YouTube to Impose New Restrictions on Video Game Violence

Considering how frequently gambling games and apps are advertised on YouTube through platform-wide advertisements, this move is unusual. The new restrictions are targeting the depiction of gambling with additional items, like NFTs or video game cosmetics, as well as the “casino-style games” that do not involve wagering or winning anything monetary. This follows links to such sites being restricted in March. Whether this is limited to traditional gambling sites or could extend to videos of “casino-style games” like Balatro or video games with gambling for digital goods like <i>EA Sports FC</i> with its Ultimate Team is currently unclear.

As for the video game violence, this has been a hot topic for decades, dating back to the earliest days of the medium. The new change promises to be more stringent in what types of violence can be depicted in a video without the video being age restricted, namely “content featuring realistic human characters that focuses on scenes of torture or scenes of mass violence against non-combatants.” Jacob Geller’s video essay “Analyzing Every Torture Scene in Call of Duty – All 46 of Them” (content warning for depictions of torture) stands out as the type of critical engagement that could be discouraged from the platform as part of this. Currently, this video is not age-restricted but likely will be in the coming weeks.

Although this move should limit the amount of minors who will be able to see videos on violent games and gambling (unless they just use their parents’ accounts), it also risks limiting criticism of the most popular games in the world. Furthermore, approved gambling sites like DraftKings are likely to continue marketing to everyone over the age of 18, regardless of any restrictions. This seems like a policy that should be enforced with flexibility and nuance—two things tech behemoths aren’t exactly known for.