Sweden wants to add sexism ratings to video games

As it stands, video games have a maturity rating which is basically an indicator as to how violent or sexual a video game could be. It also helps parents determine if their 7-year old should be playing games meant for older teens. That being said, a report from The Local has revealed that over in Sweden, they could be thinking about adding a sexism rating to video games as well.

In a world where 52 percent of gamers are female, it seems odd that women get such a rough treatment in so many games. That’s what prompted Dataspelsbranchen, Sweden’s game industry trade group, to ponder adding a sexism rating next to age and content ratings on newly-released titles. According to The Local, the organization has received a grant from the country’s government to work out the idea. So far, the plan is to take an approach similar to the Bechdel Test to examine if women are given fair treatment in video games, but also to look at how publishers deal with the issue of gender equality given that Sweden’s game industry only employs a female workforce of 16 percent. If you were wondering, there’s no word on if the ratings would apply to all games or just those made in Sweden, but given that the country is the home of Minecraft, Just Cause, Hotline Miami, the Battlefield series and Goat Simulator, you can be sure that it’ll be pretty visible.