Usually our yearly survey, conducted by Hart Research Associates, reveals compelling or surprising insights. But 2023 presents a difference in that many of these insights are remarkably consistent to previous years:

Trend: Parents Report Consistent Awareness and Use of ESRB Ratings

Parental awareness and use of the ESRB ratings steady with 2022’s. For many years parents and caregivers have reported high numbers on this topic, and it is encouraging to see such similar numbers year-over-year.

84% of parents with kids that play video games tell us that they are aware of the ESRB rating system. Meanwhile, 73% say they use the ESRB rating system regularly (“every time” or “most of the time”) when deciding which video games are appropriate for their kids. These numbers are identical to last year’s survey, illustrating a consistent trend for parents’ engagement with the ESRB rating system.

Similarly, a large majority of parents still tell us that each part of the rating system is “extremely” or “very” important in helping them decide which games are appropriate for their kids.

Trend: Finding Appropriate Content Continues to be Important to Parents

In 2023, parents reported an increased focus on finding appropriate video game content for their kids.

Parents have always told us that the content of their kids’ games is top-of-mind, and finding content appropriate video games remains one of their top challenges. 2023 shows a renewed interest in this challenge, and checking ESRB’s age and content ratings continues to be an important component of finding age-appropriate video games (second only to parents playing the game themselves).

That said, parents reiterated that managing the amount of time their kids spend playing continues to be their biggest challenge by a significant margin. Fortunately, (as you’ll see) many parents are using parental controls to manage these challenges!

Trend: Parents Consistently Leverage Other Tools to Manage Their Kids’ Video Games

Parents are continuing to leverage multiple resources to manage their kids’ video games. From checking the ratings, to activating parental controls, it’s clear that parents remain involved in managing their kids’ video game experiences.

Parents continue to set parental controls to manage their kids’ video game play. In fact, 86% (up from 80% in 2022) of parents say they use at least one parental control setting on a gaming device (e.g., PC, mobile device, game console), a third-party app, or an ISP. Use of parental controls has steadily increased over the years, and coupled with household rules (which, according to our 2020 survey, are established in an overwhelming majority of households) illustrates that parents take an active role in making sure their kids enjoy appropriate video game experiences.

ESRB provides step-by-step parental controls guides at ParentalTools.org. Visit ESRB’s Family Gaming Guide for more tips and tricks to help keep your kids’ video game play appropriate and maintain peace of mind.

Patricia E. Vance is the president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). In her position, she leads the teams responsible for assigning age and content ratings to video games and apps, enforcing marketing guidelines adopted by the video game industry, and operating ESRB Privacy Certified, an FTC-sanctioned COPPA Safe Harbor Privacy seal certification program.

The post Parents: Content is Key When Picking Appropriate Video Games appeared first on ESRB Ratings.

Usually our yearly survey, conducted by Hart Research Associates, reveals compelling or surprising insights. But 2023 presents a difference in that many of these insights are remarkably consistent to previous years:

Trend: Parents Report Consistent Awareness and Use of ESRB Ratings

Parental awareness and use of the ESRB ratings steady with 2022’s. For many years parents and caregivers have reported high numbers on this topic, and it is encouraging to see such similar numbers year-over-year.

84% of parents with kids that play video games tell us that they are aware of the ESRB rating system. Meanwhile, 73% say they use the ESRB rating system regularly (“every time” or “most of the time”) when deciding which video games are appropriate for their kids. These numbers are identical to last year’s survey, illustrating a consistent trend for parents’ engagement with the ESRB rating system.

Similarly, a large majority of parents still tell us that each part of the rating system is “extremely” or “very” important in helping them decide which games are appropriate for their kids.

Trend: Finding Appropriate Content Continues to be Important to Parents

In 2023, parents reported an increased focus on finding appropriate video game content for their kids.

Parents have always told us that the content of their kids’ games is top-of-mind, and finding content appropriate video games remains one of their top challenges. 2023 shows a renewed interest in this challenge, and checking ESRB’s age and content ratings continues to be an important component of finding age-appropriate video games (second only to parents playing the game themselves).

That said, parents reiterated that managing the amount of time their kids spend playing continues to be their biggest challenge by a significant margin. Fortunately, (as you’ll see) many parents are using parental controls to manage these challenges!

Trend: Parents Consistently Leverage Other Tools to Manage Their Kids’ Video Games

Parents are continuing to leverage multiple resources to manage their kids’ video games. From checking the ratings, to activating parental controls, it’s clear that parents remain involved in managing their kids’ video game experiences.

