The ESRB posted (and then took down) their Resident Evil 7 rating today, revealing that it’s rated Mature for blood and gore, intense violence, and strong language. In the ratings summary (SPOILER WARNING), they talk about the protagonist, the weapons you’ll use to kill “mutant creatures,” and more:
This is a survival-horror game in which players assume the role of Ethan, a man searching for his missing wife in a derelict mansion. From a first-person perspective, players explore the environment and use pistols, shotguns, flamethrowers, explosives and chainsaws to kill mutant creatures. Combat is accompanied by realistic gunfire, screams of pain, and exaggerated blood-splatter effects. As players progress through the story, cutscenes can depict instances of gore and intense acts of violence: a character’s arm dismembered by a chainsaw; a man’s leg taken off at the knee with a shovel; a character impaled through the face with a shovel. Some areas also depict mutilated corpses with exposed organs/viscera. The words “f**k” and “sh*t” are heard in the dialogue.
If the name Ethan sounds familiar, it’s because it was mentioned in the recent gamescom trailer.
Resident Evil 7 releases on January 24, 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Other recent ratings by the ESRB include PlayStation VR Worlds (Mature) and Mafia III (also Mature). Here’s why Mafia III is rated Mature:
This is an open-world action game in which players assume the role of a Vietnam veteran (Lincoln Clay) seeking revenge against an organized crime syndicate. As players explore 1968-era New Orleans, they complete missions that often involve taking over criminal rackets and assassinating targets. From a third-person perspective, players use pistols, machine guns, shotguns, explosives, and knives to kill enemy rivals and thugs; players can directly kill civilians and police though this may negatively affect their progress. Combat is highlighted by realistic gunfire and large blood-splatter effects. Players can also use stealth attacks to strangle and/or stab enemies from behind. In some sequences, players engage in intense hand-to-hand combat, performing various takedowns and executions: stomping enemies’ heads; snapping their necks; shooting enemies in the mouth or head at close range. One sequence depicts characters cutting the limbs off corpses inside a warehouse. The game contains depictions of nudity and sexual material: topless women dancing and caressing each other during a pornography shoot; a sex-party setting in which a woman performs oral sex on a man (no genitalia depicted); a male couple having sex in a bathhouse (no genitalia or penetration depicted); unlockable Playboy magazine centerfolds/covers depicting exposed buttocks and breasts. The game also includes references to drugs and drug use: a man snorting lines of drugs; missions that involve spiking liquids with LSD; depictions of a heroin-processing operation. The words “f**k,” “c*nt,” “sh*t,” and “c*cksucker” are heard. Players will also frequently experience racial epithets (e.g., “n*gger,” “g*ok”) and dialogue.
Mafia III is out on October 7, with PlayStation VR Worlds following on October 13.
