History WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids / VideoGames

* ''VideoGame/HeartOfDarkness''. Rated E for Everyone, despite the painful-looking -- though [[BloodlessCarnage not actually gory]] -- death animations, not to mention the abhorrent scenery. Remember kids, shadows are very dangerous things. However, the game got an 11+ in the UK, a more fitting rating.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto''. It is amazing and disgusting how many parents think it's fine for their kids to play GTA. A personal favorite parental defense: "Grand Theft Auto is the only M-rated game we let him play."
** Conversely, most of the controversy surrounding the game stems from this trope being applied to video games as a whole. MoralGuardians think that only kids should play video games and therefore making one about violent crime is absolutely heinous.
** One of the highlights of the past was in 2004 when an 85-year-old New York grandmother became upset that she bought ''Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'' for her 14-year-old grandson (she did have the game taken away from him) and launched a lawsuit against Take-Two over it.
* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'' has a bit of that ''Franchise/StarWars''-ish look to it, what with big heroic guys in green space armor gracing the cover. Needless to say, any bit of knowledge of the game makes it clear that it is most definitely ''not'' for children. Of course, being a massive big-name game, children are sure to hear of it and make their parents well aware of that fact, hence you will always - ALWAYS - find at least one 5-year-old playing on Xbox Live with you. ''Halo 5 Guardians'' is eventually rated T with the space opera feeling highly toned compared to the previous games though.

* The English download site for the pigeon-dating game ''VisualNovel/HatofulBoyfriend'' gives it a G-rating, and it is officially rated E10+ by the ESRB. Keep in mind that this game has an ending where [[spoiler:you get ''decapitated'' by a murderous doctor who promises to "examine your insides most... intimately",]] even outside of [[ALoveToDismember that route]] [[spoiler:said doctor regularly kills his bird patients and turns them into quill pens and turkey dinners]], and the lengthy Bad Boys Love route ''starts'' with [[spoiler:the bird characters finding the human protagonist's ''chopped-up remains'' all over the school]] and gets progressively more dark and twisted from there on. Even the free version has the aforementioned [[spoiler: decapitation by DeadlyDoctor]] ending, which should tell you how kid-friendly this game ''ain't''.
--->'''[[LetsPlay Angie Gallant]]:''' A fat bird should not be [[spoiler: fucking my intestines]]!

* The ''VideoGame/{{Fable}}'' series has cartoony graphics and a generic fantasy setting. It is ''far'' from a children's game, especially Fable II.
* ''VideoGame/{{Glitch}}'' is a browser-based game with cute graphics, talking animals and trees (including an eggplant which, naturally, grows eggs) - which also features alcohol, drug use (in the form of no-no powder which temporarily gives you unlimited energy - then you die unless you take another dose), some sex-related jokes, and a somewhat disturbing level in hell. According to the terms of service, the game is not intended for children under 14, and children under 18 need parental agreement.

* ''VideoGame/FugaMelodiesOfSteel'' has the initial appearance of a FunnyAnimal cartoon with kid protagonists fighting to rescue their families. Beneath the surface, however, is a story about how WarIsHell for these unwitting ChildSoldiers fighting against an army of [[PuttingOnTheReich WWII-era Germany-inspired soldiers]], as well as a DesperationAttack mechanic that lets you clinch victory from the jaws of defeat, but only if you're willing to [[PoweredByAForsakenChild choose one of your kid protagonists to]] '''''[[DeathOfAChild DIE]]''''' to power the weapon in question. It does not help that it's a DistantPrequel to the lighthearted, E-rated ''VideoGame/TailConcerto''.
* There's a disturbing amount of small children who have played ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'' and its sequels. Granted, the games aren't as bad in terms of gore, as most of the worst stuff is either hidden in shadow, shown in 8-bit format, or simply [[TakeOurWordForIt described by Phone Guy]]. That said, the games use [[JumpScare jumpscares]] as a core mechanic. The story for the games features such [[SarcasmMode lovely, child-friendly]] things as SuckECheeses animatronics coming to life to murder the player character, someone getting serious brain damage by one of the animatronics biting them, a SerialKiller luring children to the backroom to murder them, followed by their bodies being stuffed into the animatronics so that the spirits could take revenge, the killer experiencing a KarmicDeath at the hands of his victims and becoming the third game's antagonist, and childhood [[KidsAreCruel bullying]] and [[ParentalNeglect neglect]] resulting in [[spoiler:an even earlier bite]], among many others.

