Indie Hit Balatro Removed from Console Stores in PEGI Age Rating Dispute | Push Square

pushsquare.com:

You may have heard about Balatro recently — it's the latest indie sensation currently doing the rounds, and it's truly excellent. The roguelike deckbuilder has you playing poker hands to score points, and using joker cards and other upgrades to amplify those points to potentially stratospheric levels — it's tremendous. However, that basic poker element at its very core appears to be causing some unforeseen problems.

PEGI, Europe's video game ratings board, has suddenly changed Balatro's classification with no prior warning to publisher Playstack. Awarded a 3+ rating for release, it has now been changed to an 18+ on the basis of «prominent gambling imagery». You can see the difference on the PS Store listings; in the UK it shows this updated rating, while in the US, the ESRB rates it Everyone 10+, with a qualifier about «gambling themes».

Worse still, the classification change means the game has been delisted in various European territories across console storefronts. While it's unclear which ones are affected, we know the game no longer shows up on the UK's Nintendo eShop, for example.

Playstack has issued a statement about the issue:

As mentioned in the above post, Balatro's connection to gambling is minimal, though the use of playing cards and chips in its presentation are likely to be causing this headache. Hopefully this is resolved soon, even if it does mean the game gets a stronger age rating than planned.

What do you make of this kerfuffle? Shuffle the deck in the comments section below.

Stephen has been part of the Push Square team for over six years, bringing boundless enthusiasm and a deep knowledge of video games to his role as Assistant Editor. Having grown up playing every PlayStation console to date, he's developed an eclectic taste, with particular passion for indie games, arcade racers, and puzzlers. He's also our go-to guy for Sonic-related matters, much to his delight/chagrin.

I can honestly see why, but for ot to have already passed and released;