Developer of 'Balatro', rated '18+' in the EU for gambling, makes angry comments



Balatro is a rogue-lite deck-building game in which you rearrange your playing card deck to remodel your score calculation table and aim for a high score in poker. It is a globally popular game that won three awards, including Best Independent Game, which is awarded to the best indie game at

The Game Awards 2024. Developer LocalThunk responded on X (formerly Twitter) to the fact that the game was certified as 'for ages 18 and over only' by PEGI, a game rating organization in 29 European countries.



Balatro dev swings at PEGI for rating it 18+ because of its 'evil playing cards', jokes that he should 'add microtransactions' like EA Sports FC 25 to 'lower that rating to a 3+' | PC Gamer
https://www.pcgamer.com/games/roguelike/balatro-dev-swings-at-pegi-for-rating-it-18-because-of-its-evil-playing-cards-jokes-that-he-should-add-microtransactions-like-ea-sports-fc-25-to-lower-that-rating-to-a-3/

You can understand what kind of game Balatro is by reading the following article.

A review of the game 'Balatro' that turns into a rich deck building game with a poker + roguelike feel that makes you want to play it over and over again - GIGAZINE



PEGI uses a system in which a warning is placed on the packaging of games that contain elements such as 'violence,' 'slang,' 'fear,' 'sexuality,' 'drug abuse,' 'depiction of organized crime,' 'gambling,' 'online,' and 'in-game purchases.' In addition, after reviewing each of these elements, they set 'PEGI 3' and 'PEGI 7' for almost all ages, 'PEGI 12' for those aged 12 and over, 'PEGI 16' for those aged 16 and over, and 'PEGI 18' for those aged 18 and over.

According to the PEGI evaluation sheet , Balatro's 'images, information and gameplay help players learn poker skills and knowledge,' and 'players can earn chip rewards for playing certain hands,' among other things, citing the app's 'applicability to an actual poker game, which gives it a strong gambling image.'



LocalThunk sarcastically commented on the PEGI rating, 'PEGI rated Baltro for being an evil card game and rated it for 18+, so shouldn't they add item charges, loot boxes, and actual gambling and lower the rating to 3+ like EA Sports FC?'



Loot boxes (gacha), which allow players to randomly obtain in-game items using in-game currency purchased with real money, have been subject to regulation in recent years as they encourage gambling. EA Sports FC has a loot box that allows players to be obtained randomly, but at the time of writing, the latest game, EA Sports FC 25 , is classified as PEGI 3, suitable for all ages.

The UK is regulating loot boxes as gambling - GIGAZINE



'To be clear, I'm much more upset that Balatro is rated 18+ than I am that a game for kids that actually has gambling mechanics is rated 3+,' LocalThunk said. 'I'm happy to accept the ridiculous 18+ rating if other games are properly rated. The red PEGI 18 logo is kind of cool.'



'This case clearly shows that the PEGI rating system is a bit outdated,' PC Gamer, a gaming news site, said.

'I hate the idea of Balatro becoming a true gambling game so much that I recently wrote a will stating that I would never sell or license the Balatro IP to any gambling company or casino,' LocalThunk said in the past.

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in Game, Posted by log1i_yk