Ah, the elusive Adults-Only rating, something ESRB has only handed to a handful of games over the last 30 years. It has been roughly a decade since the last AO game, a drought that seems destined to continue since publishers have no incentive to submit a project to ESRB that might receive this classification. Through the rise of PC platforms like Steam, players have avenues where they can easily access games made for every audience and age group imaginable, killing the allure of picking up a forbidden AO game. Also, ESRB is constantly evolving, and some modern M17+ games have arguably more “adult” content than some AO games.
Still, it is interesting to go through this rating’s history, especially in terms of mainstream games that had to change their content to avoid the dreaded AO score. While most of these titles are small and niche, there are a few major exceptions that are particularly exciting to talk about. Let’s go through them.
Updated November 22, 2025 by Mark Sammut: We have added a section that provides an overview of ESRB’s Adults-Only rating, just to answer a few questions.
Click on a game’s title to visit its ESRB page. Also, games like Seduce Me and Lula 3D are not included since we want to focus on (relatively) mainstream projects and not ones that are obviously trying to get an AO rating.
A Quick Look Into ESRB’s Adults-Only Rating
What Is the AO Rating?
ESRB’s Adults-Only Rating refers to games that are only suitable for adults who are 18+, although that does not necessarily mean they are ero games. They can certainly fall under that category, but most AO-rated games are meant for a relatively wide audience; they just included content that crossed the line and pushed them above a Mature rating. In these cases, developers will tweak the content and resubmit the game for a new rating that hopefully allows it to hit store shelves.
What Content Triggers AO?
Typically, extreme violence, sexual content, and gambling with real money lead to an AO score. Now, ESRB examines each game on a case-by-case basis, observing things like graphic violence to determine the overall rating. Just because a game has gore does not mean it will automatically get an AO score, and the same can be said for sexual content; ultimately, it is how they are presented that matters the most, and plenty of projects incorporate both while managing to stay within a marketable rating.
Why Is It Nearly Impossible for Console Games To Get An AO Rating?
Simply put, a game with an Adults-Only score will not be allowed into a console’s library. Pretty much all the major console manufacturers do not sell AO-rated games, so a publisher/developer needs to avoid it at all costs if they want a PS5, Xbox, and Switch 2 release. Stores like Steam do not require an ESRB rating, so modern games that might get that classification tend to just release on Valve’s platform and not bother applying for a score. Honestly, the last few years have probably produced more AO games than ever; they just were not certified by ESRB.
The Infamous Hot Coffee
Now, this one was all but inevitable. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas got the AO rating for a certain piece of content by the name of Hot Coffee. This was a removed minigame that, while not officially playable, could be triggered through mods. This dialed up the already adult content of the game to the limit, and so San Andreas was slapped with the AO rating since Hot Coffee was part of the game’s files rather than just an adult-oriented mod created by fans.
Curiously, though, said rating was rescinded later. Rockstar responded by deleting all traces of Hot Coffee from the title, and, in turn, the game’s rating was revised to Mature. Of all the awful things someone can see and do in a GTA title, it’s interesting to think that it was Hot Coffee in particular that pushed a series entry over the edge.
Singles (Or Singles: Flirt Up Your Life)
Sims But No Kids Allowed
Singles: Flirt Up Your Life
- Released
-
October 5, 2003
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ Due To Partial Nudity, Strong Sexual Content
- Developer(s)
-
Rotobee
Coming in multiple versions, Singles: Flirt Up Your Life is an M-rated social sim that puts players in charge of two characters who are living together. The main goal is to build up their relationship so they eventually go all the way. A simple premise that sells itself, the game executes this concept well enough, although it is hardly worth seeking out in this day and age.
Now, the standard North American version is fairly tame, but there used to be a downloadable AO alternative that added nudity back to the game. This version brought the content in line with the European iteration. In 2005, a sequel was even released, although it did not receive an ESRB rating. As far as can be confirmed at this point, it seems like Singles 2: Triple Trouble might have remained a Europe exclusive.
Blood-Soaked Murder Spree
Manhunt 2
- Released
-
October 29, 2007
- ESRB
-
M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
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Rockstar London
As many people know, Manhunt 2 is one of the most controversial video games in history. Created by Rockstar (no strangers to this sort of notoriety), the stealth game is filled to the brim with astonishingly gory and brutal content. Players control Daniel Lamb, a guy who escapes from an Asylum and goes on a rampage that involves graphically executing a plethora of people. The game even features a three-tier murder system, with the violence escalating with each level.
Manhunt 2 is an unusual case, as it was rejigged by the team to meet the standards of a Mature rating (executions were changed to be less graphic and the system that glorified more theatrical assassinations was removed). It was the uncut PC release that pulled no punches and was condemned. While the console iteration earned an M rating, the PC iteration went the extra mile and received an AO score, although the content descriptors of all versions are the same.
