The German Federal Parliament ( Bundestag ) has approved the reform of the youth protection law. The law could introduce stricter age ratings for videogames as well.
With a reform of the youth protection law, the government wants to ensure that children do not come into contact with loot boxes and are not incentivized to make purchases in video games. The Bundestag approved the change on Friday. The family ministry started reforming the law nearly 20 years ago.
This could have devastating consequences for game developers. With the reform, the loot boxes have entered the German government’s crosshairs as well as paid content in games that allow you to unlock clothes, weapons and cards just like in FUT. The law speaks of “risks from mechanisms similar to gambling”. Such purchase options could then be classified as content that could compromise the development of children and adolescents, consequently it will also affect the age rating of the games.
According to lawyer Julia Maris, the law will have an impact on age limits. “Online games or other applications using loot boxes or similar gaming offerings would likely be rated with an age rating of 18 years or above.”
The reform will also affect games that were previously classified as “harmless”, including FIFA 21. The football simulation is currently approved by the center for self-regulation of entertainment software and has no restrictions on age limits. Since the Ultimate Team mode gives the possibility to buy virtual coins in game to open the packs, things could change already in the short term. To achieve an age rating for children, loot boxes should be disabled by default in videogames.
“We want clear symbols that indicate risks such as violence or the presence of loot boxes in videogames,” said Franziska Giffey, the SPD’s Family Minister.
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Videogame Companies must therefore necessarily introduce standardized age classifications, precise and detailed messages. In case of violation of the guidelines, it will be possible to incur important fines even for large companies such as Electronic Arts.
FIFA 21 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch and in December 4th for the Next Gen PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X platforms Keep on following us also through our social Facebook and Twitter for other news and information.