* ''VideoGame/FunRun'' is a game with cute, colorful graphics and {{Ridiculously Cute Critter}}s. WhatCouldPossiblyGoWrong [[TheManyDeathsOfYou Everything]].

* ''VideoGame/GleanerHeights'' is inspired by the family-friendly ''VideoGame/StoryOfSeasons'' and ''VideoGame/StardewValley'' games. It has cute, brightly colored {{retraux}} sprites. It's a kids' game, right? Nope. On its surface, it looks friendly but goes deeper and you'll encounter murder, suicide, abuse, infidelity, and other themes not seen in similar games.

* You can't always trust a RhythmGame either. Case and point, ''VideoGame/FridayNightFunkin''. It may seem like a pretty enjoyable web game at first, with a cartoony art style and a ''VideoGame/DanceDanceRevolution''-style note chart...but allow us to tell you that there are swears in this game, a couple of the rivals, including Pico (from [[VideoGame/{{Pico}} his titular series]]), can wield guns, the main protagonist (Boyfriend) gets blue-balled whenever you fail a song, and Week 7 features some graphic violence in the form of [[spoiler:Pico shooting down some tankmen in the final song of the week]]. Heck, Week 7 was even made DarkerAndEdgier so the game would appeal less to kids.[[note]]And if that wasn't enough to stop kids from playing, the soon-to-be-releasing full version of the game is literally titled ''The Full-Ass Game''.[[/note]]Yet that hasn't stopped the game from getting a young fanbase, or even having a fan-made, extremely [[{{Bowdlerise}} bowdlerized]] port on ''VideoGame/{{Roblox}}''.
** You can actually {{Bowdlerise}} Week 7 by disabling "Naughtyness", where turning off the option causes the swears in Tankman's dialogue to be censored and replaces the blood seen in "Stress" with blue sparkles. But that's about all it changes, as it unaffects Boyfriend's blueballs, Senpai's dialogue in "Roses", or the "SHIT" rating.

* Oh look a fishing game called ''VideoGame/GenericFishingGame''. It may be simple but this should be a simplistic game kids can enjoy. After all, it's fishing in general. Well just as you begin to play it, there's a lot more than just fishing.

* The unquestionable king of this trope would have to be ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' and its sequel games. Literally since the game first came out on arcade systems, the game was horribly mistaken to be a child-appropriate video game (the fact that one of the early advertising posters featured kids amazed with the photorealistic graphics didn't help). The Senate even held hearings that featured older people who thought of video games as solely the province of young children clutching their pearls over the game. The series may be an adventure series about magical ninjas, have beautiful artwork, awesome character designs, visually-appealing graphics, and a well-built fighting control system, but it is also made brutally clear that this game was ''not'' devised for younger players. The series is well-known for its [[NintendoHard bloody difficulty]], [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath full-blown blood and gore]], deeply complex character arcs, AxCrazy antagonists who're [[HeroKiller not afraid to personally murder characters onscreen]], [[{{Fanservice}} heavily sexualized characters]], and the game actually ''encourages'' you to [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown finish]] your opponents off. Yet, to this very day, you'll still find a child who has played one of the titles.
* Although the ''Transformers'' have always been the subject of the [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids other trope]], the game ''Videogame/TransformersWarForCybertron'' is definitely ''not family-friendly''. The game clearly establishes that WarIsHell, is packed with references for older fans of the franchise, contains a lot of robot blood, and is full of brutal death. To drive the point across players, [[BigBad Megatron]] is an obvious {{Expy}} of ''Adolf Hitler''.
* ''VideoGame/TransformersFallOfCybertron'' may hail from a franchise driven by toys but don't let that fool you into thinking that this game is kid-friendly. This is easily the darkest the Transformers has ever gotten, with loads of FamilyUnfriendlyDeath, ''robot blood'', overall depressing story, and anti-war message, which isn't surprising as this game is connected to [[WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime TF:Prime]], itself a very dark series. Have we also mentioned that this might be one of the ''very few'' times the ''Decepticons'' were portrayed in a morally grey manner?
* ''VideoGame/OgreBattle'' and ''VideoGame/TacticsOgre''. Don't let the cartoonish sprites fool you: these games deal with war, betrayal, murder, politics, and everything that makes the real world a mess.

