While many video games are exclusively tied to certain consoles, others take advantage of reaching larger audiences by making their titles cross-compatible. Some developers go as far as providing ports of their games to Android and iOS devices like Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas or Genshin Impact. With that comes the need to add or remove certain aspects of the game to fit what the device is capable of, which sometimes changes age ratings.
This happened a lot when major games were adapted to smaller consoles like the Nintendo DS back in the day. As a result, many titles have received different age ratings across multiple platforms. Even some old classics revived on the Nintendo Switch Virtual Console have gotten strange age ratings across the board, with some being both available to all ages and restricted with a mature rating.
7 Among Us
First released in 2018, Among Us has become one of the most popular free-to-play online games. With a simple premise of finding imposters in a small space, it has a wide range of appeal and can host up to fifteen players at a time. But as the game is online and includes in-game and voice chat, in addition to in-game purchases, the age ratings vary across platforms.
On consoles and Android, Among Us is rated by the ESRB as E10+ for “fantasy violence” and “mild blood.” But on iOS, players have to be 9+ years old to play the game, while on Steam, there’s no age rating on the game page. But players need to be at least 13 years old to create an account on Steam, so there’s an age limit in place.
6 X-Men Origins: Wolverine
X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a hack-and-slash game based on the 2009 film that was released simultaneously. Players were spoilt for choice when playing X-Men Origins: Wolverine on different consoles, particularly as three different versions of the game were released.
The standard version for PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and Wii were rated by the ESRB as T for “blood, mild language, tobacco reference, and violence." Then there was the “Uncaged” version released for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC rated M for “blood, gore, intense violence, and language.”
X-Men Origins: Wolverine was also available to play on the Nintendo DS, rated E10+ for “fantasy violence and language.” In this version, players explore platform environments as Wolverine compared to the third-person perspectives of the console games.
5 The Amazing Spider-Man 2
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is an open-world game based on the film of the same name starring Andrew Garfield. Released in 2014, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was released on major consoles, including PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U, and PC, as well as the Nintendo 3DS. Depending on the platform, the gameplay mechanics and age ratings change.
While the ESRB rated the game as T for “mild blood, mild suggestive themes, and violence” for most consoles, it was rated an E10+ rating on the Nintendo 3DS for “mild violence.” In this version, the gameplay differs substantially but features the same plot, voice-overs, and similar level designs as the other games under The Amazing Spider-Man umbrella.
4 PUBG: Battlegrounds
The battle royale game PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is available on various platforms and has been free to play since January 2022. On PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo systems, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is rated T by the ESRB for “blood and violence.”
As for PUBG: Mobile, a version of the game adapted to Android and iOS devices, it remains a T-rated game on Android. However, PUBG: Mobile is rated 12+ on iOS.
3 EarthBound
Initially released in 1995 on the SNES, EarthBound is the second entry in the Japanese Mother series. The sequel takes place in the fictional country of Eagleland, where players take on the character of Ness, who investigates a mysterious meteorite crash that unleashes an alien force that turns living creatures on Earth against each other.
EarthBound was rated E by the ESRB when it first came out. But when it became available to play on the Wii U and Nintendo Switch Virtual Consoles, the ESRB upped the rating to T for “fantasy violence, mild blood, suggestive themes, and crude humor.”
2 Rango
A video game sequel to the 2011 film, Rango follows the titular stranded pet chameleon as he tries to find his girlfriend’s missing father, Bean. It’s a relatively short game but expands upon the story of the animated film and features an abundance of familiar characters.
Rango was released around the same time as the film and was available to play on PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, and Nintendo DS. On the main three consoles, the game was rated E10+ by the ESRB for “cartoon violence” and “mild language.” But the DS version was rated E as it doesn’t include “mild language.”
1 X-Men: Destiny
Released in 2011, X-Men: Destiny is an RPG written by Mike Carey, a featured writer on X-Men: Legacy. The game was developed by Activision for the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, and Nintendo DS and featured three new mutants for the player to control and appearances from familiar faces.
When the game was released, the console versions of X-Men: Destiny were rated T by the ESRB for “mild language, mild suggestive themes, and violence.” In contrast, the DS version was rated E10+ for “fantasy, violence, and mild suggestive themes.”