Line #47 WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids/VideoGames


1	Due to many superhero-related video games falling under this trope, [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids.SuperheroVideoGames they have their own page]].
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6	* ''VideoGame/AmericanMcGeesAlice'': As if the cover art and big M-letter on the box weren't signing enough that this game (with violence comparable to what you'd find in ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{Quake}}'') was far removed from the Disney film...
7	** Doubled by ''VideoGame/AliceMadnessReturns''. In short, the BigBad is a [[spoiler:[[PsychopathicManchild crazed]] pimp who tried for years to make Alice a child prostitute.]]
8	* ''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.
9	--> "Next is a level based entirely on the Atari Porn games. Who would do that? Don't look, kids."
10	* 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.
11	* ''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.
12	* ''VideoGame/TheBattleCats'': Don't let the game's concept of cute cats taking over the world fool you. This game has quite a few characters that drink alcohol, make a reference to flashing people for their attacks, and look less like cats and more like almost naked humans. Just because it says "Cat" in the title and looks cute doesn't mean you should let your kids play it. Being started life as a mobile phone game (which the platform themselves tend to fall into this trope as well) doesn't help either.
13	* The [[VideoGame/BendyAndTheInkMachine Bendy]] games are about cartoon characters, have an art-style reminiscent of black and white cartoons from UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation, and make copious use of ToonPhysics, therefore [[AnimationAgeGhetto they must be completely family-friendly, 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 dissected corpse 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 employees of the studio]] who in many cases [[DeathOfPersonality have completely lost their original identities]]]].
14	* ''VideoGame/BonniesBakery'' is a cute animesque game where you bake pastries for your FunnyAnimal customers, so it must be kid-friendly, right? Wrong. Sure, the game looks pretty innocent until halfway through, when Bonnie throws the player into her basement. After that, it becomes a SurvivalHorror where the player must escape before Bonnie kills them to make meat pastries. Not to mention Bonnie is a psychopathic animal abuser who enforces cannibalism on the townsfolk who visit her bakery.
15	* The ''VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}'' series: ''VideoGame/Borderlands1'', ''VideoGame/Borderlands2'' and ''VideoGame/BorderlandsThePreSequel'' are beautifully cel-animated, which may fool some parents. However, on top of the gory, bloody explosions, you have characters like [[spoiler:a thirteen-year-old girl who witnesses her parent's brutal murder and wants revenge]], a monster who just wants to be accepted and loved by society, an assassin, and a prolonged scene of assisted euthanasia ([[spoiler:in which after the father in question hypocritically]] guilt trips you [[spoiler:by calling you a child killer)]]. The game also deals with fairly complex themes like the dark side of capitalism, greed, drug abuse, [[MegaCorp corporate exploitation of the environment]], and grief. The humor is also pretty off-color (though profanity is fairly infrequent). Oh, and there are lots of guns. [[MemeticMutation 87 Bazillion, to be exact.]]
16	* ''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.
17	* ''VideoGame/CannonFodder'': Despite its cute designs, it was clearly not for kids as it is a very violent game where you have to shoot people to win.
18	** 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 was released.
19	* ''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.
20	* ''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.
21	** This was compounded by the fact that Conker ''did'' star in the kid-friendly game ''VideoGame/ConkersPocketTales'' 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.
22	** Believe it or not, this was actually averted early in production when Rare was working on a family-friendly ''Conker'' game called ''VideoGame/TwelveTalesConker64''. 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]].
23	* ''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 ''Franchise/ResidentEvil'' 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 ''VideoGame/MarvelVsCapcom'', 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]] despite appropriate for a "T" rating, the bloody beaten faces in ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterI Street Fighter 1]]'' & ''[[VideoGame/StreetFighterII II]]'' and fanservices since ''Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers''.
24	* ''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 have an M rating for nothing!]]
25	* 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...
26	* ''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.
27	* ''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".
28	* The ''VideoGame/{{Fable}}'' series has cartoony graphics and a generic fantasy setting. It is ''far'' from a children's game, especially Fable II.