* ''VideoGame/MonsterParty'' for the NES was released back when there were no ratings for games, and it has gory visuals throughout. And this is ''after'' it was seriously toned down.
* [[http://videogames.yahoo.com/feature/watchdog-group-nintendo-no-longer-quot-family-friendly-quot-/1295531 The National Institute on Media and the Family]] has taken Nintendo to task for releasing ''VideoGame/MadWorld'' on their "family-friendly" UsefulNotes/{{Wii}} (never mind the fact that it was actually Creator/{{Sega}} that published the game). Apparently they didn't notice ''VideoGame/RedSteel'', ''VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes,'' ''VideoGame/HouseOfTheDead'', ''VideoGame/TheGodfather'', ''VideoGame/DeadRising'', ''VideoGame/DeadlyCreatures'', ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'', and ''VideoGame/{{Manhunt}}'' (not that those were released by Nintendo either, but they're still on the Wii) and thus, they became one more laughing-stock on the Internet. Nintendo countered to [[FunWithAcronyms NIMF's]] claim about the Wii being "for the entire family" by saying that the Wii is indeed for everyone...and when saying "everyone", they throw in hardcore gamers in the equation.
* ''Stupid Invaders'', the game based on the French cartoon ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGoofs'' (which is actually aimed for children), looks cute thanks to the character design but quickly reveals its unsubtle [[ToiletHumour scatological]] and sexual humor as a result of AudienceShift.
* This [[http://kotaku.com/5753506/kids-shouldnt-play-games-about-jerking-off story]] about Kotaku columnist Luke Plunkett discovering ''Stroker'' for the Commodore 64 as a young child only re-enforces this
* ''VideoGame/DevilSurvivor'' has an art style similar to the Digimon series and features a teenage cast. However the game contains extremely dark subject matter such as PoliceBrutality, religious themes, suicide, anarchy, the government trying to kill citizens, and so on.
* ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' is not for kids, but two installments stand out.
** ''VideoGame/PersonaQShadowOfTheLabyrinth'' has a cute and colorful art-style, but it deals with extremely mature subject matter. Like the plot centered around [[spoiler: the death of a teenage girl and purgatory, along with the imminent erasure of all the characters you love from Persona 3 and 4 implied if you fail.]]
** ''VideoGame/Persona5'' is very popular with minors, with many young fans under 18 sharing their fanart and cosplay from the game on networks such as [=TikTok=] (much like ''Manga/DeathNote'' during its heyday); Joker appearing in the family-friendly ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' only helped introduce the game to an even wider sector of that audience. The first boss is a child molester who drives a girl to suicide and it only gets darker from there.
* ''VideoGame/LuminousArc'' series and ''VideoGame/EtrianOdyssey'' series features cute characters design that won't be out of place in children's cartoons. But the story is complex and certainly not exactly child-friendly, and those scary monsters are actually the least of their worries. That is of course if the [[NintendoHard difficulty don't throw them off]] in the first place.

* ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'': Humongous Mechas are for kids? What about the protagonist [[spoiler: having an evil SplitPersonality who is an omnicidal maniac who can and does commit genocides by himself]], when one of the dominant religion is a front for a decadent dictatorship where being racist is considered to be a civic duty?
** Not to mention [[spoiler:God, Deus (well, not ''quite'' God, the Demiurge) is completely evil and to resurrect himself, ''90% of the entire human race'' mutate into Wels, mini-{{Eldritch Abomination}}s that ''become spare parts'' for him.]] And then there's the religious undertones, sporadic sexual content, and the overall general dark tone of the story. To put it in perspective, it is probably Square's darkest game ''to date'', bar none.
** ''Xenogears''? What about ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}''? Cannibalism, heavy amounts of blood, the religious references, genocide, just about any scene with [[AxCrazy Albedo]], mind rape, light nudity, exploring the past of a serial killer who basically had to have his mind overwritten to the point of insanity, incestial undertones, suicide, and of course [[spoiler: the Bittersweet Ending done because the game had to end on the third game when it was planned to be 5 or 6 games long, resulting in the deaths of a LOT of characters]].
* ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay'' has {{talking animal}}s and has a cartoonish appearance, but is rather bloody and riddled with profanity[[note]]which is on more of a T level, as the stronger profanities (only "fuck" in the original game, both "fuck" and "shit" in the remake) are censored with symbols[[/note]], and advancing through parts of the game involve getting drunk, and that's just the start. It does have numerous warnings that it's not meant for anyone under 17, as well as a giant ESRB M-rating[[note]]though is on the lighter side as the game isn't too extreme[[/note]] on the box; still didn't prevent children from playing it.
** This was compounded by the fact that Conker ''did'' star in the kid-friendly game ''Conker's Pocket Tales'' while ''Bad Fur Day'' was stuck in DevelopmentHell. During this time, he also made cameos in ''VideoGame/DiddyKongRacing'' and ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie'', both of which are also kid-friendly games.
** Believe it or not, this was actually averted early in production. Rare decided to turn it into an adult game after the previews were criticized because they were [[SweetnessAversion too cute]] and similar to Rare's [[VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 earlier]] [[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie platformers]].
* ''VideoGame/LittleKingsStory'' is rated T due to alcohol references, polygamy, religion and, sometimes genocide. Yet it's all presented in a delightful storybook style with vibrant colors and cutesy graphics. Well, the Wii game, anyway. The Vita sequel uses a generic anime art style because everyone mistook the Wii game for a children's game.

* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines'' for the Genesis received a "GA" (General Audiences) rating, despite being the first Castlevania game that showed ANY blood and gore in any system, and it had them in large amounts.

* ''VideoGame/EdnaAndHarveyTheBreakout'' got a "No age limit"-rating in Germany on its first release. Never mind it deals with several murders (one committed and one facilitated by the main character), the death penalty, and psychology above the head of most children. The maker was so annoyed that [[ClusterFBomb he said "Fuck!" a lot]] during the commentaries for the extended version. He got the "12+"-label he had wanted.
* The first two ''VideoGame/DukeNukem'' games are [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness relatively family-friendly side scrollers, where Duke mainly shoots robots]]. ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'' and its follow-ups on the other hand...

* ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'': This fighting game may have beautiful, anime-esque artwork and flashy graphics, but this game was clearly ''not'' meant for kids. The game is full of blood, full-frontal {{fanservice}}, morally gray characters, NightmareFuel, complex character stories, symbolism to religious beliefs, and stuffed to the brim with sexual innuendos. In fact, the first villain is a SatanicArchetype and one of the heroes is a nearly nude CatGirl. This was also one of Capcom's darkest games until ''Resident Evil'' was developed. To be fair though, the "M" rating wasn't as strongly present when the game came out. Didn't help that Darkstalkers characters are featured in Marvel vs Capcom, exposing a lot of younger players (which are interested because of the Marvel characters) to the ''MsFanservice''s. It doesn't help either that its sister franchise, ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' is an example of [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids the opposite trope]]
* ''VideoGame/CannonFodder'': Despite its cute designs, it was clearly not for kids as it is a very violent game where you had to shoot people to win.
** And even worse. In the North American releases, Atari Jaguar and 3DO versions are rated "E" despite its reasons. It was later re-rated to T when the Game Boy Color version released.

* ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' is a cute dating sim that has 4 beautiful girls to date, so it must be okay for kids, or at least pre-teens, right? Sure it is, at least until [[spoiler: one of the main girls hangs herself. After that, the game becomes a PsychologicalHorror and shows terrifying imagery, graphic self-harm, and ''more''. It doesn't has an M rating for nothing!]]

