Elden Ring rated again, this time in Australia

Update - October 13: Elden Ring has now popped up on the Australian classification board with an MA 15+ rating. 

Australia's rating was listed earlier today, October 13. As expected, Elden Ring's mature rating is comparable to what it received in Korea earlier this month. The Australian board's rating mentions themes and violence with "strong impact" but notes a lack of any language, drug use, nudity, and sex. Interestingly, it also specifies "strong fantasy themes" whereas the three Dark Souls games were rated for "horror themes," which is likely a reflection of the more distinct high fantasy vibe of The Lands Between. To the surprise of no one, Bloodborne is also in the horror themes club. 

The MA 15+ rating Elden Ring received in Australia does line up with many of FromSoftware's previous games, but there are some curious differences in specific criteria. Dark Souls 3 featured mild language according to its rating, for example, and the Australian rating for Dark Souls 2 mentions mild drug use and sex. This suggests that, compared to previous games at least, Elden Ring may have minimized mature content outside of all the fantasy violence. 

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Original story:

Elden Ring has received an official classification from the Korean ratings board, bringing the long-awaited next game from the Dark Souls studio a step closer to reality.

The rating was posted today on the board's official site, and spotted on Twitter by Mordecai. There aren't many surprises in the listing itself, which attributes its 18+ rating to Elden Ring's frequent depictions of realistic violence. Sekiro, Dark Souls 3, Bloodborne, and other FromSoftware projects have all received the same rating, so if you were able to stomach their gory monster battles, you should be able to rip and tear your way through Elden Ring as well.

Given the fact that we already knew Elden Ring is set to arrive on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X on January 21, 2022, this isn't a big leak or anything. However, if FromSoftware was far enough along to submit a copy of the game to the Korean ratings board, it's a good sign that no further delays are in store - and further corroboration of the developer's statement that Elden Ring is in "the final stages of development."

Diehard fans of the Souls games have nearly paced a hole in the rug since Elden Ring was first announced at E3 2019, but the studio also hopes it will "broaden the fanbase" that Dark Souls built by giving players more options to approach its trademark demanding action.

See what else is on our big board right now with our guide to new games 2021.