German fans of Gal☆Gun will be left wanting as Gal☆Gun 2 has been refused an age rating in Germany. Without a USK rating, it is banned from sale in the nation. UK store and news site Rice Digital reached out to the game’s publisher PQube who affirmed the ratings ban, and that while they don’t agree with it, but ultimately respect the board’s decision.

We’ll always try to get games through classification regardless of the possibility of it being denied, as we feel that everyone should have the right and the access to play the games they want to play. It is our opinion that disliking the content in a piece of entertainment or art, and voicing that dislike, is totally fine and even encouraged, but denying that work the right to exist in a market based on personal opinions and prejudices, is something we strongly disagree with.

Unfortunately our appeal against this decision has been unsuccessful. Given that GalGun: Double Peace did receive classification in Germany, we’re doubly disappointed that we cannot bring the highly-anticipated title to our fans in Germany. However, we will have to accept and respect the decision of the USK.

Gal☆Gun 2, the scandalous, sensuous sequel to the original Gal☆Gun: Double Peace, has been approved for release in North America, the rest of Europe, and Australia via their respective ratings boards (the ESRB, PEGI, and ACB). The original Gal☆Gun previously was approved for release in Germany back in summer 2016. Germany’s typical game bans revolve around excessive violence or sensitive imagery (often pertaining to echos of Nazi Germany). In Gal☆Gun 2‘s case, the game’s overt sexuality seems to the the culprit.

Gal☆Gun 2 releases everywhere in the west sans Germany in Spring 2018 on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.

Alex Irish
When he's not writing about games, Alex Irish is an illustrator and animation expert. His favorite gaming franchise is Pokémon, full-stop, but his favorite game of all time is Resident Evil 4. He attended the first-ever IGN House Party and is a five-time attendee of the Ottowa International Animation Festival.