14 DAY TRIAL // Blizzard has made it official that it will be appealing the ruling from the Games Rating Board in South Korea, which has slapped an 18+ rating on StarCraft II, a decision that might limit sales of the videogame in one of its most important markets. The reason for the decision was made on the basis of “level of violence, foul language and depiction of drug use.”
Bob Calayco, a public relation representative from Blizzard, told Shacknews that a new version of StarCraft II had been put together by the developer set to “address the Game Ratings Board's concerns.” Previous builds submitted by Blizzard received under 18 ratings last year and the hope is that the changes, unspecified at the moment, the company has made will render the ratings board reconsider its decisions.
The ESRB, which rates videogames launched in North America, has given StarCraft II a rating of Teen, citing “blood and gore, language, suggestive themes, use of alcohol and tobacco, and violence.”
Speculations in South Korea link the 18+ rating with a conflict between Blizzard, the creator of the StarCraft franchise, and KeSPA, the organization that runs the popular e-Sports leagues in South Korea where the strategy franchise is one of the main attractions. The two companies disagree about the sums of money linked to moving the gaming leagues from StarCraft: Brood War to the sequel set to arrive this year.
For the time being, StarCraft II is in a multiplayer beta stage, the developers at Blizzard working hard to balance the whole experience. Keys are available for those who preorder the videogame at GameStop. The studio has not clearly talked about a launch date but at one point, it said that the title would be out before July, which is not likely right now.