The Australian government is changing the way video games that contain in-game purchases are classified in the region.
The new rating guidelines will go into effect on September 22, 2024, and will require that titles that feature “in-game purchases with an element of randomness” must have a minimum rating of “M” (not recommended for children under 15).
As noted by Australian video game industry trade association IGEAThe updated guidelines define purchases with an “element of randomness” as “mystery items that players can purchase with real money without knowing what they will receive, such as loot boxes.”
The changes will apply to video games on computers, consoles, phones and tablets – basically the entire range – and have been made to “bring video game ratings in line with age restrictions already in place in the real world”.
Games that feature “simulated gambling,” such as casino games, will be legally restricted to adults aged 18 and over, with a minimum rating of “R 18+.” Projects classified before September 22 will not need to be reclassified unless they lose their current classification due to “revocation or modification.”
A fact sheet published by the Australian Government notes that the “M” rating is an “advisory rating” and “places no legal restriction on the sale or distribution of these games.”
“The R 18+ classification is a legal restriction, which means that it is illegal to sell or distribute these games to persons under the age of 18,” it adds.
The document explains that projects that allow players to “directly purchase loot boxes or other random rewards” from an in-game store using real-world currency will be affected by the new rules.
A game would still deserve an “M” rating if the loot boxes or rewards were obtained using in-game currency, keys, and other items that can be purchased with real money.
Further FAQs states that titles that contain even a small instance of simulated gambling, such as a role-playing game with gambling elements that are not “the core of the video game”, would likely receive an “R 18+” classification.
“The definition of simulated gambling applies to any interactive activity within a video game and does not consider how much of the game consists of simulated gambling,” the FAQ reads, which also notes that the simulated gambling test “does not consider the type of currency (in-game or purchasable) used.”