USK and the guidelines on swastikas in games

The discussion around the question of whether and under what conditions swastikas are allowed in computer games is in full swing again. See this article on the question of whether such clips from computer games may be shown on YouTube or Twitch.

At its last meeting, the USK Advisory Board unanimously decided to extend the guiding criteria for taking into account social adequacy in games. The guiding criteria of the USK are the basis for the assessment of computer and video games under the law on the protection of minors.

The background to the addition of the guiding criteria is the legal opinion of the competent Supreme State Youth Authority, which has been amended since August 2018, which is to take account of current legal assessments. According to this, the above-case computer and video games can receive a USK age rating in individual cases, provided that the criteria for socially appropriate use are met. Previously, such games were not approved for testing.

The advisory board of the USK includes representatives of churches and religious communities, media pedagogy, the Federal Ministry of Youth, the youth ministries of the Länder, the Federal Audit Office for media that endangers young people, the youth organizations as well as the computer games industry, and representatives of the USK members and the youth protection experts.

The update of the USK guideline criteria can be found here.

The USK review boards examine whether facts of endangerment of minors (in particular
glorification or trivialization of Nazi ideology, brutalization through
trivialization of National Socialism) can be determined which exclude the
award of an age rating by the OLJB in accordance with § 14 JuSchG.
When deciding on the award/refusal of an age rating,
a balance must also be struck between artistic freedom and the interests of the protection of minors for games that contain prohibited symbols in accordance with Section 86a of the German Criminal Code (StGB) – as for
any other computer game.

In order to assess the potential for harm caused by digital games that contain
symbols of unconstitutional organizations in accordance with Section 86a of the German Criminal Code (in particular
of National Socialism), their use must be examined on a case-by-case basis at
. In particular, the framing of the context of the representation (e.g. B. a
differentiated-critical approach to historical events, purely fictional
material with dystopian scenarios or satires exposing ideology) to
be assessed. The players’ options for action should be analyzed for their possible
communication of socially and ethically disorienting messages.

Author: Marian Härtel

Marian Härtel ist Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für IT-Recht mit einer über 25-jährigen Erfahrung als Unternehmer und Berater in den Bereichen Games, E-Sport, Blockchain, SaaS und Künstliche Intelligenz. Seine Beratungsschwerpunkte umfassen neben dem IT-Recht insbesondere das Urheberrecht, Medienrecht sowie Wettbewerbsrecht. Er betreut schwerpunktmäßig Start-ups, Agenturen und Influencer, die er in strategischen Fragen, komplexen Vertragsangelegenheiten sowie bei Investitionsprojekten begleitet. Dabei zeichnet sich seine Beratung durch einen interdisziplinären Ansatz aus, der juristische Expertise und langjährige unternehmerische Erfahrung miteinander verbindet. Ziel seiner Tätigkeit ist stets, Mandanten praxisorientierte Lösungen anzubieten und rechtlich fundierte Unterstützung bei der Umsetzung innovativer Geschäftsmodelle zu gewährleisten.