years ago

    Why does the article show the largely unchanged additional information logos rather than the new age logos that the story is actually mostly about?

  • Sanxo #28 3 years ago

    Well done EG for confusing the issue; the logos which are key ones to look at are linked to in the article and are very easy to understand.

    However EG dediced not to put pictures of them in the article (agenda to push much?) rather preferring to put the content logos which everybody in european ignores anyway.
    Edited by 1 at 17/06/09 @ 12:28

  • GiarcYekrub #29 3 years ago

    What is the dice one for? gambling? is that contains scenes of gambling? contains gambling with in game money? or real world money gambling?

  • Garulon #30 3 years ago

    "This game contains fear."

    Yes it's stupid, all we need are Universal and 18-rated if that, but I imagine in Pegiland you could have a game that's 3+ but has scary things in it. I love the discrimination one though. Isn't that almost every fucking game? I've wiped out a goblin cave in Oblivion and the game rewarded me!

  • Garulon #31 3 years ago

    "Why does the article show the largely unchanged additional information logos rather than the new age logos that the story is actually mostly about? "

    Because it's funnier.

  • Slipstream #32 3 years ago

    This game has drugs, sex, violence, gambling, fear, discrimination, bad language and online gameplay. A full house.

    Enjoying GTA IV then?

  • makeamazing #33 3 years ago

    So going from a game with one logo with a cert (eg. 18) to many different ones and colour coded... yay I love it when someone convinces whoever is responsible for this decision to change it.... I would have loved to have been there... perhaps there were some money being passed under the table.

  • paulf #34 3 years ago

    im waiting for the first court case involving parent who buys gta (insert number here) for their little jonny

    would of made more sense to me to use the bbfc ratings - the icons are a bit silly though, i know they want to use things across europe but sometimes its just better to write things out than draw them

  • sneetch #35 3 years ago

    I think it's hilarious that the icon for discrimination is itself discriminatory. There should be warning logos to warn about the warning logos. :D

    The warning is also repeated in text on games boxes I've seen and these icons are in addition to an age rating (which the eurogamer article itself states). It's just providing an additional amount of information to help parents decide about games. The purpose of the Fear icon is specifically to warn that the "Game may be frightening or scary for young children" you may not need it but parents will appreciate it.

  • sneetch #36 3 years ago

    @paulf
    im waiting for the first court case involving parent who buys gta (insert number here) for their little jonny

    would of made more sense to me to use the bbfc ratings - the icons are a bit silly though, i know they want to use things across europe but sometimes its just better to write things out than draw them

    You don't think the red "18" icon in addition to the icons for Violence, Drug use, Bad language and the extended consumer advice that says "Suitable for people aged 18 and over. Contains: extreme violence, criminal techniques, glamorisation of crime, strong language" and so on will be enough to warn a parent?

  • Vertius #37 3 years ago

    Lesson, children: PEGI stands for Pan EUROPEAN Game Information. These changes are taking place throughout ALL of Europe.

    At last, my games will be without big British logos on them...

  • SliderNL #38 3 years ago

    Some people here have a very unique UK-centric view on this issue
    IDIOTS for changing from BBFC. It makes more sense to have the same ratiings for all media.

    You clearly don't know what you are talking about. PEGI is based on Kijkwijzer the Dutch equivalent of the BBFC. The idea is to get one rating system for television, movies and games. (allready in use in some countries)

    You find the symbols unclear, a recent survey in the countries where PEGI is been used shows that 90 procent finds Pegi useful and 70 procent uses it.

    The article is unclear, the age ratings are very simple, with a simple number which represents the age rating

  • Tetragammatron #39 3 years ago

    Just bring back ELSPA
    http://an thonylarme.tripod.com/gc/elspa.jpg

  • BootLace #40 3 years ago

    Where do I get the game with the interracial three way?

  • TCJames #41 3 years ago

    But the problem is that in the UK we've been using the BBFC icons for such a long time that short of a massive/expensive marketing campaign explaining the new system this is just going to add to an already confused topic.

    Parents already don't understand that video games are rated just the same as films. At least before, they could see the 18 certificate BBFC logo and they might connect this with a film rating (something that they are much more familiar with).