* The unquestionable king of this trope would have to be ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' and its sequel games. Literally since the game first came out on arcade systems, the game was horribly mistaken to be a child-appropriate video game (the fact that one of the early advertising posters featured kids amazed with the photorealistic graphics didn't help). The Senate even held hearings that featured older people who thought of video games as solely the province of young children clutching their pearls over the game. The series may be an adventure series about magical ninjas, have beautiful artwork, awesome character designs, visually-appealing graphics, and a well-built fighting control system, but it is also made brutally clear that this game was ''not'' devised for younger players. The series is well-known for its [[NintendoHard bloody difficulty]], [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath full-blown blood and gore]], deeply complex character arcs, AxCrazy antagonists who're [[HeroKiller not afraid to personally murder characters onscreen]], [[{{Fanservice}} heavily sexualized characters]], and the game actually ''encourages'' you to [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown finish]] your opponents off. Yet, to this very day, you'll still find a child who has played one of the titles.
* Although the ''Transformers'' have always been the subject of the [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids other trope]], the game ''Videogame/TransformersWarForCybertron'' is definitely ''not family-friendly''. The game clearly establishes that WarIsHell, is packed with references for older fans of the franchise, contains a lot of robot blood, and is full of brutal death. To drive the point across players, [[BigBad Megatron]] is an obvious {{Expy}} of ''Adolf Hitler''.
* ''VideoGame/TransformersFallOfCybertron'' may hail from a franchise driven by toys but don't let that fool you into thinking that this game is kid-friendly. This is easily the darkest the Transformers has ever gotten, with loads of FamilyUnfriendlyDeath, ''robot blood'', overall depressing story, and anti-war message, which isn't surprising as this game is connected to [[WesternAnimation/TransformersPrime TF:Prime]], itself a very dark series. Have we also mentioned that this might be one of the ''very few'' times the ''Decepticons'' were portrayed in a morally grey manner?

* ''VideoGame/OgreBattle'' and ''VideoGame/TacticsOgre''. Don't let the cartoonish sprites fool you: these games deal with war, betrayal, murder, politics, and everything that makes the real world a mess.
* ''VideoGame/{{Eversion}}'': The game looks like just another Franchise/{{Mario}} knockoff, with a simplistic SaveThePrincess story, bright colors, smiley blocks, and frolicking Goomba-like enemies... [[MoodWhiplash until you hit 4-5]], where demonic hands launch out to kill you, the world around you becomes a barren wasteland, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the flowers turn into thorny spirals]]. Lampshaded by the start-up screen, which states that the game is "not suitable for children or those of a nervous disposition".

* The ''VideoGame/ArcTheLad'' series. The hero of the first episode is a terrorist whose uncle committed genocide against the people of the hero of the second episode before turning said hero into the prototype of bioweapons made by turning children into bloodthirsty monsters. And that is just the beginning, for it gets worse after that. But it has cute graphics.

* ''VideoGame/TheAngryVideoGameNerdAdventures'' looks like another retro game. Of course, anyone who knew about what the game is based on should know it's anything but, especially the level based on the Atari Porn games. The fact that both it and its sequel both received M ratings goes without saying. The Nerd himself lampshades on that level during the review of the game.
--> "Next is a level based entirely on the Atari Porn games. Who would do that? Don't look, kids."

* ''VideoGame/BrothersATaleOfTwoSons'' is a game full of magical whimsy as we follow two [[KidHero kid heroes]] wandering around a fantasy world on an adventure to save their father. It's also filled with literal rivers of a blood, corpses decorating the dark atmosphere, mythological creatures coming out of the shadows to murder you, and the heavy possibility of the two young boys dying violently if the player fails. In fact, [[spoiler: one of the young brothers ''dies onscreen'' through a CruelAndUnusualDeath and the other brother must bury his fallen family member in an emotional scene.]] Nevertheless, the "T" rating is ignored by quite a few people purchasing the game and was even nominated numerous awards for being the best ''family'' title.

