The Ministry of Communications and Digital Affairs of Indonesia had previously asked Steam to mark IGRS by age.Otherwise, it would not be possible to show the purchase information in the country, so that some developers and distributors began to use the Steam-in-Inline Rating System to generate the corresponding age rankings, but created a number of ulongs.
The binary card game “Seima” was labelled “18+”, while games such as “Saye’s Song” and “Prato Island” containing adult and inappropriate content were labelled “3+”. These game ratings were removed by Steam shortly after, and V Society responded that “technology gaps and communication failures” were caused. Steam’s built-in rating system uses the results of the built-in content review to determine the appropriate age classification for the newly released game. Following the implementation of the age classification requirements in Indonesia, V., in cooperation with local governments, updated the rating system to meet the new requirements.
While Steam’s built-in rating system makes it easier for developers to launch games, it is not without a chance. Old games with no age classification, released prior to the content survey conducted by Steam in January 2020, were rated on the basis of data collected and information obtained from developers. For games that simulate gambling or have online models, V added to its content survey new issues that may affect final ratings. This may be the reason why “18+” was wrongly rated, given the fact that “Seomas” contains elements of microtrading and simulated gambling. The IGRS rating of the game was temporarily removed and has now been updated to 3+. However, given the number of bloody images of self-inflicted, physical malformations, etc. of the Shaye Song, and the exposed content of the Plato Island, it is clear that Steam’s internal rating system is inadequate.
Following a series of age rating errors, IGRS announced that the ratings shown on Steam had not yet fully reflected those officially certified by the Department of Communications and Digital Affairs. This is because Steam “is still in the adjustment phase” and its built-in rating system is trying to meet IGRS standards. At the same time, V Society apologized for the misleading IGRS age rating issued on Steam between 2 April and 5 April, citing technical loopholes and communication failures. Wrong age ratings have been removed to prevent confusion and efforts are under way to fully generate and show more accurate IGRS-approved age ratings for Indonesian users.
