Fortnite Creators Must Start Filling Out Age Rating Surveys Or Risk Delisting As "Age Gates" Are Being Added

Fortnite finally realized how young their player base is.

The battle royale game is set to introduce internationally-recognized age and content ratings, in partnership with the International Age Rating Coalition (IARC), starting on November 14. According to Epic Games, this initiative aims to provide players and parents with clear information about the age-appropriateness of in-game content. These ratings will span from E (Everyone) to a maximum rating of Teen. This move is especially critical considering Fortnite’s expansion into a “multi-game ecosystem” featuring various content from third-party creators.

Creators who wish to publish their content in Fortnite will be required to complete an IARC content rating questionnaire before submitting their work for review by Epic Games moderators. Upon completion, creators will receive an age-based IARC rating as well as region-specific ratings from participating rating authorities, such as ESRB (North America) and PEGI (Europe). These ratings will be prominently displayed, so players and parents can judge whether or not the content is kosher.

Parents and guardians will also be able to use Epic's Parental Controls to set age rating limits for their children, blocking content above a specified rating. They can unlock specific islands exceeding the set threshold too using a Parental Controls PIN. Additionally, there will be an option to enable or disable the ability for children to design their own games in Creative Mode. 

Until these changes go into effect, creators are encouraged to complete the IARC questionnaire by October 16 to ensure their content is not delisted on November 14 — as all unrated islands will be removed.