Games With Loot Boxes To Get Minimum 16 Age Rating Throughout Europe

13 March 2026
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Laura CressTechnology reporter


Games which include loot boxes will quickly be offered an age score of 16 throughout Europe, including in the UK, under a host of changes by the European video game rankings organisation.


The Pan-European Game Information body (PEGI)'s age ratings are displayed on games sold in the UK and other countries in Europe to show their viability for kids of different ages.


Loot boxes are an in-game feature to purchase random secret items with real or virtual currency, however current research study has discovered they blur the line between gaming and gambling.


The new ratings, working from June, could see games including loot box systems, such as EA Sports FC, get a much greater age rating.


The PEGI system is utilized in 38 nations to assist customers and particularly parents make notified choices about the video games they purchase.


Its rankings of 3, 7, 12, 16, 18 are utilized to indicate a video game's viability for particular age groups, instead of difficulty.


The organisation's modifications to this system will see games consisting of "paid random items" branded PEGI 16 by default. It says in many cases this could rise to PEGI 18.


Dirk Bosmans, director of PEGI, stated it was "positive" the updates would provide "more useful and transparent suggestions" for moms and dads and players.


Emily Tofield, president of Young Gamers & Gamblers Education Trust (Ygam), stated they were a "step in the right instructions".


But she added a PEGI 18 ranking must be applied retrospectively to existing titles.


Currently the brand-new rankings will only use to games released after June.


"Without applying the guidelines to present games the policy will do little to protect the children who are already playing them," Tofield stated.


'Gambling-like mechanics'


Despite issues about loot boxes, no UK legislation regulates how and where they appear in video games.


The UK government chose in 2022 not to amend the Gambling Act 2005 to include loot boxes, stating no evidence revealed a "causative link" to damages.


But guidance released by trade body Ukie in 2023 said game business should limit gamers under 18 from acquiring loot boxes without parental approval.


The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) states it bans and eliminates advertisements which stop working to make the clear whether a video game contains a loot box.


Dr Ruijie Wang, who led a January 2025 study from Bournemouth University into the damaging risks of gambling on youths, told the BBC loot boxes were "among the most studied examples of gambling-like mechanics in games".


"Recognising loot boxes as a risk consider age scores is an important action towards showing the truths of modern video game design, helping to provide parents with clearer signals about possible harms," she said.


PEGI's brand-new additions will likewise see games with time-limited systems, like a paid fight pass, now get a PEGI 12 score and video game with non-fungible tokens (NFTs) be ranked PEGI 18.


Fortnite, which uses a series of various paid-for passes, is already rated PEGI 12.


Games with "play-by-appointment" design systems such as day-to-day missions will get a PEGI 7 score - but if the mechanisms "penalize players for not returning", such by losing content, they will become PEGI 12.


Games doing not have any way for users to report or obstruct players online will get a PEGI 18 ranking.


Freelance computer game reporter Vic Hood said while the new scores were "favorable", it was difficult to see what distinction they would make unless moms and dads likewise took them seriously.


"In truth, it will mostly be down to moms and dads to inform themselves on why these changes have been brought in and choose for themselves if they consider the video games (and their loot box mechanics) appropriate for their child," she said.