29	* ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'':
30	** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' might appear to be cutesy and sometimes silly with the colorful cast of characters with their quirky designs and personalities, but underneath it, all is a much darker game; the game will not hold back showing scenes of murder, war, genocide, an existential crisis among certain characters, and similar themes. The game is rated T for teen, but it's not unheard of for parents to have bought the game for their children thinking it was another cute game.
31	** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics'' may use chibi sprites for the characters, but the themes and settings are as dark as they can be that no child would understand or should ever see. War, betrayals, manipulation, lots of murder, and even implied rape are all in the game, even the graphical details don't show it. The sequels heavily dial back the dark themes and appear more approachable for children to play, though there are some darker themes that can pop up every now and then.
32	* The ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' series may be a high fantasy with bright, colorful graphics, but it's also filled with war, murder, racism, genocide, and incest, ''especially'' the Jugdral series. The only reason that these games have never been rated higher than T is that it's never shown, just spoken about and implied. There's a reason the first few games didn't [[NoExportForYou make it out of Japan]]. Even ''Blazing Sword'', the very first ''Fire Emblem'' game released internationally and which was rated E in its original release, has direct references to mass murder, human trafficking, and suicide before you've even left the tutorial chapters.
33	* 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.
34	* 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 ''Platform/{{Roblox}}''.
35	** 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.
36	* ''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''.
37	* ''VideoGame/FunRun'': Don't let the cartoonish graphics fool you. This is basically WebAnimation/HappyTreeFriends meets VideoGame/MarioKart in a MobilePhoneGame which is meant to be for adults.
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41	* 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.
42	* ''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.
43	* ''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.
44	* ''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."
45	** 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.
46	** 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.
47	* ''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.
48	* 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''.
49	--->'''[[LetsPlay Angie Gallant]]:''' A fat bird should not be [[spoiler: fucking my intestines]]!
50	* ''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.
51	* ''[[https://poki.com/en/g/iron-snout Iron Snout]]'' looks like a [[ArtStyleDissonance cute and cuddly children's]] game where you play as a pig fighting against wolves, until you see [[{{Gorn}} the actual gameplay]]. It's rated T for a reason.
52	* ''VideoGame/LifeIsStrange'' is often confused as a SliceOfLife interactive game dealing with teen drama and the coming of age story about a young girl growing up, but it also features ''loads of dark themes''. While our main protagonist Max does gain superpowers, the story is basically a murder-mystery about teenage girls discovering how a missing girl was abducted, drugged, raped and possibly killed right on a high school campus. Along the way, the player frequently sees gruesome violence, underage teenagers casually talking about sex, attempted suicide, the loss of faith, swear words utilized as half the dialogue, a SadisticChoice once an episode, and the BigBad is revealed to be a pedophile SerialKiller hiding in Max's high school.
53	* ''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.
54	* 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 being a smartphone game, the primary audience consists of young ''adult'' 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+ in most stores now.
55	* The (to be fair, newly formed) ESRB must have been HIGH when they rated ''VideoGame/LunarEternalBlue'', a game with blood, partial nudity, swearing, sexual innuendo, and heaping helpings of NightmareFuel, a "K-A" rating. Thankfully [[VideoGame/LunarEternalBlue the remake]] for Platform/PlayStation gave it a more fitting T rating.
56	* ''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 doesn't throw them off]] in the first place.
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60	* [[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" Platform/{{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.
61	* 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 [[SurprisinglyCreepyMoment the adorable theme with overly dark and disturbing contents]] such as: FateWorseThanDeath, {{gorn}} and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking extreme difficulty of the game]].
62	* The initial media-driven complaints over ''VideoGame/MassEffect1'' and its very, very tame sex scenes (which would be considered utterly unremarkable on network television in prime-time) demonstrate the utter absurdity of this trope. Listening to the complaints, you'd think that if the love scene had been left out, the rest of the game, with its genocide, murder, prostitution, drug use, slavery, PTSD, racial bigotry, torture, psychological torment, and the horrific deaths of people who are impaled while alive and turned into HumanoidAbomination cyber-zombies ''in the very first mission'', would be A-OK for the kiddies.
