The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has changed the rating assigned to the game The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion from T (Teen 13+) to M (Mature 17+). The content causing the ESRB to change the rating involves more detailed depictions of blood and gore than were considered in the original rating, as well as the presence of a locked-out art file or "skin" that, if accessed through a third party modification to the PC version of the game, allows the user to play with topless versions of female characters.

Though not quite as scandalous as the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas "Hot Coffee" mod that allowed users to unlock an otherwise inaccessible portion of game code that depicted really clumsy simulated sex scenes, it's ironic that the re-rating does involve the same publisher, Take 2 Interactive, though Oblivion was created by a completely different developer, Bethesda.

While the rating for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion gets a four year bump in recommended player age, its current content descriptors for "Violence, Blood and Gore, Sexual Themes, Language, and Use of Alcohol" will not change, with just the PC version receiving an additional content descriptor for "Nudity," since the locked-out content is inaccessible on the Xbox 360 version of the game.

Reacting to the rating change almost immediate, the Interactive Entertainment Merchants Association (IEMA) released this statement:

"The pace at which the IEMA retailers reacted to the change in the ESRB rating for The Elder Scrolls(R) IV: Oblivion(TM) today stands as testament to the effectiveness and commitment to the industry's self-regulatory efforts," said IEMA President, Hal Halpin. Halpin explained that IEMA member company representatives communicated the ESRB Ratings change and the effective change in sales policy at the retail level was immediate.

Widely regarded as the best Xbox 360 game yet made (read Evergeek's review here) and similarly acclaimed as an extravagant PC fantasy role-playing game (RPG), The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion has dominated sales charts since it's release on March 28th.
 
 

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