Pan European Game Information

Pan European Game Information, or more commonly PEGI, is a European system for rating the content of computer and video games, and other entertainment software. It was developed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE) and came into use in April 2003. The PEGI system is used in 25 countries. It is not associated with the European Union.

Participation is voluntary, at the discretion of the game developer. To obtain the ratings for any piece of software, the developer completes a questionnaire, which is then evaluated by the Netherlands Institute for the Classification of Audiovisual Media (NICAM) and ratings are given. It's based on the Dutch Kijkwijzer system too.

There are two parts to the classification for any piece of software &mdash; a suggested minimum age and also up to six descriptions of content, such as the use of strong language, violence, etc.

Age ratings
PEGI has five age categories. In the countries of Finland and Portugal, local legislation conflicts with some of the ratings and they are changed accordingly.