63	* ''VideoGame/MetalGearGhostBabel'' is rated E for Everyone, the only game in the entire ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' series released during the existence of the ESRB which got less than a T rating (and all [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPortableOps but]] [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolidPeaceWalker two]] got an M). The game includes: ethnic cleansing, a serial killer who makes life-size dolls out of his victims, said serial killer discovering the dismembered corpse of his sister, and a boss who commits suicide by burning himself to death while crying out in orgasmic joy. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking On the plus side, Snake doesn't smoke in this one!]]
64	* ''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.
65	* 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.
66	* ''VideoGame/{{MUGEN}}'' has plenty of pornographic, grotesque, profane, and/or gory content, and a hateful community that bashes everything it can think of. For example: Slime and Kuromaru ''literally'' rape other characters, Lucy from ''Manga/ElfenLied'' has a gory OneHitKill accompanied by a slideshow of some of the darkest scenes from her own series, lots of MsFanservice characters are playable, more than one [[UsefulNotes/McDonalds Ronald McDonald]] edit has a JumpScare, the cast of ''VideoGame/TheBlackHeart'' is a great source of NightmareFuel (''especially'' Noroko), and there are Dragon-Tier cheapies that [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou literally destroy your game and computer]]! Many children and unsuspecting parents alike have been led to MUGEN by content from kids' media made for it, then were horrified to see all the family-unfriendly content.
67	* The ''VideoGame/{{Oddworld}}'' series is infamous for this, at least the first three games. While they do look child-friendly, with the cute main characters and all, you will quickly realize why they're given the T-rating. Those cute main characters? Watch them get shot down, ground up by meat grinders, stomped out, bitten to death, dropped into bottomless pits, slammed into the ground, blown to bits by mines, electrocuted, eaten and digested on the spot, vaporized by force-fields, crushed by falling boulders, [[TheManyDeathsOfYou and so on]], then decide if the series is as child-friendly as you thought it was. Even some discs of ''Munch's Oddysee'' got an E-rating label.
68	* ''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.
69	* ''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, and life-altering trauma -- secretly [[RealismInducedHorror in a setting more mundane]] than most of the RPG's ilk -- thus being the single darkest work Omocat made.
70	* MediaNotes/OpenBOR, just like ''M.U.G.E.N'', can have very inappropriate content too. Many players new to the engine and its mods can be horrified by the sheer amounts of mature content that can be put in a BeatEmUp engine (and keep it in mind that there were comparatively less violent (read: BloodierAndGorier) games, with some exceptions like ''VideoGame/NightSlashers'' and ''VideoGame/ThePunisherCapcom''). Although there's comparatively less sexuality and/or obscenity than ''M.U.G.E.N''...for now.
71	* ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'', which is very similar to ''[=TF2=]'', subverts this trope beautifully. It was intentionally designed as a fairly family-friendly, bloodless FPS with Pixar-like animation, and is one of the few [=FPSes=] that received an agreeable [=PEGI=] 12/T rating[[note]] The only country that has given it the equivalent of an M rating is Germany-- it received a USK 16 there uncut-- but Germany is generally very strict about gun violence in games, even if it is cartoonish.[[/note]]. Although it isn't for ''extremely'' young children, children ages 7-11 have enjoyed playing it and can be very good at playing characters like D.va and Bastion, who don't have large learning caps. That being said, [[https://www.reddit.com/r/Overwatch/comments/4q8dd7/dear_parents_who_let_their_kids_play_overwatch/ whether or not it's a kid's game]] is still a subject of debate, but most fans agree that the violence is very tame compared to most [=FPSes=] on the market.
72	* ''VideoGame/{{Palworld}}'' has a bright, colorful artstyle with very cute {{mons}} roaming around the world. Aside from the dialogue calling a Pal a "cheeky bastard" when it escapes a thrown Pal Sphere, there's also some not very child friendly things present like free reign to indulge in VideoGameCrueltyPotential, including enslaving humans via capturing them in Pal Spheres and feeding your Pals drugs. And of course, there's Lovander and its implied rapist tendencies. Good luck explaining ''that'' to a young child.