Parents continue to set parental controls to manage their kids’ video game play. In fact, 86% (up from 80% in 2022) of parents say they use at least one parental control setting on a gaming device (e.g., PC, mobile device, game console), a third-party app, or an ISP. Use of parental controls has steadily increased over the years, and coupled with household rules (which, according to our 2020 survey, are established in an overwhelming majority of households) illustrates that parents take an active role in making sure their kids enjoy appropriate video game experiences.

ESRB provides step-by-step parental controls guides at ParentalTools.org. Visit ESRB’s Family Gaming Guide for more tips and tricks to help keep your kids’ video game play appropriate and maintain peace of mind.

Patricia E. Vance is the president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). In her position, she leads the teams responsible for assigning age and content ratings to video games and apps, enforcing marketing guidelines adopted by the video game industry, and operating ESRB Privacy Certified, an FTC-sanctioned COPPA Safe Harbor Privacy seal certification program.

The post Parents: Content is Key When Picking Appropriate Video Games appeared first on ESRB Ratings.

Read on for more key trends from our most recent survey with parents, conducted by Hart Research Associates in June 2022.

Trend: More Parents Are Playing Games to Help Decide Appropriateness

Parents are making time to play a video game to help them decide if it is appropriate for their children; in fact, playing a game to determine age appropriateness is second only to checking the ESRB rating information.

Parents and caregivers are getting into the game more than ever. Most say ESRB ratings are still a “very helpful” method for determining the appropriateness of a game. This year, we’re also seeing more and more parents jump in as player 1 to help them decide about appropriate video games. Of course, as the survey confirms, parents are also taking advantage of other resources and strategies, including getting information from other parents, considering the genre of a game, and conducting internet research.

Trend: All Three Parts of the ESRB Ratings Continue to Be Very Important to Parents

Parental awareness and use of ESRB-assigned age and content ratings remains high. Parents say that all three parts of the rating system continue to be very valuable when deciding whether a video game is appropriate for their children. 

Parents continue to show a high level of awareness and use of the ESRB ratings. In fact, 84% say they are aware of the age ratings, while 74% say they check them before buying a game “every time” or “most of the time.”

A large majority of parents also find that all three parts of the rating system are “extremely” or “very” important when making decisions about appropriate video games for their family.

Trend: Parents and Caregivers are the Primary Decision-Makers When it Comes to Video Games

Parents and caregivers remain active in the decision-making process around appropriate video games. The survey revealed that parents make the decisions about which games and apps are permitted in the home.

Parents are in the driver’s seat when making decisions about which video games are permitted in the home. 78% of parents say they make all or most of the decisions about which games their kids can play and which apps they download. Some parents (17%) opt for a hybrid approach, working with their children to make these decisions. Only 5% of parents say their kids are allowed to make all or most of the decisions about what they play and download.

Trend: Parents Trust their Kids While Leveraging Parental Controls as Back-Up

Parents generally trust their children to follow the household rules. That said, many parents still enable parental controls to ensure that there are guardrails in place for their children around what they play, with whom, for how long, and whether they can spend money on new games and/or in-game purchases.

A large majority of parents (80%) say they use at least one parental control setting on one or more of their kids’ game devices (including consoles, PCs, and mobile devices) in the home. For parents who use parental controls on a video game console the highest proportion say they do so to limit or block purchases using real money. This is followed by limiting screen time, blocking games based on the ESRB-assigned age rating, and managing online communications with other players.

Trend: Parents Are Involved!

We often say that the best way for parents and caregivers to manage their kids’ video game play is to stay involved. From conducting pre-purchase research to setting parental controls, nurturing an open-ended, judgement-free conversation around appropriate video games is a surefire way to make sure you’re never in the dark about what (with whom and how much) your kids play. The good news is that this year’s survey illustrates that parents largely take advantage of the many tools and resources available and are actively engaged in managing their children’s video game experiences.  Parents being parents!

Patricia E. Vance is the president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). In her position, she leads the teams responsible for assigning age and content ratings to video games and apps, enforcing marketing guidelines adopted by the video game industry, and operating ESRB Privacy Certified, an FTC-sanctioned COPPA Safe Harbor Privacy seal certification program.

The post Parents Press Start to Help Pick Appropriate Video Games appeared first on ESRB Ratings.

The latest survey results indicate several key trends.

Trend: ESRB Ratings Continue to Be Very Important to Parents

Awareness and use of ESRB ratings remain high among parents, and all three parts of the rating system continue to be very, if not extremely, important to more than three-quarters of parents when deciding whether a game is appropriate for their children. 

Parents continue to use ESRB ratings as a first step to picking appropriate games. This has been relatively consistent from year-to-year, exemplifying ESRB-assigned age and content ratings are core to many parents’ decision-making process. Among parents who purchase physical games for their children, 84% say they are aware of the age ratings, while 75% say they use them “every time” or “most of the time”.