* ''VideoGame/TheBattleCats'': Aww, look, a game about taking over the world with an army of cute cats! Hey...why is that one drinking a bottle of wine? And that one makes a reference to [[FullFrontalAssault flashing people]] for its attack! And those ones aren't even cats, they're [[UsefulNotes/FurryFandom furries]] who are almost naked? [[EldritchAbomination SWEET JESUS, WHAT IS THAT ONE?!]] [[MobilePhoneGame Wait. this game is for mobile phones, so it must be for adults, right]]?!

* ''VideoGame/BaldisBasicsInEducationAndLearning'' may look like a colorful and [[StylisticSuck hilariously shoddy-looking]] {{Edutainment}} mathematics game for little kids, but don't be fooled: Once you fail a math problem ([[FailureIsTheOnlyOption and you will]]), the game reveals its true colors as a SurvivalHorror game running on unadulterated ParanoiaFuel as you go on the run from easily angered EvilTeacher Baldi and other bizarre characters roaming your school. Though to be fair, the game opens with a disclaimer warning that this is indeed a horror game that's not for kids.

* Do not let your kids play ''VideoGame/{{Eversion}}'' at all despite [[CrapsaccharineWorld its family-friendly looks]]. Why, even [[https://web.archive.org/web/20180731011258/http://zarat.us/tra/eversion/ its website]] warns you not to let them play!

* The [[ShoddyKnockoffProduct pirate original]] Famicom game ''VideoGame/TheLionKing5'' seems like a perfectly kid-friendly game at first, that is until you get a GameOver and find [[spoiler: the character committing suicide. Yes, really.]]

* ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'' has a T-rating, and is marketed as a fighting game to general audiences, one that anyone can enjoy. It's also filled with [[{{Fanservice}} so much sexualization]] that the M-rated, BestKnownForTheFanservice ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive'' series can even look tame by comparison. How much? Ivy wears razor-thin {{dominatrix}} gear as her main costume and fully acts the part. Taki wears [[FormFittingWardrobe tighter-than-skin]] SensualSpandex that highlights her voluptuous figure so much her ''nipples'' are visible while her backside is very well-defined. Sophitia is a PurityPersonified character who just happens to be wearing a MinidressOfPower with a short skirt and NavelDeepNeckline. Seong Mi-na rocks a {{Stripperiffic}} two-piece ensemble that amounts to tiny clothes over a pink swimsuit, with {{Underboobs}} and an exposed midriff, while MaleGaze greatly admires her rear. Those are just ''four examples'' in a game that's absolutely full of it, and even the youngest characters [[AgeInappropriateDress are played no less for fanservice]] than the older ones. In fact, its two {{Guest Fighter}}s are [[VideoGame/TheWitcher Geralt]] and [[VideoGame/NierAutomata 2B]], both from M-rated, sexual, kid-''un''friendly games themselves, which might indicate that it was never meant for kids to begin with. Even disregarding the abundant sexuality, the game is still ''far'' from kid-friendly with coarse language, violence, mass deaths featured in story mode, and morally complex themes. Might be best to not play this in front of your kids, to say the least.

* Oh look a fishing game called ''Generic Fishing Game''. It may be simple but this should be a simplistic game kids can enjoy. After all, it's fishing in general. Well just as you begin to play it, there's a lot more than just fishing.

* ''VideoGame/{{Darkstalkers}}'': This fighting game may have beautiful, anime-esque artwork and flashy graphics, but this game was clearly ''not'' meant for kids. The game is full of blood, full-frontal {{fanservice}}, morally gray characters, NightmareFuel, complex character stories, symbolism to religious beliefs, and stuffed to the brim with sexual innuendos. In fact, the first villain is a SatanicArchetype and one of the heroes is a nearly nude CatGirl. This was also one of Capcom's darkest games until ''Resident Evil'' was developed. To be fair though, the "M" rating wasn't as strongly present when the game came out. Didn't help that Darkstalkers characters are featured in Marvel vs Capcom, exposing a lot of younger players (which are interested because of the Marvel characters) to the ''MsFanservice''s. It doesn't help either that its sister franchise, ''VideoGame/StreetFighter'' is an example of [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids the opposite trope]]

* The video game adaptation of ''Manga/MadeInAbyss'' looks like it's about adorable heroes searching for their mom. Actually, unlike ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'' or even ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' (both of which are rated CERO D), this game is rated CERO Z (the second Japanese M-tier rating reserved for extreme, usually human-to-human violence) for [[SurpriseCreepy the adorable theme with overly dark and disturbing contents]] such as: FateWorseThanDeath, {{gorn}} and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking extreme difficulty of the game]].

