Age rating on Steam: The most important questions and answers

November 15 is the deadline: Valve wants to remove all games from the German Steam Store that do not display an age rating on their store page. Heise online has compiled the most important questions and answers.

What will happen on Steam on November 15?

From November 15, Steam operator Valve wants to hide all games from the German Steam Store that do not display an age rating on their store page. Affected games can then no longer be purchased directly from the Steam Store.

Why does Valve want to remove games without an age rating?

Valve is thus complying with the amendment to the Youth Protection Act. It prescribes a labeling requirement for digital platforms that distribute films and video games. According to paragraph 14a of the new Youth Protection Act, such platforms may only offer games and films if they are provided with a "clearly visible label". This also applies to platform operators from abroad who have more than one million users. The Federal Agency for the Protection of Children and Young Persons in the Media (BzKJ), which is in contact with Valve, is responsible for enforcement.

The new Youth Protection Act came into force in 2021. It is unclear why Valve wants to enforce the rule change on November 15 of all days. "The date is not based on any event known to us," the BzKJ told heise online. Valve did not respond to inquiries.

How do games get an age rating in the first place?

Developers of Steam games have two options for obtaining a valid age rating. On the one hand, there is the USK rating, which is mandatory for all titles that are also released on data carriers. An easier way is Steam's own questionnaire, which developers can fill out themselves. Based on the answers, Valve calculates an age rating that can be displayed on the store page.

It therefore only takes a few minutes for a developer to receive an age rating. For some years now, the self-rating questionnaire has been an integral part of the process for creating a store page, so that all current games carry an age rating from the outset.

Which games are affected?

Because all new games have had an age rating for several years now, the change affects some titles that were released before 2020. In a spot check last week, heise online mainly found indie games that do not display an age rating on their store page. These included "Return of the Obra Dinn", "Papers, Please", "Pathologic", "Undertale", "Cave Story", "FEZ" and "Slay the Spire". However, some larger titles are also still in breach of the new Steam rule, including "Hellblade" and "Prey (2017)" from Microsoft and "Rainbow Six Vegas 2" and "Far Cry 2" from Ubisoft. These games have a USK rating, but do not currently display the label in the Steam store.

The case of "Papers, Please!" and "Return of the Obra Dinn", which were developed by solo developer Lucas Pope, shows that not all games currently affected have to be hidden in the end. When asked by heise online, Pope explained that he simply hadn't gotten around to filling out the questionnaire for both games. He has since made up for this. "Valve makes it pretty easy with the self-rating system," said Pope. His two games will therefore remain in the German store. Other titles are likely to follow suit.

Nevertheless, it is likely that one or two games will be screened out on November 15. This could particularly affect orphaned titles for which no one feels responsible.

Will affected games also be removed from my library?

No. Customers who already have a license for an affected game can continue to download and play it without restriction, Valve confirms.

Are there any problems with Early Access and pre-orders?

No. Developers fill out the age rating questionnaire as soon as they create the store page for their game. If the content of a game changes during the development process, developers can edit their answers.

Couldn't Steam simply display all games as "18+" without a label?

The Federal Center for the Protection of Children and Young Persons in the Media (Bundeszentrale für Kinder- und Jugendmedienschutz) writes in response to an inquiry from heise online: "In addition to the aspect of protection against inappropriate content, children and young people should also be able to participate in suitable media offerings in a carefree and safe manner. Because a blanket labeling with the rating '18+' would run counter to this aspect of participation in particular, such a procedure is inadmissible."

How do other stores deal with this?

Both the Epic Games Store and GOG currently still have games without an age rating, although both gaming platforms are subject to the German Youth Protection Act. The operators have not yet responded to inquiries from heise online. The Federal Agency for the Protection of Children and Young Persons in the Media also declined to comment on "ongoing investigations and proceedings".

(dahe)