73	* ''VideoGame/{{Pico}}'': ''Pico's School'' starts as a seemingly child-friendly Flash game, but after the opening cutscene it becomes clear that the game is about a school shooting, featuring copious gore, murder, drug references, and sexual references. That didn't stop many children from playing it in Newgrounds' heyday, or watching the several fan flashes associated with it.
74	* ''Videogame/PrinceOfPersia'' had never been too bad for kids, even the eventual foray into the T rating in ''Videogame/PrinceOfPersiaTheSandsOfTime''. But then that game's sequel, ''Videogame/PrinceOfPersiaWarriorWithin'' was a clear case of RatedMForMoney, with the first minutes of the game showcasing blood flying, a woman in {{Stripperiffic}} attire, and the Prince shouting "you bitch!", with more violence, sexuality and overall bad attitude to follow.
75	* The MobilePhoneGame ''Primal Legends'' is a four-color MatchThreeGame at its core set in a fantasy WorldOfFunnyAnimals. Its App Store blurb compares it to ''Guardians of the Galaxy'' (which falls into this trope as well) due to two prominent units being {{Rascally Raccoon}}s, and rates it 9+. However, the gameplay requires more strategy than a kids' game, many heroes have bloody backstories and/or are mentally unhinged, the color units are troops that die when hit, and the combo praise blurbs include "Brutal!", "Carnage!", and "Massacre!" Overall, being a smartphone game, it is aimed more at {{phoneaholic teenager}}s and adults and up, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and the]] UsefulNotes/FurryFandom.
76	* ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'': It’s a game with a Creator/TimBurton-esque art style, ten year-old protagonist (voiced by Creator/RichardStevenHorvitz) in a summer camp, with tons of cartoony, well-written humor, relatively clean dialogue, barring a few AvoidTheDreadedGRating moments. Sounds like a great game for your kid, right? Sure, if you're fine exposing them to excessively mature topics like FamilyUnfriendlyDeath, suicide, child abuse, and psychological illnesses like paranoid schizophrenia and depression, not to mention a lot of BlackComedy with numerous references to sex, drugs, and alcohol, and a final level that will forever haunt their nightmares.
77	* ''VideoGame/RadRodgers'' looks like a great platformer for kids about a kid who gets sucked into a video game and meets a robot buddy named Dusty (who is his video game console come to life). This must be for kids, yeah? Wrong! It has blood and profanity in it. Rated M for a reason.
78	* This and NewMediaAreEvil helped ''VideoGame/RuleOfRose'' become [[BannedInChina banned in Italy, France, and Australia]]; and incited members of British Parliament to bully Creator/FiveZeroFiveGames into [[NoExportForYou canceling its UK release]]. The reasons given varied from more legitimate concerns like undertones of underage eroticism and harm to minors, to unfounded notions such as the player having to bury a child alive in the game.
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82	* ''VideoGame/SamAndMaxFreelancePolice'' (the Telltale series). It looks like a kid-friendly game on the outside because of the cute animal characters, but the humor is definitely not for kids. Sure, it may not be as bad as other examples on this page or the original comics the series was based on, but there's still just about enough to warrant a T rating. The fact that Sam and Max DID have a cartoon for children probably doesn't help in this regard.
83	* ''VideoGame/SchemingThroughTheZombieApocalypse'' is an adventure episodic game that takes place within a WorldOfFunnyAnimals and has a bright cartoon art style akin to a children's comic book. For starters, it also takes place in a ZombieApocalypse with BlackComedy and BloodyHilarious throughout, as well as strong profanity and drug use, giving it an un-kid-friendly M-rating.
84	* ''VideoGame/SealOnline'' is a massively multiplayer role-playing online game with cartoony graphics, cutesy characters, and fun music that kids would think is suitable, until when they see the [[KillerRabbit Rascal Rabbit]]. It is rated T for Teen according to ESRB in the United States (12+ and 18+ uncut in South Korea, depending on which version) due to violence, alcohol references, suggestive characters, and such, despite being intended for younger players according to YNK Interactive's defunct website.
