European game ratings board PEGI has announced that it's changing the ratings of indie games Balatro and Luck Be a Landlord, both of which were slapped with PEGI 18 ratings over their depictions of gambling.
In a news post on the PEGI site, the ratings board says that both Balatro and Luck Be a Landlord will now carry far more sensible PEGI 12 ratings following appeals from their publishers.
With regards to Balatro, PEGI says that while the game "explains the various hands of poker", its "mitigating fantastical elements" mean it warrants a PEGI 12 rating. Fair enough; I can't really imagine anyone using Balatro to try and win a hand of real-life poker.
Luck Be a Landlord was also hit with a PEGI 18 rating, but publisher Fangamer appealed the rating, and PEGI says that while the game "features a slot machine mechanic", it doesn't teach any "specific transferable gambling skills".
Not only that, but PEGI says that these two cases have prompted it to "develop a more granular set of classification criteria" for gambling games and those that simulate gambling.
However, games that "simulate gambling typically played in casinos and betting halls" will still attract PEGI 18 ratings. Essentially, it sounds like these criteria have been added to differentiate games with a gambling-adjacent theme, like Balatro, from actual gambling sims.
Balatro's PEGI rating was changed to an 18 shortly after the game's release, prompting developer LocalThunk to complain about the rating change on social media. With tongue firmly in cheek, he suggested he should add microtransactions or real gambling to change the rating to a 3+, "like EA Sports FC".
Luck Be a Landlord has also faced similar struggles for its supposed gambling-related content, including a widespread mobile ban and a battle with the South Korean ratings board. Here's hoping nothing this silly happens again, eh, PEGI?
