Entertainment Software Rating Board

The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) is a non-profit, self-regulatory body established in 1994 by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). ESRB assigns computer and video game content ratings, enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines and helps ensure responsible online privacy practices for the interactive entertainment software industry.


Mission
To empower consumers, especially parents, with the ability to make informed decisions about the computer and video games they choose for their families through the assignment of age and content ratings, and to hold the computer and video game industry accountable for responsible marketing practices.

Philosophy
After consulting a wide range of child development and academic experts, analyzing other rating systems and, most importantly, listening to parents, ESRB found that what consumers really wanted in a video game rating system was both age-based rating categories as well as concise, impartial information about what type of content is in the game. Parents felt strongly that a rating system should inform and suggest, not prohibit.

With this philosophy in mind, the ESRB created and implemented the first two-part rating system, which includes both a rating category to suggest age-appropriateness, as well as content descriptors to indicate what content may have triggered the rating and/or may be of interest or concern to the consumer. The result is a rating system that is universally adopted by the industry, supported by retailers and is consistently described by parents and opinion leaders as the best entertainment rating system in the US.

For more visit: http://www.esrb.org/ratings/index.jsp