85	* One of the early 3D M-Rated games is called ''VideoGame/ShadowMan''. This game would go as far as to slap into your face with [[http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20091023051929/vsrecommendedgames/images/9/98/Shadow-man-n64.jpg its cover art]] that it is not intended for kids, for good reasons. It is a gory action-adventure game that was filled to the brim with references to life, death and murder and the game itself used Voodoo Mythology for its setting, which meant it was filled with very intense NightmareFuel. The problem is that it was an action-adventure, so people thought it would just be as dark as ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', which is dark enough for a kid's game.
86	* The ''Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei'' franchise seems like a family-friendly (if mostly post-apocalyptic) JRPG franchise but one of entire premises is about ''teenage protagonists [[DealWithTheDevil dealing with the devil business in and out]]'', leading to [[GenreDeconstruction very deconstructive consequences]]. Outside of mobile phone entries which blatantly play this trope straight, two noteworthy sub-series stand out:
87	** ''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.
88	*** The games being rated T and released on Nintendo handhelds exlcusively does not help at all.
89	** ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' is also not for kids, but two installments stand out.
90	*** ''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.]]
91	*** ''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.
92	* ''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 three {{Guest Fighter}}s are [[VideoGame/TheWitcher Geralt]], [[VideoGame/NierAutomata 2B]] and [[VideoGame/SamuraiShodown Haohmaru]], all from M-rated, violent and/or 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.
93	* 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
94	* ''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.
95	* ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'' is a T-rated game with things like FantasticRacism, [[ANaziByAnyOtherName Nazi-esque concentration camps and human experimentation]], magically-induced BodyHorror, bloody political and religious intrigue and moral ambiguity, all hidden behind a cutesy, chibi art style and starting out with a very black-and-white "TheChosenOne saves the world from the big bad evil guys" plot hook.
96	* ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2''. At first glance, it looks like an innocent game due to its Pixar-esque art style... but then comes the cartoony, yet big amounts of blood and gore, moderate language, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick jars of urine]]. The supplementary materials contain their own share of child-unfriendly content--including even more graphic violence ([[spoiler:the Spy's head graphically exploding]] in "Meet the Spy"), sexual references and suggestive imagery ("Meet the Spy", "Expiration Date"), and plain old NightmareFuel ("Meet the Pyro"). However, just like with any FPS, you will find many 10-year-old kids playing the game online. [[note]]Although there aren't as many kids playing it as there are in ''Call of Duty'' and ''Halo''. Some of them have said it looks 'kiddy' (sic).[[/note]]
97	** In Russia and CIS, however, those kids mostly play CS:GO instead of [=CoD=], because it's free, or sometimes they play CS 1.6. And many of them already know how to swear, because of Internet and talking to others who know how to; all the memes like "Rush B suka blyat" exist because of these guys. The adult gamers even made up the name for aggressive kids who ruin the game for normal people, "shkolota", it's pejorative for schooler.
98	* ''VideoGame/{{Terraria}}'': Despite its cartoonish and colorful aesthetic, Terraria is rated T for a reason. The game doesn't hold back when it comes to creepy content and gore, particularly involving enemies (and players) exploding into Ludicrous Gibs when they die. In particular is the Crimson from 1.2, filled with nightmarish creatures and visceral horror.
99	* It's easy to mistake ''VideoGame/TinkerQuarry'' for a kid's game, with the colorful cast of LivingToys and all. But the game has some dark themes that make it very unsuitable for children. The protagonist has a tragic backstory apparently involving abusive, alcoholic parents, the Dollhouse is a CrapsaccharineWorld where many toys live in fear of being violently attacked at any moment, blood is shown onscreen (from Adeline and some of the rats)... don't let your kids play it.
100	* ''VideoGame/{{Toonstruck}}'' is about an animator trapped in a ridiculously childish cartoon world full of cutesy characters. If you get past the first few screens, you'll find such things as swearing, occasional blood, and a scene with barnyard animals engaging in pretty explicit UsefulNotes/{{BDSM}}.