    I'm afraid the result of this is just going to to be even less parental responsibility for the games that their children are allowed to play, and ultimately its going to do nothing to discourage the at times hysterical media campaign against the video game industry.
    Edited by 2 at 17/06/09 @ 23:21

  • YourMessageHere #42 3 years ago

    It's supremely unimportant what the logo on the box looks like. What is significant is getting the game-buying public to understand the fact that legal ramifications are now in force just as with films - I don't know the details of this legislation, but if there's not some sort of requirement to display something explaining the age ratings, and in fact the content logos, much as there is in shops that sell alcohol and tobacco (and films? I've seen BBFC ratings explanation posters in shops often but I don't know if there's any legal impetus behind that) then this all seems a bit toothless still.

  • Darren #43 3 years ago

    As others have pointed out, the discrimination icon is itself racist. It would have been far better and sensible to have just shown ONE white and ONE black person IMO.

  • BastoJ #44 3 years ago

    Indeed, ELSPA was great, I miss them. Surely it would have been better to have the BBFC continue to rate them. They're generally fair and relatively lenient (compared with the censors in countries with a similar moral 'standard' as the UK) and everyone recognises the BBFC logo.

    Also I'd much rather have one little BBFC logo on the front of the box than the PEGI logo and those stupid spiders etc.

  • Garulon #45 3 years ago

    Maybe there'll be government adverts explaining PEGI to parents so they can take some damn responsibility for once.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #46 3 years ago

    The colouring is logical and it's instantly recognisable what they mean.

    Their green and amber are far too silimar for red-green colourblind people, in my opinion. The green ought to be a bit whiter, and possibly the orange a bit deeper, in order for them to stand out properly.

    Not that it will bother me much in practice, since I can read numbers, and I'm provably over 18 anyway. But that sort of lack of consideration gets on my nerves. Forza 1's supposedly revolutionary racing line indicator was useless to me, since I couldn't make out the difference bwteen the green 'accelerate' yellow 'coast' colours.

  • scouserfuller9 #47 3 years ago

    Although the icons aren't too difficult to notice parents and even the staff at stores such as Asda and Tesco won't always understand what they mean if they are not used to gaming unless they pay careful attention to them.
    A simple age rating written like they are on DVD's should have been used with the type of game it is wrote next to it would have been a much better solution in my opinion.
    I still don't even know what most the images mean they're so poor!

  • cheekyjay #48 3 years ago

    I thought the discrimination icon meant local multi-player... ooops

  • sneetch #49 3 years ago

    @scouserfuller9
    A simple age rating written like they are on DVD's should have been used with the type of game it is wrote next to it would have been a much better solution in my opinion.

    That's precisely what you get. These content icons are in addition to that age rating. Read the article.

  • sneetch #50 3 years ago

    @justanotherdave
    I might just be going for the blindingly obvious way here but.. If something has sex or drugs in it then why not WRITE that on the box (in big letters if people really are that stupid). I really can't see any benifit in having a picture of a spider instead.

    They do. The icons are there in addition to that information because not everyone speaks English but almost everyone can recognise a picture.

  • prettyboytim #51 3 years ago

    I'm very pleased that they have fixed the dice. The previous ones had a 1 and a 6 on adjoining sides whereas any fule kno that opposite sides of a dice always add up to 7.

  • Hexagon #52 3 years ago

    I have noticed that only parents in the UK seem to have problems with understanding the PEGI emblems while the rest of the EU, apart from Germany, seems to do just fine. This article may have been closer on the mark than I previously thought.

  • Discalceaterabbit #53 3 years ago

    Still doesn't tackle the basic underlying problem with kids getting their hands on innapropriate games.
    That parents are morons.

  • Hexagon #54 3 years ago

    People should attempt to educate themselves instead of bitching about the PEGI and ridiculing their emblems. They only make themselves look like retards in the process for it certainly isn't that difficult to understand what the emblems mean. Then again, maybe it is.

  • BastoJ #55 3 years ago

    @ Hexagon, when designing a system one must attempt to make it as easy as possible for the end user to understand and use. When possible a system should avoid requiring the user to 'learn' (or re-learn) a system as much as possible, when there is an existing system that the user understands the new system should generally try to follow existing design conventions.

    In this case users understand the BBFC system used on DVDs etc, it would be much cheaper and benefitial to have the new system either use the BBFC system or follow its general principles. Of course the PEGI system is simple, but the BBFC system is better understood in the UK. I'm sure the money spent on educating people about the PEGI system could have been better invested elsewhere.

