Games with mature content are usually those that involve a certain degree of either explicit violence or romantic development of a situation. In order to protect the fragile minds of the young, games have to pass a strict rating approval from a certified commission in order to be sold. There are a lot of such ratings and every title has to pass the test and be assigned one in order to be sold. Some countries have stricter rules than others and games that are marked as appropriate for adults only end up being completely banned. One such country is Australia, and a good example of a title it shut down is Left 4 Dead 2.

A game labeled as “adults only” implies that at least some of its content isn't meant to be experienced by those that have not reached the legal age, but the tag leads most people to think strictly about an elaboration of the amorous concept than about excessive violence. Even if games still face serious obstacles when delving into explicit scenes of gore, apparently, the idea of the carnal relationship is far more taboo. The society has begun to be less impressed by dismemberment and executions and more insulted by the notion of a digital and interactive representation of a physical relationship.

Even if some games abuse both these themes and use them as a selling point, others present them as part of the reality that encompasses their universe. In their attempt at a realistic depiction of life, they find that the introduction of death and love into the story is self-implied. Speaking with Calgary Herald, Colin MacRae, an Electronic Arts spokesperson, said that, “A lot of the mature themes that you will get to in a video game are the result of deep stories, and the result of complex relationships and the result of multiple decisions that you need to make throughout the game.”

To him, titles have evolved much past the stage of the arcade shooters and fighting games, and, as weird as it might sound, it's the older people that can't manage to wrap their heads around the concept of a mature game. “The confusion around mature content in video games typically starts with the over-40 crowd, who just don't understand the medium. They think video games are Pong and they should be seeing the Friendly Giant, and that it's a kids medium,” MacRae added. “There's still a large chunk of the population that doesn't get it. Today, the audience for video games is as diverse as the audience is for TV, is as diverse as the audience is for movies.”