Age restrictions applied to games and esports titles should be taken very seriously

Every athlete at IESF's World Championships complies with age restrictions. Seen here, Jason Batzofin, Players' Commission Chairperson, taking the Players' Oath at a previous IESF World Championships.

Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) maintains that it is essential for all esports athletes to comply with the age restrictions as set by the Films and Publications Board (fpb). While many gamers  may feel that the age restrictions set are unrealistic or unnecessary, all should note that the age restrictions set, are set for a reason.

It is important that esports athletes look after both their physical and mental health. It is the mental health of gamers that age restrictions are there to protect.

Age restrictions are not new, and the reasons for placing age restrictions on films and games have not.

Because children learn quickly and often imitate what they see and hear around them, parents need to shelter their children from certain types of movies, music, games and book content which is deemed to be inappropriate.

Since parents are not able to monitor all such content, age restrictions exist to provide good parents with the tools to make an informed decision.

Age restrictions therefore exist to prevent children from viewing potentially harmful content.

It is true that parents do have the freedom to choose what their kids do and don’t watch, and many are aware of the influence of inappropriate content and the lasting effects of such. However, event organisers, schools, clubs, MGO's, and team owners have no such luxury as it is illegal to allow a child to participate in a game or esports title for which the child is under-aged.

Age restrictions should be taken very seriously and adhered to at all times.

International Esports Federation (IESF) too complies with age restrictions set, and due to the nature of IESF, uses, as its default, the highest age restriction so that no member national federation is compromised.

Thus for IESF's 11th World Championships to be held in Seoul from 11 to 15 December 2019, the following age restrictions apply:

Title	Age restriction
DotA 2	16
PES 2020	12
Tekken 7	16

Also read: 

• Age restrictions in esports are important.
• North-West University becomes the headline sponsor for MSSA's Online School League.
• 2020 Calendar of Events
• Why schools and universities should invest in esports.
• How does a school join up for MSSA's 9th Online Inter-School Provincial Championships?

Age restrictions in esports are important.

Know the ratings.

When games are age-restricted, it means that they are legally restricted for all children under the specified age, but advisory for children of and above the specified age.

However, it has come to Mind Sports South Africa's attention that there are many private operators outside of MSSA who are playing 'fast-and-loose' by allowing underaged participants to participate in their esports events.

Age restictions exist for good reason. The age restrictions set are there to protect children from harmful influences in order to limit harmful and negative impacts.by restricting material that may not be age appropriate.

According to the Films and Publications Board: "As the primary focus of the Films and Publications Act of South Africa is to protect children from harmful content, we urge parents, caregivers and the public at large to take note of the following tips:

• Download Applications “Apps” on your device. These Apps monitor your child’s online activities and can be set to:
• o Alert you when your child logs on to an App.
  o Allow you to set limits of how much time they can spend online using their devices.
  o Alerts you when the child tries to download an App.
  o Allows you to grant permission for your child to download an App.
• Always supervise your children when they are online and get to know the games they play or videos they access on platforms such as YouTube.
• Be aware that the internet does not only offer fun activities, there are also criminal activities.
• Teach children not to share personal information and to ensure their privacy setting are always on.
• Assist them to identify activities or people that make them feel uncomfortable and to report such activities immediately to their parents.
• Teach children to block any person who bullies them and to report to an adult.
• Ensure that the devices they have access to are restricted to age suitable content.
• Many social networks require users to be 13 years or older. If your children have social media accounts, ensure that you check their privacy settings and who they interact with."

It should be noted that operaters of gaming events who ignore the age restrictions as set, risk more than damaging their own reputation and legal standing, they risk the well-being of all the children that participate.

Also read: 

• North-West University becomes the headline sponsor for MSSA's Online School League.
• 2019 Calendar of Events
• Why schools and universities should invest in esports.
• Reminder: Closing date for entries for MSSA's Inter-School League.
• How does a school join up for MSSA's 9th Online Inter-School Provincial Championships?