Question:

I have an 11 year old son who has an Xbox 360. Most of his friends have free rein at home when it comes to games and age limits. I am wondering if the game Halo (which has a 16 year old age limit) has this limit because of violent content or the level of difficulty?

Mother

Answer from Kids and Media’s Director:

Halo 3 ODST has a recommended age limit of 16 years primarily as a result of violence and depictions of violence in the game. The Pan-European Game Information (PEGI) age rating system does not take into account the level of difficulty or skills required to play a game, the age suitability is decided on the basis of the content of the game.

A PEGI 16 game has been labelled on the basis of the following criteria:

PEGI 16
This rating is applied once the depiction of violence (or sexual activity) reaches a stage that looks the same as would be expected in real life. More extreme bad language, the concept of the use of tobacco and drugs and the depiction of criminal activities can be content of games that are rated 16.

Link: http://www.pegi.info/en/index/id/33

Review:
Telegraph’s review of Halo 3 ODST is available here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/video-games/6269872/Halo-3-ODST--video-game-review.html

Video clip:
To see the official launch trailer for Halo 3 ODST, press the play button at the top of the right hand column.

Follow the age limits
I can understand that your son wants to play this game, as it is a good and exciting game in its genre. However, I do recommend that we parents follow the age limits, and that we are clear and consistent in our attitudes.

“Halo 3” has a 16 year age limit due to strong content, and for this reason I recommend that you find other games for your son.

Feel free to use Kids and Media’s search engine: Just select the desired console, genre and age group, and in addition you can choose whether you want to see all matching games, or only the games we recommend.