Balatro Reclassified to PEGI 12 After Publisher's Appeal

Frequent readers of our site (and why wouldn't you be?) might remember the peculiar story from last year about Balatro, the roguelike deckbuilder, being initially classified as PEGI 18 by rating boards. This rating placed it in the same category as games like Grand Theft Auto, which puzzled many, including the game's developer.

However, PEGI has since recognized their mistake and reclassified Balatro to the more fitting PEGI 12 rating. This change was announced by developer Localthunk on Twitter, who noted that it followed an appeal by Balatro's publisher to the ratings board.

This isn't the first time Balatro has encountered issues with external organizations. It was briefly removed from the Nintendo eShop due to concerns over its gambling-like content. This happened despite the fact that players cannot win real money or place bets, and in-game currency is used solely as an abstract means to purchase more cards during gameplay.

As previously mentioned, one of the main reasons for the initial PEGI 18 rating was the game's depiction of gambling-adjacent imagery. Ironically, the concern was that players might learn about concepts like a straight flush or a flush, which was considered as severe as vehicular homicide in games like GTA.

The misclassification also affected Balatro's availability on mobile platforms, despite the widespread presence of in-app purchases across these platforms. While it's good to see a correction, it's frustrating that the initial error occurred at all.

If this news is finally piquing your interest in Balatro, why not check out our tier list of Jokers? It will help you decide which of these game-changing cards are worth your attention and which ones you might want to skip.