The Korea Game User Association (hereinafter referred to as the Association) announced on the 23rd that it had submitted a formal complaint to the Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC) regarding the game 'Goddess's Dawn', which was flagged by the YouTube channel 'JijonJose' for clearly violating current rating classification standards. The Association requested an immediate cancellation of the game's rating.

The Association argued that the game contains explicit depictions of male and female genitalia and graphic sexual acts, asserting that it includes suggestive content that cannot be justified under a '15-and-over' rating.

In the report, the Association stated, "This game clearly violates the rating classification criteria set forth in Article 8 of the Enforcement Rules of the Game Industry Promotion Act and the Rating Classification Regulations, and it is a serious matter that undermines the fundamental purpose of the rating system intended to protect youth."

Article 8, Paragraph 1, Item 2 of the Enforcement Rules of the Game Industry Act defines the '15-and-over' rating criteria as games that contain "obscenity, violence, or gambling that may have a harmful effect on persons under 15 years of age in terms of theme and content."

The complainants argued that 'Goddess's Dawn' explicitly depicts genitalia and graphic sexual acts, clearly exceeding the scope of "indirect and limited" suggestive content permitted for a 15-and-over rating.

Consequently, the Association requested that the GRAC immediately revoke the 15-and-over rating for 'Goddess's Dawn' in accordance with Article 22, Paragraph 4 of the Game Industry Act and conduct an accurate review of the actual content. They also demanded that the distribution of the game be halted immediately until the revocation is finalized and that post-management of self-rating providers be strengthened to prevent similar cases from recurring.

The Game Rating and Administration Committee responded to the Association's report by stating, "The game has been immediately removed as a result of the Committee's actions."

Lee Chul-woo, a lawyer specializing in gaming and head of the Association, explained, "From the strip-tease games and P2E titles in 2022 to this 'Goddess's Dawn' case, the issue of developers abusing the self-rating system by providing false responses to questionnaires regarding the game's suggestiveness and gambling elements has been repeatedly pointed out." He added, "With issues such as the lack of monitoring by self-rating providers regarding the appropriateness of games on their platforms, and the GRAC's chronic shortage of post-management staff and lack of expertise remaining, it is necessary to reflect on whether post-management of self-rating is being sufficiently conducted before transferring rating authority to the private sector."