* ''VideoGame/{{Wadanohara}}'' is a nice, relaxing RPG with an easygoing story and cute character designs, and remains that way for about 2/3s of the whole game. The last third? [[spoiler:The game goes full SurpriseCreepy with {{Gorn}} and BodyHorror]], and the less said about [[spoiler:[[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil what Sal does to Wadnohara]]]] the better.

* ''VideoGame/FugaMelodiesOfSteel'' has the initial appearance of a FunnyAnimal cartoon with kid protagonists fighting to rescue their families. Beneath the surface, however, is a story about how WarIsHell for these unwitting ChildSoldiers fighting against an army of [[PuttingOnTheReich WWII-era Germany-inspired soldiers]], as well as a DesperationAttack mechanic that lets you clinch victory from the jaws of defeat, but only if you're willing to [[PoweredByAForsakenChild choose one of your kid protagonists to]] '''''[[DeathOfAChild DIE]]''''' to power the weapon in question.

* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'' has some colorful worldbuilding and a cute, {{Animesque}} art style, so it ''looks'' decent for the kids to play. However, it deals with mental illness, isolation, self-hatred, and the consequences thereof -- secretly [[RealismInducedHorror in a setting more mundane]] than most of the RPG's ilk -- thus being the single darkest work Omocat made.

%%* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'' is an RPG that has some colorful worldbuilding and a typical cute art style so it does sound decently good enough for the kids to play. Well, what about the nightmare fuel and psychological horror? Do you guys think kids are going to survive it unless they're brave enough? Who could not forget the concepts of anxiety, depression, and trauma being present? It's by far the darkest work Omocat made.

* The [[VideoGame/BendyAndTheInkMachine Bendy]] games are about cartoon characters,have an art-style reminstinct of black and white cartoons from UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation,and make copious use of ToonPhysics therefore [[AnimationAgeGhetto they must be completely family-freindly,right]]? Of course this is forgetting the fact that it's a T-rated ''horror'' franchise that features such [[SarcasmMode innocent, kid-friendly]] things as the visected corspe of cute lovable Goofy {{Expy}} Boris being the players ''first'' clue towards what's ''really'' going on at the studio,more BodyHorror than you can shake a stick at,and (almost) all of the nightmarish cartoon monsters being revealed to be [[spoiler: [[WasOnceAMan former emplyolees of the studio]] who in many cases [[DeathOfPersonality have completely lost their orignal identities]]]].

* ''VideoGame/PersonaQShadowOfTheLabyrinth'': Has cute and colorful art-style, but it deals with extremely mature subject matter. Like the plot centered around [[spoiler: the death of a teenage girl and purgatory, along with the imminent erasure of all the characters you love from Persona 3 and 4 implied if you fail.]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Omori}}'' is an RPG that has some colorful worldbuilding and a typical cute art style so it does sound decently good enough for the kids to play. Well, what about the nightmare fuel and psychological horror? Do you guys think kids are going to survive it unless they're brave enough? Who could not forget the concepts of anxiety, depression, and trauma being present? It's by far the darkest work Omocat made.

