A drink driving game which was available on the Nintendo Switch eShop has been pulled from sale, after it initially used a PEGI 3+ rating.
Need for Spirit Drink & Drive Simulator was released for the Switch on 15th October, and contains gameplay of a "hapless professional driver tasked with delivering alcoholic beverages to various celebrations, all while battling the perils of abysmal roads and your very own addiction to the booze you're transporting".
With "immersive camera modes" and an added "exciting twist" of drunk vision, the game is (yes) a drink driving simulator. Its PEGI 3+ rating suggests the game is suitable for all age groups. PEGI however states a game which "refers to or depicts the use of illegal drugs, alcohol or tobacco" must be labelled as PEGI 16 or PEGI 18.
Curiously, the same game was released on PC via Steam in 2018, and Epic earlier this year. Whilst a PEGI rating is absent on the game's Steam page, it has a PEGI 16 rating on Epic for use of alcohol/tobacco.
The game's rating was presumably assigned via the International Age Rating Coalition, which is a free, self-submitted process. The IARC states its monitors ratings assigned to ensure accuracy. The monitoring process includes "a variety of tactics, including keyword search, top download checks, publisher and consumer requests," according to PEGI.
At the bottom of the game's description, publisher Instamarketingandgame said the game "delivers a humourous take on a serious subject, making it clear that the game does not endorse or encourage drunk driving in real life". Sadly, I'm not willing to pay up 1.59 to see whether this is the case or not.
In a statement shared with Eurogamer, PEGI said Need for Spirit Drink & Drive Simulator was "already under investigation". Following this correspondence, the game's eShop page was removed.
In a further statement to Eurogamer, PEGI said it had examined the game and now rated it as PEGI 16, which means it will have to be resubmitted to the eShop. "When an investigation shows that the PEGI rating changes by more than one age category, the game is taken down and Nintendo requires that the game is resubmitted with an accurate rating (to ensure their parental control tools work properly)," a spokesperson told us.
We have also contacted Nintendo for comment on the game's 3+ rating on the eShop.