  • secombe #56 3 years ago

    So are these 12, 16 and 18 age ratings backed up by law, like the widely known BBFC classifications?

  • _LarZen_ #57 3 years ago

    The logos aint worth the ink its printed with if there aint a law that says children shal not be alowed to play adult games. I REALY hope this happens soon. To many kids out there playing stuff that aint for them.

  • rprince #58 3 years ago

    I always thought the BBFC did a good job and it matched with films (which are better known by the consumer). It's a shame to hear jobs being lost there.

  • Hexagon #59 3 years ago

    @ BastoJ

    I do see where you are coming from but neither the government nor the taxpayers within the UK will have to finance any potential programmes regarding the popularisation of the PEGI age and content rating emblems. On the contrary, the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association in the UK will front the bill for a new marketing and PR campaign to educate consumers about the newly unveiled PEGI ratings system. I myself deem these consumers to either be ignorant, apathetic or simply mentally incompetent and am even somewhat irked by the notion that the industry has to do so much to appease the aforementioned consumers who will likely disregard its efforts.

  • YourMessageHere #60 3 years ago

    I'm confused by the response to the 'discrimination' icon. Of course it's racist. That's the point. Would anyone here like to explain how you create a black-and-white wordless graphic that depicts discrimination without actually making an image that can be construed as discriminatory?

  • Skurmedel #61 3 years ago

    I know from before that the arachnid one is "fear", but still, that required me to go look it up on their website. I don't think it's a very good metaphor. The "syringe" one is a similar story, if you think about it for a while you may realize it's drugs, but really it could just as well signal "Agatha Christie novel inside".

    And please don't claim people not understanding them are stupid, it's just low and ignorant. People come from different background and different cultural contexts. Sure you can "read up on them", but that kind of voids the whole idea with these kinds of symbols, if so they could've just written "includes fear" instead of having an ambigous logo.
    Edited by 1 at 18/06/09 @ 10:01

  • #62 3 years ago

    lol....
    Hey guys..what do u think about this? just chat with me --I am an open-mineded single girl and I love sports. I want to end my single life by meeting a guy who likes sports too. Let's mingle at the big&tall dating club ___ TallMingle.com _____" which is a popular meeting site for tall singles and admirers!

  • President_Weasel #63 3 years ago

    "parents don't understand these logos"? Seriously?

    They can't understand A NUMBER IN A BOX? Is it the number that these hypothetical parents have trouble with, or is it the lines forming a square around them that make them so difficult to understand?

    As for the descriptors, that would be a considerably more valid point if PEGI weren't also introducing descriptors with text in the relevant language for the packaging. Although given that parents apparently can't understand numbers in a box, words in a box are going to completely stump them.

  • dingo75 #64 3 years ago

    I'd play that game.

  • Hexagon #65 3 years ago

    With regards to the people complaining about the PEGI, why shouldn't they rate games in the United Kingdom? The BBFC was set up by the film industry in the United Kingdom and was intended to bring uniformity to the classification of films. Why can't the video game industry do the same with the PEGI? Dr. Tanya Byron even pointed out in her report that the law does not deem it compulsory to classify the majority of video games in the United Kingdom and yet the profusion is voluntarily rated by the PEGI. This symbolises how the industry seeks responsibility and is compliant to regulate itself as well as identify the concerns regarding the welfare of children and the necessity of supplying consumers with comprehensible and sufficient information concerning the content of video games.

  • m0thr4 #66 3 years ago

    "parents don't understand these logos"? Seriously?

    They can't understand A NUMBER IN A BOX? Is it the number that these hypothetical parents have trouble with, or is it the lines forming a square around them that make them so difficult to understand?

    No, it's the fact that without having already been to the PEGI website, it's not entirely clear what the number signifies. Even then, it's not really very clear.

    Any parent, shopping around in a toy store will see age ratings on all of the toys. These age ratings simply mean that the toy is robust enough and easy enough for children above that age to play with.

    Then, in the same store, there are a bunch of games with "3+" on them. Does 3+ mean that the game is easy enough for my 3 year old son to play? No, according to the PEGI website (which I might not have already visited), it simply means that a panel of academics and consumers (whom I have never met so, cannot possibly know whether their views on parenting coincide with mine) have decided that the game is suitable for my child "in terms of minor protection". I'm not even sure what that really means.
    Edited by 1 at 21/06/09 @ 11:44