* ''VideoGame/SoulcaliburVI'' has a T-rating, and is marketed as a fighting game to general audiences, one that anyone can enjoy. It's also filled with [[{{Fanservice}} so much sexualization]] that the M-rated, BestKnownForTheFanservice ''VideoGame/DeadOrAlive'' series can even look tame by comparison. How much? Ivy wears razor-thin {{dominatrix}} gear as her main costume and fully acts the part. Taki wears [[FormFittingWardrobe tighter-than-skin]] SensualSpandex that highlights her voluptuous figure so much her ''nipples'' are visible while her backside is very well-defined. Sophitia is a PurityPersonified character who just happens to be wearing a MinidressOfPower with a short skirt and NavelDeepNeckline. Seong Mi-na rocks a {{Stripperiffic}} two-piece ensemble that amounts to tiny clothes over a pink swimsuit, with {{Underboobs}} and BareYourMidriff, while MaleGaze greatly admires her rear. Those are just ''four examples'' in a game that's absolutely full of it, and even the youngest characters [[AgeInappropriateDress are played no less for fanservice]] than the older ones. In fact, its two {{Guest Fighter}}s are [[VideoGame/TheWitcher Geralt]] and [[VideoGame/NierAutomata 2B]], both from M-rated, sexual, kid-''un''friendly games themselves, which might indicate that it was never meant for kids to begin with. Even disregarding the abundant sexuality, the game is still ''far'' from kid-friendly with coarse language, violence, mass deaths featured in story mode, and morally complex themes. Might be best to not play this in front of your kids, to say the least.

* Ever since the first installment of the game, ''VideoGame/{{FiveNightsAtFreddys}}'' has been in the subject where kids would get tricked into thinking that it's a kids game due to taking place in a Chuck E. Cheese-like restaurant and certain animatronics that wouldn't look too out of place for a children's entertainment center. However, the game has a dark tone that takes place at night when the animatronics become killers when the restaurant closes. Who could not forget the lore? And then certain animatronics are pure nightmare fuel and they are no funny animal characters. The game also has jumpscares so why do you let your kids play it? Despite this, the fanbase has had children before and it became a trend towards children.

* Mobile VirtualPaperDoll game ''VideoGame/LoveNikki'' has beautiful art, CostumePorn galore, and a very strong emphasis on all things pink, sparkly, and feminine, so it's very easy to mistake for a children's game. Unfortunately for parents who didn't look very closely at the ratings (and the fact it being designed for smartphones whose their main users ''are'' adults instead of children), however, it has a complicated, progressively high-stakes story that gets DarkerAndEdgier with every chapter, [[spoiler: eventually cumulating in an all-out war between two in-game kingdoms. AnyoneCanDie is in full effect here, too; Nikki's friend Lunar, a major character up until then, gets stabbed and killed by the main antagonist in chapter 15.]] Even disregarding the violence, the clothes can be pretty revealing—it isn't too over-the-top because the primary audience consists of young women, but even then, there are plenty of outfits that invoke HospitalHottie, BodyguardBabes, FairySexy, et cetera. And many outfits have their own pieces of lore attached, most of which aren't appropriate for children, either. That's why the game is currently rated 12+ on most stores now.

* Mobile VirtualPaperDoll game ''VideoGame/LoveNikki'' has beautiful art, CostumePorn galore, and a very strong emphasis on all things pink, sparkly, and feminine, so it's very easy to mistake for a children's game. Unfortunately for parents who didn't look very closely at the ratings, however, it has a complicated, progressively high-stakes story that gets DarkerAndEdgier with every chapter, [[spoiler: eventually cumulating in an all-out war between two in-game kingdoms. AnyoneCanDie is in full effect here, too; Nikki's friend Lunar, a major character up until then, gets stabbed and killed by the main antagonist in chapter 15.]] Even disregarding the violence, the clothes can be pretty revealing—it isn't too over-the-top because the primary audience consists of young women, but even then, there are plenty of outfits that invoke HospitalHottie, BodyguardBabes, FairySexy, et cetera. And many outfits have their own pieces of lore attached, most of which aren't appropriate for children, either. That's why the game is currently rated 12+ on most stores now.

* ''VideoGame/TheBindingOfIsaac''. It is pretty gory, full of NauseaFuel, and also takes a rather... shall we say, artistic license with the Biblical account of the actual binding of Isaac, which some may find offensive. It was reportedly rated ''M'' and for this reason.

* ''Videogame/{{Fallout}}'' features a cute, adorable boy as the mascot. In any of the games barring ''Videogame/FalloutShelter'' and the Fallout Board Game, dismemberment is a common occurrence.