While this goes a long way to explaining how caregivers pick appropriate games for everyone in the family, there is more to the story.

Trend: Parents Are Strictest When It Comes to Their Children Making In-Game Purchases or Sharing Personal Information Online

In 2020, we saw that most parents establish and enforce household rules to manage what their kids play, how much money (if any) they can spend on in-game purchases, with whom they can play, and for how long. This trend has continued and expanded into 2021.

As we’ve seen before, parents tend to be most concerned about games that offer the ability to make in-game purchases using real-world money. To manage this, 92% of parents require that their kids get permission before they make any in-game purchase with real money. But what’s a rule with no backup? Parents told us that they strictly enforce this rule, with 74% saying there is “no flexibility”.

In the past year parents have remained aware of the potential pitfalls of sharing personal information with others online. 91% of parents said they have a household rule barring the sharing of any personal information with other players online. Three-quarters of parents say there is “no flexibility” with this measure.

It is also clear that parents are actively engaged in determining the type of  video games they let their children play. The survey revealed that 82% of parents require that their kids get permission before playing any new game, and 58% say there is “no flexibility” when enforcing this rule.

Screen time has always been a key part of household rules. In fact, 79% of parents say they have rules regarding when (and for how long) their kids can play. Interestingly, flexibility on this rule tends to be significantly more relaxed than other rules about video games. Over the past year with children turning their screen time into school, play dates, and entertainment, it stands to reason that 10% of parents say they are “very flexible” with this rule, 53% are “a little flexible” while 34% cite “no flexibility”. We’ve also seen more parents turning video games into a family activity.

Lastly, 76% of parents require that their children get permission before communicating with others online via chat, text, or video. According to the survey, 65% of parents say there is “no flexibility” with this household rule.

Trend: Most Parents Are Familiar with In-Game Safety Features

Parents are not only aware of a game’s online community guidelines, but they are also aware of in-game settings to address encounters with other players behaving inappropriately.

More than 60% of parents say they are familiar with monitoring features in the games their kids play, such as the ability to mute, block, and/or report other players. Many video games also have community guidelines, which are rules governing how players interact online. For example, many community guidelines bar players from engaging in toxic behavior (harassment, hate speech, etc.) and/or cheating. 54% of parents say they are aware of community guidelines.

These in-game features are important for parents to know about, as they provide actionable steps to resolve conflict and avoid other players that behave inappropriately.  Moreover, the survey results show there’s more work to do to better inform parents about these in-game tools.

Trend: Parents are Taking Advantage of Parental Control Apps

By and large, parents trust their children to follow the household rules. That said, the survey also shows that parents take advantage of parental controls to make sure there is back-up when they aren’t around. Traditionally, parents set these controls directly on a console or other game device, but this year the survey reveals that parents are increasingly inclined to take advantage of setting parental controls remotely via a mobile app – provided by the platform.

A large majority of parents (83%) say they set at least one parental control on their kids’ gaming device be it a PC, a mobile phone or tablet, or a console.

In the past, most parents who set controls for game consoles did so directly on their kids’ device. However, parents have increasingly been taking advantage of the convenience of managing their kids’ games through parental control apps provided by the platforms. 45% of parents now set controls through apps (an increase from 31% in 2019) instead of on the game device itself.

Over the past year we have seen video games become a key avenue for communication, familial bonding, and stress relief. With this has come a greater understanding among parents, not only about how their children engage with video games, but why it is such a great resource for camaraderie, education, and fun.

Patricia E. Vance is the president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). In her position, she leads the teams responsible for assigning age and content ratings to video games and apps, enforcing marketing guidelines adopted by the video game industry, and operating ESRB Privacy Certified, an FTC-sanctioned COPPA Safe Harbor Privacy seal certification program.

The post Parents Level Up on Monitoring Their Kids’ Video Games appeared first on ESRB Ratings.

Conducted annually by Hart Research Associates, the ratings awareness and use survey from April 2019 found that 87% of parents who purchase physical games for their kids are aware of the ESRB age ratings. Similarly, 77% of them regularly check the age rating before purchasing a new game. The survey also revealed high levels of awareness for Content Descriptors (77%) and Interactive Elements (75%).

Always remember to check the ESRB-assigned rating information before you buy or download a new game. Doing so will help you make sure your kids enjoy an age-appropriate video game experience! And remember to download our free ratings search app so you can check the ratings on the go.

Want to learn more about ESRB ratings? Visit our Ratings Guide, follow us on Twitter and Facebook, or Contact Us with more specific questions!

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