Oh, Balatro, you beautiful beast. Wrongly maligned as a gambling game and temporarily pulled from the PS Store after its PEGI rating was inexplicably raised to 18, creator Localthunk, who really isn't a fan of gambling in the first place, has officially won an appeal. The fiendishly addictive poker-like has had its rating reconsidered, being awarded a far more appropriate 12 after more than a year of trying.
The Pan European Game Information firm's website announced that not only have Localthunk and common sense prevailed in the end (thanks, Eurogamer), but the ordeal has resulted in systemic change for future games: "The PEGI 18 rating for the game Balatro has been changed to a PEGI 12 following a successful appeal submitted by publisher Sold Out Sales & Marketing. The Complaints Board concluded that, although the game explains the various hands of poker, the roguelike deck-building game contained mitigating fantastical elements that warranted a PEGI 12 rating."
It must be a satisfying end to the situation, although we imagine it cost the developer more than a few sales; here's hoping all the positive buzz around Balatro has made up for that particular misunderstanding: "Based on these appeals, the PEGI Experts Group will develop a more granular set of classification criteria to handle gambling themes and the simulation, teaching and glamorisation of gambling in different age categories."
Are you glad to see Balatro finally win its PEGI battle? Is there anything adult about our tantrums after losing out to Jimbo and his friends once again? Let us know in the comments section below.
[source pegi.info, via eurogamer.net]
Comments 8
It looks like this PEGI - a self called experts - finaly got slapped in face. But what a worst thing is, it looks they even didn't play game before, because normal, reasonable thinking person, couldn't give Balatro 18 and claim it is about gambling (contrary to FIFA and its "booster packs"). So it looks PEGI is another useless institution that even doesn't do it's job right.
Good for Balatro it was a stupid rating to give this game. Especially considering other games with actual gambling for real money get a pass for some reason
Also for folks with Xbox gamepass Balatro has joined the service and is available right now.
Good. Common sense prevails. The game features neither gambling of real currency nor gambling of fake/in game currency. It’s like they assumed that just because it’s a card game it must have gambling.
PEGI is a joke company, who is as useful as you have money to pay for the lower rating.
I don't see how it can be considered gambling unless actual money is involved. But I don't believe the game has microtransactions even (please correct me if I'm wrong), much less online betting. I'm glad to see this resolved in favor of Localthunk, but it's a shame it had to happen in the first place. I'm also a former poker dealer and believe me I've seen dozens of different poker scams. Balatro is not one of them. It's a brilliant game that focuses on the actual poker and not betting.
PEGI is a joke and should be shut down because it has people from every publisher working in it. Because they don't see FIFA or NBA etc having a casino or FIFA packs as gambling but they do this game
Yes. PEGI was being so damn stupid.
PEGI 12 is still way too harsh for Balatro imo. But I'm glad they changed it.
I doubt these PEGI changes will finally start giving PEGI 18 ratings to games with predatory lootboxes, but one might hope.
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