The PEGI-system (Pan European Game Information) is administrated by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe and is co-funded by the EU. As the abbreviation suggests their service is to inform the public about the game content concerning specifically age rating, and violence, sexual content, etc. Now please remember this and bear with me because I need a beer.

Age rating games is the purpose of PEGI and that is fine. I honestly really don’t care much more than it’s ‘good’ to have some sort of guidance for parents buying the games for their (usually fat bastard) kids (i.e. I’m trying to be politically correct).
Well, since ISFE also is “a pan-European trade body of games console manufacturers, and publishers and developers of interactive games” they’ve got a lot of other stuff to announce which doesn’t concern any age ratings, etc. Like this:

rember that pirated games are illegal and they’re not age rated”

–it is stated in Swedish. (Furthermore, this is a screen from the www.pegi.se). None-rated games can be bought outside of EU too? This more or less describes the true nature of PEGI in my point of view, trade associations are created for many more reasons than informing and rating, and descriptor creating for the public.

This form of propaganda is everywhere and really visualizes the power of big-business that dislikes the free-downloading-scene. There is no law forcing any company to get their game rated, but retailers want the games to be rated or THEY wont sell them (indirect forcing them, then?).

Games can be bought online and that is one of their complaints because then they wont be rated by PEGI (or anyone, wtf?!), even though they reserve themselves by claiming later on, that “games sold through the Internet, played or downloaded within an online gaming environment, or provided on magazine cover discs” will be rated in the future. Baloney! How the hell do they think they’ll be able to manage all of that? I believe it is something they state officially to make sure that they can’t be hassled about being to big-business loving. Now, all kids are supposed to be raised up by their parents to know that any game without an age rating is a pirated game and perhaps unhealthy considering its content, thus forcing them to buy their games at retailers within the EU.
The upfront rating-organ should have NOTHING to do with piracy, legal or not, but they do and you suddenly understand why. It’s money. Sure games sell as hell, but not as much as they could. My point with tonight’s post is not to bicker about the dull politics of downloading is illegal or not, it is to visualize how PEGI and other organizations have more objectives than the official ones.
Now, if PEGI really only had their goals set to provide age descriptors and such, making the world a better place, helping moms n dads around the world, shouldn’t care about the illegality of pirated games. Here’s one idea, even though it’s going against their unofficial concern: they should instead promote all games to have an age-rating descriptor within the game. Not only on the box. Not only when going online, so even an illegally downloaded game can have that superb rating stuck to it. But as you’ve probably understood by now PEGI has a lot to loose not caring about piracy.