Multi-jurisdictional age-rating classification program

Description

Age-rating classification is the process by which a game or interactive product gets a rating from the rating bodies that gate distribution in each market: IARC for global digital storefronts (Google Play, Microsoft Store, Nintendo eShop), ESRB for North American console retail, PEGI for the EU, USK for Germany, ClassInd for Brazil, GRAC for Korea, ACB for Australia, and the UAE National Media Council for the UAE. The submission is a content questionnaire, not a code review; the rating body assigns a rating based on the operator's accurate disclosure of mechanics and content (violence, sexual content, gambling-adjacent randomized purchases, drug references, language, simulated misbehavior). The recurring obligation is the re-rating: a rating remains valid only as long as the disclosed content matches the shipped content, so a material change (added monetization mechanics, new gameplay modes, new AI-generated content surfaces, new social features) typically triggers a re-submission. Loot-box and randomized-purchase descriptors are now required disclosures across most regimes and are the area where operator misclassification has drawn the most enforcement attention. The Belgian and Dutch gambling-authority precedents have made clear that mis-disclosure of randomized purchase mechanics is treated as a substantive failure rather than a paperwork one.

Required by (1 regulation)

• Age Rating

  Multi-jurisdictional age-rating compliance covering IARC, USK, PEGI, ESRB, ClassInd, GRAC, ACB, UAE-NMC, plus storefront-specific ratings (Apple App Store, Google Play IARC, console platforms). Includes re-rating on content updates + loot-box descriptors.

  Various: Jugendschutzgesetz (Germany), Classification Act 1995 (Australia), Game Industry Promotion Act (South Korea), Estatuto da Crianca e do Adolescente (Brazil), ESRB/PEGI Codes of Conduct

Fulfilled by (8)

• iarc · full · low effort · $
  International Age Rating Coalition: single questionnaire generating ratings for ESRB, PEGI, USK, ClassInd, GRAC, ACB, IARC Generic via supported storefronts (Google Play, Nintendo, Microsoft).
• esrb · full · medium effort · $$
  ESRB ratings for North American physical + console releases not covered by IARC.
• pegi · full · medium effort · $$
  PEGI ratings for European physical releases + voluntary digital outside IARC.
• usk · full · medium effort · $$
  USK is mandatory for German distribution; submitted via IARC for digital, USK directly for physical.
• grac · full · medium effort · $$
  Game Rating and Administration Committee: mandatory for Korean game distribution.
• classind · full · medium effort · $$
  Brazil Department of Justice ClassInd: mandatory for Brazilian distribution.
• acb · full · medium effort · $$
  Australian Classification Board: mandatory for Australian distribution.
• In-house build · medium effort
  Operator owns the questionnaire content + re-rating-trigger detection + marketing-material rating-display SOP.

ClearLaunch does not accept payment from vendors. Methodology.

Evidence formats

• rating certificate(s) per jurisdiction
• IARC / regional questionnaire submission record
• marketing-material rating-display audit (store pages, ads, packaging)
• re-rating decision log triggered by content updates
• loot-box / randomized-purchase descriptor inclusion record