The game audience is extremely important when it comes to marketing. Age of player and maturity really does factor into this, since a seven-year-old is not going to be playing FNAF or Portal with too much success, nor is a 38-year-old going to find any challenge in a Reader Rabbit game. This is why the rating of a game matters.
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You truly do need to know what you are playing when you buy any form of videogame. The rating system is built for that purpose, so little kids don't pick up a game like Grand Theft Auto or Phasmophobia. It ranges from EC (early childhood) to AO (adults only). Understandably, parents and anyone who doesn't want pornographic content care about this rating system.
Game designers also consider audience age and maturity during the design process. This looks like hint systems built into games aimed at everyone and kids, as well as no hint systems in Portal and many horror games. Yes, hints can be built in for all ages, but adult-aged games generally don't hand the answer to you on a silver platter. You can go online for some of that help. Long story short, kids will have hints obviously stated (Nancy Drew games on Junior level or early Nancy Drew games) while Portal leaves you all by your lonesome to figure it out. Before the internet, some players couldn't finish a game without buying a strategy guide. Now we have them abundantly (as long as the game has been released at least a few months).
Adult themes can show up in games such as Herinteractive's Nancy Drew series. However, they are subtly placed so the player themselves can put the pieces together. Most horror games do this. Ghost of Thornton Hall is like this. You see, younger players may not find it or put the ideas fully together, while the adults will find it. It makes a game playable for younger audiences, yet enjoyable for adults. Nancy Drew games are playable and enjoyable for adults and kids - especially since the audience is either growing up or adults playing with their kids.
The Rating System Explained
Here's a breakdown of what each rating means, for reference.
EC - Early childhood, ages 3 plus, no crude content
E - Everyone, ages 6 plus, some crude content and a variety of mischief/comic slapstick
T- Teen, ages 13 plus, violence and language and suggestive themes
M - Mature, ages 17 plus, mature sexual themes and more intense Teen category
AO- Adults only, ages 18 plus, graphic depictions of sex and violence
RP - Rating pending, rating on the way
As you can all see, this gives you a sense of what gameplay will bring you. E is the most common rating that you see in a public space. Most everyone can enjoy that game and find it fun. Parents have an active responsibility. You ultimately pay for the game as a parent by giving an allowance or directly shopping with your kids. Parents have control over what can and can't be played. While it is true some kids will hide the games and play them while their parents are not home, parents need to be paying attention to the rating systems. There is no law to make it illegal to sell kids games above their age range. Parents are solely responsible for making that judgment call. Just because everyone has it does not mean your child should. Your young child may not be mature enough to understand what is and isn't real or appropriate behavior. AOs are also rare, so keep in mind they are not going to be displayed in public for both public decency and rarity reasons.
Hint Systems
Kids need more obvious hint systems. Plain and simple. Common sense does not always allow a young child to know what to do next. On the other side of things, I could solve some puzzles in seconds without help somehow and struggle with them in adulthood. How? The world may never know. Also, kids don't overthink like adults. Either way, Nancy in the Herineractive games may state the terribly obvious next step because the game is suggested for ages 10 and up. Junior and Senior mode allows challenge options and less hints to those who don't want the easier puzzles. This easily makes it an E game for all ages (and I mean all ages, looking at the fanbase).
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I talk about Portal 1 and 2 because no hint system exists. Truly. None. You need help? Consult Youtube or a walkthrough. I don't see young kids doing well with this game. My husband didn't beat this alone. It requires a gamer who thinks way outside the box. Some kids might do decently on it, if I'm thinking about the gifted kids who need more challenge, but the average kid will inevitably get quite frustrated and potentially stop playing. This was aimed at adults, based on the dialogue as well. The main AI is rather mean-spirited and not friendly.
Good hint systems shouldn't give you the answer on a silver platter unless it is necessary and you can't beat it without beating your head on the wall. Again, later Nancy Drews do this well by providing a hint system that gives smaller hints, then the solution if you're desperate. You can call people for hints in some games. Bottom line, the solution can't be found in the hint system by accident. Small nudges within the game dialogue or even in the setting can also be good to set up. If a portrait on the wall can show you half the solution to the puzzle box in the corner it gives the player a push in the right direction. Kids may need a more on-the-nose hint, yet I still think it depends on the kid in question as to how much they need. No matter what, kids' games are more direct with hints.
Adult Themes
Here comes the dialogue and plotline of the game. Adult themes can be dark and subtle or in your face. A graphic sex scene is not subtle, but a rumpled bed and a pack of condoms on the dresser are less blatant-ish (especially if you see it, but don't get a verbal confirmation of it). Subtle hints that have to be noticed through the player exploring are wonderful for making the player put together the entire situation. This is how you can hide a darker plotline in a lighter one. Rather than showing graphic images and verbal confirmation, you can put a journal page or two scattered around the house to reveal what happened.
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Thornton Hall, again, does this with a note in the basement. No one speaks of it. Not one question can be asked through Nancy about it. Yet, some theorize that Clara not being told who her daddy is and that note are connected, leading to the conclusion that her father was an older relative of hers (incest, if you don't catch my meaning). The subtle clues scattered in games give backstory. Game theorists feed off this type of explorative storytelling, which makes players want to explore it all before progressing the game.
Adult-only games don't bother with subtle anything. You don't have to tap-dance around players who aren't mature enough to get it. I find these to be graphic games I don't play. Pornographic content is stuffed into these games, which is why AO is a rare rating. Pornography is plentiful online, I know, but yet AO is rare for a game to receive. I don't have to say what these contain, most likely, given these are feeding fantasies that probably shouldn't be fed.
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