Over the last few years the BBFC has been responsible for classifying an increasing number of video games containing high-end issues such as violence and horror which have tended to be classified at ‘15’ and ‘18’. Some of these games (Grand Theft Auto, Manhunt) have also acquired a significant public profile because of the sometimes contentious material they contain and it is because of the nature of such content that these games have been submitted to the BBFC in the first place.

But other, more benign games, aimed at children and with content that can be safely contained at ‘U’ or ‘PG’, have also required classification by the BBFC. This is because, although the nature of the gameplay would normally make these games exempt from scrutiny by the BBFC, they contain video material that – in accordance with the Video Recordings Act 1984 – requires them to be submitted.

This is very much a result of a growing number of children’s games having tie-ins with high-profile feature films or well-known television brands, and the video material may take the form of a trailer for another film (for example, in games based on the Bee Movie and Kung Fu Panda titles); a ‘behind the scenes’ look at the making of the film and the game, similar to the ‘bonus extras’ found on DVDs (in games based on such films as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, The Golden Compass, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and Wall-e); or, in the case of a game based on the popular Mr Bean character, clips from episodes of the cartoon series. But where such games come to the BBFC, then the whole work comes under its classification process: the game itself and any additional video material.

On occasions, it may be that the video material determines the category for the work. In the case of a game based on the popular High School Musical title, the work included a film trailer for Pirates of the Caribbean – At World’s End which had previously been passed at ‘PG’. The company releasing the game had wanted a ‘U’ category and since nothing in the game itself prevented this, it chose to remove the trailer from the package in order to meet its requirements.

Certain issues in a game itself might see it attaining a higher category than the film on which it is based. So in the case of the Shrek The Third game (submitted to the BBFC because of the presence of a film trailer for Bee Movie), the interactive nature and frequency of the mild comic violence required the game to be classified at ‘PG’ because the experience of playing the game was different from simply watching the film which was passed at ‘U’.

This was also the case with a game based on an animated film aimed squarely at young children and featuring the cartoon character Curious George who, within the game, is rewarded for his curiosity as he looks at flowers, opens boxes and climbs on structures to discover objects. Curious George is a monkey but, nevertheless, a character likely to make an impression on young children who would be fascinated by his adventures, some of which raised problems in terms of passing the game at the lowest junior category. This was because these activities included the character touching and climbing onto machinery and scaffolding on a building site; jumping onto the roofs of cars, buses and taxis in which the character skips across a street by hanging off moving vehicles; and climbing onto kitchen surfaces (including a cooker hob) to turn on a kettle.

Some of these activities are seen in the film where they had a clearer ‘safety message’ than the BBFC thought was present in the game where players are rewarded for, effectively, controlling potentially dangerous behaviour, most notably by interacting with domestic appliances.

The possibility of harm being caused to young children through imitating dangerous behaviour is an acute concern at the lower categories, particularly when such behaviour is presented as safe and fun. The game was therefore passed at ‘PG’ (the film was classified at ‘U’) as it was felt that children of eight years and over would have a better understanding than younger children of the consequences of the potentially dangerous activities on display, and the issue was clearly signalled in Consumer Advice as a warning to parents who might consider allowing younger children to play the game.

More information for parents is available on the website www.pbbfc.co.uk. There is also a section on Children's BBFC which offers kids and parents the chance to play games and learn more about games and how they are rated.

Find Out More

sbbfc Video Games Portal
The Future of Video Games Rating
Video Games Case Studies
BBFC Document 'Classification of Video Games'
BBFC Guidelines
BBFC Annual Reports and Research

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