Larry’s Wildest PC Adventure
Leisure Suit Larry has always reveled in debauchery and adolescent humor. Debuting in 1987, the series is known for its sexually-charged humor and penchant for irreverence, and it accumulated a fairly respectable following during the ’90s. Sure, the games were not high art, but they did their jobs well. In 2004, Larry needed a makeover, which came in the form of a 3D adventure called Magna Cum Laude.
Presenting quite a bit of freedom compared to its predecessors, this release drops players on campus and allows them to mingle and take part in minigames. There is not all that much depth here, and the jokes are the definition of immature, but some fun can be had if a player is in the right mindset. As with most multi-platform releases, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude‘s AO version is only available on PC, with the PS2 and Xbox receiving an edited version. If someone wants to try out the unfiltered Leisure Suit Larry experience, the Uncut and Uncensored! edition is the one players will want to pick up.
Mass Murder Sim
Hatred
3/10
- Released
-
June 1, 2015
- ESRB
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AO For Adult Only 18+ Due To Intense Violence, Blood and Gore, Strong Language
Most typical games try to avoid getting the AO rating, but Hatred looks like it was specifically designed with that goal in mind. This release is basically Postal without anything resembling a story or much in the way of nuance; it is a murder simulator, a game that unleashes players onto society and tells them to kill everyone.
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Unsurprisingly, Hatred garnered a pretty terrible reception upon release, but ultimately that hardly seemed to be the point of the game. This is a title that appeared to want people to be outraged and to react as loudly as possible. More often than not, the AO rating is given out to games that are obviously targeting adults, especially in the form of sexual content; amidst projects like Seduce Me and Wet: The Sexy Empire, Hatred stands out since it shares far more similarities with traditional games that one might find on most store shelves.
A Rare Visual Novel Asks For An ESRB Rating
MangaGamer is a prolific adult visual novel publisher that has been around since 2008, usually releasing multiple projects per year. Although the vast majority of these games would garner AO scores if they were submitted for an ESRB rating, that step is unnecessary and largely unheard of, and that goes for most visual novels that incorporate mature content. However, Ef: A Fairy Tale of the Two was a unique case. Along with debuting on PC, the game made its way to the PS2, with a United States release also being on the cards. That took a few years to materialize, but the visual novel officially debuted in 2014 in the USA; consequently, MangaGamer did submit Ef for an ESRB score, which saw it naturally receive an Adults Only rating.
A Fairy Tale of the Two is a compilation containing The First Tale and The Latter Tale, two visual novels that can be purchased separately on Steam. Now, while one of the selling points of these types of projects, adult content is not their only reason for existing, and there are instances when that sort of material is added to an otherwise complete visual novel to increase its commercial appeal. For example, Fate/Stay Night started as an eroge visual novel, but it is hardly defined by its adult content. Ef: A Fairy Tale of the Two is similar and tells a pretty great story.
Vicious Fighter
One of the earliest games to be given an AO rating for violent content, Thrill Kill, ultimately never saw release at all as a result of its notoriety.
Paradox Development’s fighter revolved around the idea of a group of damned individuals, who had been vicious killers, battling for a chance to be reincarnated by the Goddess Marukka. Thrill Kill promised four players could hop in simultaneously, but bad press ultimately led to the title being canceled. For an idea of how the experience may have been, imagine Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style with demonic characters and some of the most hideously brutal execution moves imaginable, and that’s basically Thrill Kill.
An AO Version That Might Or Might Not Exist
Now, this is a special case since this rendition of Quantic Dream’s game seems impossible to find in the wild, at least not with this specific subtitle. Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Director’s Cut does, however, have a dedicated ESRB page, so it was clearly submitted at one point or another. It seems like the Director’s Cut is basically the original game’s European iteration, which included scenes that were cut from the North American version to allow for a Mature rating. It should be noted that ESRB only lists PC as a platform, so if this cut was made public, it was not on consoles.
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Therefore, is it impossible to play the uncensored version of Indigo Prophecy? Thankfully, the answer is “no.” In 2015, the game was remastered by Aspyr, and this version of Fahrenheit is based on the international release. Consequently, it is uncut. Funnily enough, the remaster only received an M17+ rating from the ESRB board, despite having nearly the same content descriptors as the Director’s Cut.
M17+ Games That Tweaked Their Content To Avoid An AO-Rating
Generally, developers and publishers do not want an AO rating. Sure, sometimes it serves as a badge of honor, but that only holds value if a game only plans to be released on PC and has no desire to hit traditional store shelves. If it wants to target console players, a project simply cannot be labeled as Adults Only.
Consequently, if a developer learns that an Adults Only score is coming, they will likely alter and censor parts of their game to get the score down to M17+. As such, these titles never received an official AO rating since they made changes before their debuts.
