Russia Rates “The Sims 4” Only For Adults

The upcoming life simulation game The Sims 4 has been rated 18+ by the Russian Federation because it promotes same-sex relationships. This is the first time I’ve ever seen the game get such a rating. However, it doesn’t come as a surprise considering how Russia is handling the LGBT community in the country.

According to Ars Technica, the rating has been placed in accordance with law number 436-FZ. For those of you who might now know, the law was signed by Vladimir Putin in June of 2013 (thank you Google!). The law has been implemented in order to save children from content that is harmful for them. And yes! That includes non-traditional relationships which The Sims promotes, as far as Russia is concerned. The law was the talk of the town during the Sochi Olympics because of the gay athletes that were participating. However, it’s still hasn’t been changed. It is fun to realize that people turn gay because they saw some gay couple on TV or read about them somewhere, and we should keep little kids as far away as possible.

The Sims is amazing when it comes to the gaming world. It allows players to live in an alternate world, a world where they can love and marry anyone they want. They can also go on a killing spree but that’s another issue. The point is The Sims is incredibly LGBT inclusive. Though it’s sad to see such a thing happen, it’s good to know that it’s not the game’s own fault, unlike Nintendo’s “Tomodachi Life”.

The Sims games have always received ratings that make it accessible to a lot of players. According to Ars Technica, the installments had routinely received a T rating (ages 13 and up) in the US, PEGI 12 ratings in the European Union, and surprisingly, The Sims 3 received a rating of ages 6 and up by Germany’s USK rating board. Good for you Germany!

I don’t know how much the rating will affect the game’s profits when it is released in Russia. For those of you who are living in Russia, it seems you’ll have to get an adult to buy it for you, or you can try getting it from another country.

I will surely be keeping an eye out for The Sims 4 when it hits the market sometime this year.

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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