101	* 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''.
102	** ''[[VideoGame/TransformersFallOfCybertron Fall of Cybertron]]'' 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?
103	* ''VideoGame/{{Turok}}'': There is a chance whenever you go into Youtube that has Turok videos: you will find the occasional comment that has them explain that when their parents or grandparents bought them this game (despite the cover featuring the protagonist fighting a dinosaur with BLOOD), they thought it was appropriate for them. To put it very mildly, it was never intended to get into the hands of kids. Want some examples? Exhibit A, the [[YourHeadAsplode Cerebral Bore,]] and exhibit B, [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath the heroes slicing off necks, making holes in chests]] and flat out making them DeaderThanDead! These games gave a lot of kids who got their hands on them nightmares, and for a damn good reason. The first game alone brought many frights and unsettling moments, with the sequels adding more gore and bloodshed along the way.
104	* ''VideoGame/{{Vexx}}'' is one of those games that was released during the height in popularity of 3D-platformers, so everyone who saw it assumed it was for kids. It features some gory imagery, genocide and slavery. Suddenly, it becomes painfully obvious why the game got a T-rating.
105	* ''VisualNovel/VirtuesLastReward'' falls into the category of being a game that would likely be passed off by parents as being a cartoon and for their kids. Just a few moments of playing said game and seeing the heavy cussing, violent situations and heavy use of sex jokes, should show anyone that it's not for kids. Heck, just looking at the rating the game got, M for Mature [16+ in the UK], would tell parents it's not for kids.
106	** And before that, there's ''VisualNovel/NineHoursNinePersonsNineDoors''. Oh look at the fun, anime characters making pipe jokes and giving out four-leafed clovers for good luck, isn't it cute? Yeah, if you consider strangers being forced into playing a sadistic game where they can be blown up by a bomb that's been placed in their gut, on a sinking ship cute. Not to mention that [[spoiler:there are two men who actually DO get blown up...in VERY descriptive and grisly detail. And to add salt into the already deepening wound, most of the bad endings in the game ended with a huge massacre of the main cast, and the game has swearing. LOTS of swearing]]. One has to wonder how a parent could ever make this mistake when A SINGLE SECOND of research on the game, or even looking at the back of the game box, would indicate to them that the basic concept of the game is about a sadistic psychopath's game.
107	* ''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 DisguisedHorrorStory with {{Gorn}} and BodyHorror]], and the less said about [[spoiler:[[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil what Sal does to Wadnohara]]]] the better.
108	* ''VideoGame/{{Whacked}}'': A comedic 3D beat-em-up game show seems like it would barely function as a children's show, except the contestants are some combination of violent, insane, bigoted, and/or intentionally inappropriate, and [[spoiler:the show's host is actually a high-ranking devil who ''murders the losers and audience'' on live television.]] Also, the protagonist on the cover? That latex bodysuit only lasts for five seconds before it permanently rips off and she spends the entire game butt-naked.
109	* ''VideoGame/TheWolfAmongUs'' has gained quite a bit of interest from younger gamers due to the story being about classic fairy tale characters moving into New York City and having an awesome picture of an [[TheBigBadWolf epic looking wolfman]] on the cover. But in short, the game is ''not'' targeted at younger gamers. The game features gritty violence, explicit nudity, an overall depressing theme, economic social commentary, corrupt politics, serious detective casework, poverty themes, mafia symbolism, and shows how our favorite fairy tale characters [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome did not gain a happily ever after ending]] as was assumed in their stories.
110	* ''VideoGame/TheWonderful101'': a humorous game about brightly costumed superheroes saving the world from invading aliens that use robots to fight their war. What'ya mean it's really hard, the characters are often lewd and it deals with adult themes? At least in regards to the potty mouths of the characters; these were added to the game to AvoidTheDreadedGRating but it may have backfired resulting in a game that appealed to only a niche audience.
