Age Gate on Teen rated games?!

[ScarletAmethyst]

Edit: I think it appears to occur with newer games rated Teen. Older Teen rated games like The Sims 3 do not have an age gate.

I went to visit the Final Fanyasy XIII page and it had an age gate although the game is rated Teen, not Mature. Batman: Arkham Origins, Final Fantasy VII, and Final Fantasy VIII, which are also rated Teen, also prompted me to enter my age. Even The Sims is doing it on Origin with The Sims 3 Into the Future and The Sims 4 despite The Sims being rated Teen.

Also what's strange is Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn didn't display an age gate but Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, and Final Fantasy XIII did and all of them are rated Teen. Note that IV is rated E10+. Also the websites of the mentioned games didn't display an age gate.

I wonder why are Teen rated games getting age gates? For Mature rated games, it's justified but it's strange seeing it on a Teen rated game.

I wonder if the ESRB and other rating boards have gotten stricter.

[ScarletAmethyst]

I'm curious on why games rated Teen have an age gate.

[Snapjak]

Voluntary ESRB age gate.

https://www.esrb.org/ratings/enforcement.aspx

Remember that publishers are the ones who set up their store pages now, so they'd probably be the ones who do it.