E10+ Rating Coming

[Jonbo298]

March 2, 2005 - Along with familiar designations such as "E" for Everyone or "T" for Teen, games may now carry a rating of "E10+," standing for Everyone 10 and older, according to an announcement today by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB).


While the category seems confusing at first, the ESRB means to distinguish those generally family-friendly games which regardless include content which may not be appropriate for very young children -- content such as mild cartoon violence, mild language, or "minimal suggestive themes."

"We expect that many of the best selling sports, racing, and adventure games will continue to receive E ratings appropriate for ages six and older," said ESRB president Patricia Vance. "Games with content that may not be suitable for younger ages of six to nine, such as racing games with more extreme crashes or fighting games with super heroes, will now receive an E10+ rating."

Since 1994, the game industry has adopted the ESRB ratings as a guide to game content, especially for parents who may not otherwise know whether a game's material would be appropriate for their children.

The ESRB developed the new rating after consulting with various child development experts, who point to developmental differences between very young children and teenagers.

Games deemed suitable for all ages will continue to receive the "E" rating.

http://cube.ign.com/articles/592/592775p1.html

Nice move by the ESRB, IMO. It seemed kind of needed as too many E games had things like mentioned above that were kind of between E and T.