A screenshot taken from Do Not Feed The Monkeys on Nintendo Switch

Update (Fri 5th Jun, 2020 10:15 BST): It appears that the North American eShop has now caught on to the rating error, as the game has now been taken down. The game is set to relaunch on the eShop with a new and correct rating in due time; publisher Alawar says that, "As soon as we know the new date — we'll let everybody know immediately".

It has also now appeared on the European eShop, with a more understandable '12' rating.


Original Article (Wed 3rd Jun, 2020 11:30 BST): Before a video game can be released on Nintendo Switch - or any other major platform, for that matter - it has to be given an official rating by any relevant organisations. In North America, ratings are handled by ESRB, with PEGI handling the same process across Europe.

You'll have seen them plenty of times before; ESRB's ratings range from 'E for Everyone', which means that a game's content "is generally suitable for all ages", to 'Adults Only 18+, which speaks for itself.

ESRB Ratings

It's pretty strange, then, that Do Not Feed the Monkeys, an indie game centred around the act of voyeurism and complete with scenes featuring nudity and sexual content, can currently be found on the North American eShop with an 'E for Everyone' rating. It launched earlier this week and can be downloaded for $12.99 at the time of writing - there's even a free demo available.

What makes the situation stranger still, is the fact that the game's publisher describes it as being for "mature" audiences only, and has addressed the fact that the age rating needs to be changed on social media. So how did it get on the eShop with an E for Everyone rating in the first place?

"As some of you may know, we intended to release Do Not Feed the Monkeys on Switch today. Unfortunately, we had to change the ratings. We are waiting for the rating update to be tested, and we'll be able to release the game after that. Sorry for any inconvenience!"

If you have children who frequently browse the eShop for new games to play, we'd naturally urge you to steer them clear of this until the rating is changed. The game's developer describes the game as follows:

This Game may contain content not appropriate for all ages, or may not be appropriate for viewing at work: Nudity or Sexual Content, General Mature Content

[source gonintendo.com]