111	* The ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' expansion pack Mists of Pandaria received this response in spades from a lot of fans, just because the Pandaren and the titular continent of Pandaria look too 'childish' or 'goofy' for, what was considered 'normal' [=WoW=] storylines like the Lich King and Deathwing. "We were fighting demons, undead, and giants dragons, and now... [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking pandas]]." Was a common response to the expansion. In reality, however, it is one of the darker expansions of the franchise (Maybe out darked by Wrath of the Lich King). After all, sure the Pandaren are pretty cute. But they also get drunk often, enjoy getting in bar fights, and have an entire martial art centered around fighting while drunk and setting your enemy on fire after you've doused them in the flammable brew. But awww, he's got spots around his eyes! Also, the entire expansion has a B plot of "War is hell for those dragged in" as it displays what the fighting between the Alliance and the Horde is doing to the other races on Azeroth by dragging the fight to Pandaria, whose people don't care about either side. This also hands the horde [=NPCs=] the villain ball as unlike the Alliance, the Horde continues to make things worse in the name of conquest. Also, Garrosh messes around with magic he doesn't understand, the live science experiments in the Throne of Thunder,[[spoiler: and the teenage Anduin Wrynn gets mortally wounded]]. The end result is the final boss of the expansion being Garrosh Hellscream, the Orc and overall Horde leader. This ends with both factions (The horde being represented by "rebels" consisting of all non-Orc forces (plus player orcs and a few [=NPCs=] led by Varok Saurfang) laying siege to the Orcish capital. Because a bloody siege is [[SarcasmMode totally for kids]]... A bloody siege in which one character ''threatens to rip the souls out of'' another character's dead soldiers: and ''they'' are supposedly allies.
112	** Actually the game in general. It has cartoonish graphics and FunnyAnimals, and plenty of humor: but it deals with mature themes like war crimes, racism, rape, mind-control, religion, the nature of good and evil, etc. Also, skeletons are everywhere, you can even play as one. Many of the bosses are pure NightmareFuel, and some of the armor sets are very much {{Squick}}. Much of the humor is also very dark and/or sexual, and some of it goes into DudeNotFunny territory. oh right, and there's an ''actual concentration camp''. As the game is available worldwide, it has serious problems with ValuesDissonance: to the point of having a Chinese client, because dead bodies are a very sensitive topic in China.
113	* ''VideoGame/{{Wynncraft}}'': As the name suggests, it takes place in Minecraft. The game's most prominent MMORPG server, its blocky, pixelated graphics would generally suggest a childish experience. And while it's often comical or lighthearted, [[ArtStyleDissonance don't let that lure you into a false sense of security]]--a number of quests get pretty dark, especially in the higher level ranges. Special mentions go to [[spoiler: finding out the iron golems all around Wynn and Gavel are made from [[AndIMustScream trapped villagers]]]], and [[spoiler: the Silent Expanse, the creepy endgame area where [[FacelessEye the trees have eyes]], [[EyelessFace and the citizens of Lutho don't]].]] Oh, and let's not forget [[spoiler:the ancient genocide of the Doguns, [[FantasticRacism and subsequent centuries of propaganda to make the dwarves believe it was justified]].]]
114	* Since the company that makes the ''Xenoblade'' series is owned by Nintendo, it is technically a first-party Nintendo game. Despite that and the fairly cartoony graphics, the gameplay and storyline is incredibly deep and complex. [[VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1 The first game]] alone features giant killer robots [[spoiler:that are actually cyborgs created by converting humanoids who their creator has captured]], the main character watching his girlfriend get killed right in front of him (and it is graphic), a religious extremist group's FantasticRacism-fueled assassination plot, and the BigBad [[spoiler:is a MadScientist who destroyed his universe to create the world the game takes place in simply because he had a God Complex]]. The other games are not as dark, but ''VideoGame/XenobladeChroniclesX'' features a group of religious extremists as the BigBad with all the humans being the last survivors of Earth after it was destroyed, and ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'' features people swearing without SymbolSwearing or a sound effect to cover it, prominent WarIsHell themes, several highly sexualized female characters, and [[spoiler:once again one of the villains is the corrupt leader of a religious movement]].
115	* ''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?
116	** 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.
117	** ''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]].
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Context WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids / VideoGames