Balatro rating lowered to PEGI 12 by publisher appeal.

• Balatro has been reclassified with a PEGI 12 rating following a new decision by the ratings board.
• This places the game on more even footing after its previous, more mature classification.
• A PEGI 18 rating would have grouped it alongside titles like Grand Theft Auto in terms of perceived content severity.

Regular readers—and why wouldn't you be?—might recall last year's peculiar story about Balatro, the roguelike deckbuilder, receiving a PEGI 18 rating from classification boards. That placed it in the same content category as games like Grand Theft Auto, a decision that understandably confused many, including the developer.

However, PEGI appears to have recognized the error and has now reclassified Balatro with the more fitting PEGI 12 rating. According to developer Localthunk, who announced the news on Twitter, this change followed an appeal to the board by the game's publisher.

This isn't the first time Balatro has run afoul of external organizations. The game was also temporarily removed from the Nintendo eShop due to concerns over its perceived gambling content—despite the fact that players cannot win real money or place real bets, and in-game currency is only used abstractly to purchase cards during a run.

As noted earlier, a primary reason for Balatro's original rating was its use of gambling-related imagery. Essentially, the logic was that understanding poker hands like a straight flush or a flush could be as concerning as depictions of vehicular homicide in other games.

The situation is further frustrating because Balatro's initial rating also affected its mobile release. This is despite the widespread presence of in-app purchases across countless mobile titles. So, is a late correction better than none? Perhaps, but the mistake shouldn't have occurred in the first place.

If this news finally piques your interest in trying Balatro, why not check out our tier list of Jokers? It will help you determine which game-changing cards are worth pursuing and which you might want to pass on.