BBFC Publish a Survey on Game Age Ratings

The British Board of Film Classification, more commonly known as The BBFC, recently published the results to a survey concerning the age ratings of video games. The results seem to show that around three quarters of parents are concerned about the effectiveness of age ratings for games.

The survey, conducted by YouGov for the BBFC, revealed that 79 per cent of parents believe that videogames affect children's behaviour, 74 per cent wanted games to be regulated by an independent body, and 82 per cent felt it would be beneficial if videogames used the same ratings as films and DVDs.

"This poll clearly shows parents support a regulatory system for games that is independent of the industry and UK based, reflecting UK sensibilities and sensitivities," said David Cooke, director of the BBFC.

The director general of ELSPA responded to these views, stating that BBFC wouldn't be prepared for rating the increasing amount of online games.

"Our first concern is to protect British children," commented Rawlinson. "UK parents need a system for videogames age classification that is built with the protection of the new generation of children in mind and as such delivers a robust system that works as well for games bought in-store as played online."

"Gamers no longer just play with their mates but play online, and we need a system that reflects this situation and protects their interests. The independently administered Pegi system is the right solution for child safety."

You can read the full article over at GamesIndustry. In the meantime, what do you feel about the unsurprising results of the survey?