Controversy
At E3 2006 Atlus announced that it would be releasing Rule of Rose in the United States, following Sony's decision to pass on an American release. This was on the grounds of the game's erotic undertones involving a cast of female minors. The developers disagreed with this, saying that the sexual themes are only a small part of the game. In November 2006, three French deputies introduced a bill asking for the game to be banned for sale, arguing that the goal of the game was to "rape, beat up and kill a little girl", and that if nothing was done, video games could become an "uncontrollable factor of decadent violence in our society." That same month, 505 Games' Australian distributor, Red-Ant advised that the game's Australian and New Zealand release would be canceled. The game had yet to be rated by the Classification Board. During the same time frame, Poland's Ministry of Education raised questions concerning its appropriateness for minors (the game was rated 16+) because of the themes of child violence and sexuality. The ministry informed the prosecutor's office of possible crime.
European Union justice minister Franco Frattini attacked the game as containing "obscene cruelty and brutality." He also called for changes to the PEGI rating system in place across Europe and for government officials to engage in discussions with industry representatives. Frattini received a letter from Viviane Reding, commissioner for the information society and media, who criticized Frattini's actions: "It is...very unfortunate that my services were not pre-consulted before your letter to the Ministers of Interior was sent out," reminding him of the commission-backed self-regulating ratings system called PEGI that has operated across the European Union since 2003. The PEGI system of classification, according to Reding's letter, offers "informed adult choice" without censoring content: "This is in line with the Commission's view that measures taken to protect minors and human dignity must be carefully balanced with the fundamental right to freedom of expression as laid down in the Charter on Fundamental Rights of the European Union." On March 7, 2007, a group of Member of the European Parliaments presented a Motion for a European Parliament resolution on a ban on the sale and distribution in Europe of the game and the creation of a 'European Observatory on childhood and minors'.
505 Games chose to cancel the release of the game in the United Kingdom following complaints by Frattini and other EU officials, and "largely misleading" commentary from the British press. It was released in the rest of Europe. Review copies of the title had already shipped to British journalists when this was announced. The British body which had granted the title its 16+ PEGI rating (the Video Standards Council) responded to the press and Frattini's comments: "I have no idea where the suggestion of in-game sadomasochism has come from, nor children being buried underground. These are things that have been completely made up. [...] We're not worried about our integrity being called into question, because Mr Frattini's quotes are nonsense."
