The office of the Game Rating and Administration Committee located in Haeundae District, Busan. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 10 (Korea Bizwire) — After decades as a gatekeeper of content, South Korea’s Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC) is undergoing a transformation — from a censorship-era pre-screening body into a modern agency focused on post-release oversight and player protection.
Under the reforms, GRAC will delegate most general game ratings to private organizations while concentrating on monitoring disclosure of “loot box” probabilities and cracking down on unlicensed operations by overseas gaming companies. Only gambling-style and arcade titles will remain under its direct review.
The shift marks a remarkable turnaround from the upheaval that began three years ago, when gamers staged one of the largest protests in the country’s digital culture history.
The controversy erupted in October 2022 after GRAC ordered game developer Nexon to raise the age rating or modify content in its anime-style mobile title Blue Archive without disclosing its reasoning.
Thousands of young players, mostly in their 20s and 30s, marched to the National Assembly demanding transparency and the abolition of what they called an “authoritarian” review system.
Auditors later found that GRAC had falsified inspection results and paid contractors for incomplete work, inflicting at least 660 million won in losses. The scandal triggered calls across the political spectrum to overhaul the game rating law and shift oversight to the private sector.
Gamers line up in front of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the afternoon of October 29, 2022, to join a collective petition organized by Rep. Lee Sang-heon of the Democratic Party, calling on the Board of Audit and Inspection to investigate alleged misconduct at the Game Rating and Administration Committee. (Yonhap)
Following Gamer Revolt, Seoul Pivots to Privatized Game Review System
By early 2024, the Ministry of Culture had announced a three-stage roadmap to privatize game classification. The first two phases — entrusting mobile and adult-restricted games to a semi-private ratings committee — have already been completed. A third and final phase, allowing full self-regulation by private entities, still requires parliamentary approval.
Meanwhile, GRAC has repositioned itself as a watchdog for player rights. Following new rules mandating disclosure of random-item odds, the agency created a “post-management bureau” and a task force to launch a Game Probability Compensation Center, signaling a pivot toward consumer protection and dispute resolution.
The arrival of Chairman Seo Tae-geon in August 2024 further accelerated change. Unlike his academic predecessors, Seo is a veteran of Korea’s gaming scene, having led the World Cyber Games and the Busan Indie Connect Festival.
Under his leadership, GRAC has opened its advisory bodies to gamers and industry professionals, established a permanent “Game Advisory Council,” and redefined rating committees to include player representatives.
Policy shifts are already evident. In May, GRAC reversed its adult-only classification of the roguelike card game Balatro, re-rating it suitable for players 15 and older after users argued it contained no gambling elements.
“We intend to continue listening to player feedback through both online and offline channels and to refine our classification standards in detail,” a GRAC official said.
Analysts view the reform as a watershed in Korea’s cultural policy — signaling the slow dismantling of a state-led censorship legacy in favor of a collaborative, transparent model that treats gamers not as subjects of regulation, but as participants in shaping it.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
