Since the PSP Go arrived I have lamented at the cost of the MINIs, those bite-sized games that have so far mainly been retreads of games from the iTunes App Store. For example, Fieldrunners costs $2.99 on the App Store and $6.99 for the PSP; And Hero of Sparta costs $1.99 on the App Store and $4.99 for the PSP. At first I assumed it was part of the whole ‘we charge more because we can’ Premium Pricing model for the PSP Go. But according to Andrew Yoon of Joystiq, it might be in part due to the steep cost of getting ESRB rating approval for games in North America.

I had never thought about this – games on the iTunes App Store are not ESRB rated, but instead carry a custom rating system description. Here is what the descriptors look like:

The ESRB rates games only in North America, with other ratings agencies ruling over other areas such as Germany, UK, Australia, Japan, and so on. That is why some games will be modified for nudity in North America, violence in Germany, banned in Australia, and released untouched in the UK.

Sony has apparently decided to take the approach of having their MINIs rated for release in their individual territories, while Apple has taken an internal yet global approach. As Yoon pointed out, it is amazing that we haven’t seen any flap over the non-use of standard ratings agencies yet, but regardless it is an interesting point that once again gets to the cost of making and selling games and how the App Store pricing model figures into all of this.

Source & ESRB Image: Joystiq