# Are Simulator Games Safe for Kids? A Parent’s Guide to Age Ratings, Purchases and Chat

Source: https://www.extremesoft.co/articles/are-simulator-games-safe-for-kids
Publisher: Extremesoft (https://www.extremesoft.co)

What a 4+ rating actually means, how to turn off in-app purchases on iPhone and Android, how the in-game PIN protected parents section and safe word list chat work, and a straight breakdown of every Extremesoft game by age.

Published 2026-08-09. Updated 2026-08-09. About 8 minutes to read.

## Summary

A 4+ App Store rating means no violence, no scary content and no mature themes, but it says nothing about in-app purchases or online chat, which are the two things parents actually need to check. Of the five Extremesoft games, Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024, Car Flight Simulator 2024 and Submarine VR are rated 4+; Flying Dragon’s Life Simulator is 9+ for hunting; Rogue Robot Simulator Extreme is 12+ for robot combat. Only Flying Unicorn Simulator has multiplayer, and it ships with a PIN protected parents section that turns chat and multiplayer off, plus chat restricted to an approved safe word list. Only Flying Dragon’s Life Simulator has no in-app purchases at all.

Age ratings answer a narrower question than most people assume. A 4+ badge tells you the App Store found no violence, no frightening imagery and no mature themes. It does not tell you whether the game will ask your child for money, or whether other people can reach them inside it.

This guide separates those three things, because they need three different decisions. We make the games listed here, so treat the specifics as disclosure rather than a review, and check the store listing yourself before installing anything.

## What the age ratings actually mean

Apple and Google rate content, not commercial behaviour. Here is what each band on the App Store means in practice for a simulation game.

| Rating | What it means | Typical cause in a sim game |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 4+ | Nothing objectionable. No violence, no frightening content, no mature themes. | Flying, driving, exploring, collecting. |
| 9+ | Infrequent or mild cartoon or fantasy violence. | Hunting animals, fighting creatures, mild peril. |
| 12+ | More frequent fantasy violence, mild mature or suggestive themes. | Combat as a core mechanic, weapons, destruction. |
| 17+ | Frequent intense violence, mature themes, gambling. | Rare in this genre; treat as an adult game. |

The important gap: neither Apple nor Google factors in-app purchases or online chat into the age number. A 4+ game can still sell $99 currency packs and put your child in a lobby with strangers. Those have to be checked separately, which is what the next two sections cover.

## In-app purchases: how to turn them off in two minutes

This is the single highest-value thing a parent can do before handing over a device, and it takes about two minutes. It works at the operating system level, so it covers every game, not just ours.

### On iPhone and iPad

1. Open Settings and tap Screen Time.
2. Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions and turn it on.
3. Tap iTunes & App Store Purchases.
4. Set In-app Purchases to Don’t Allow.
5. Set a Screen Time passcode that is different from the device unlock code, or the whole thing can be reversed in ten seconds.

### On Android

1. Open the Google Play Store and tap your profile icon.
2. Go to Settings, then Authentication, then Require authentication for purchases.
3. Choose "For all purchases through Google Play on this device".
4. Separately, under Family, set up parental controls and a PIN to restrict what can be downloaded by rating.

Of our five games, four have optional in-app purchases (Flying Unicorn Simulator, Car Flight Simulator, Rogue Robot Simulator, and Submarine VR through the Meta Store). Flying Dragon’s Life Simulator has none: it is a $9.99 purchase with no ads and nothing else to buy, which for some families is worth the up-front cost on its own.

## Multiplayer and chat: who can reach your child

Online multiplayer is where the real supervision question lives, and it is worth being specific rather than general.

Of the five games here, only Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 has multiplayer. It lets players fly, race and explore the maps together, and on iOS you can play directly with Game Center friends. Every other game in the lineup is single-player, so nobody can contact your child inside them at all.

Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 also has a parents section inside the game itself, locked behind a PIN that a child cannot get past. From there you can switch off chat, switch off multiplayer, or both, and the setting stays until you go back in with the PIN. This is the control most parents want, because it works on the specific game without restricting the whole device.

Chat itself is not free text. Players can only send words from an approved safe word list, so a message that is not on the list simply cannot be typed. That rules out abuse, personal details such as a phone number or an address, and attempts to move a child onto another platform, rather than trying to catch them after the fact with a filter.

If you would rather handle it at the device level, you can also stay in single player, where the maps, unicorns, pets and challenges are all still available offline. On iOS you can restrict Game Center multiplayer and friend requests entirely through Screen Time, under Content & Privacy Restrictions, then Game Center.

## Every Extremesoft game, by age

The full disclosure, in one table. "IAP" means in-app purchases.

| Game | Age | IAP | Multiplayer | Offline | Content |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 | 4+ | Yes, optional | Yes, online | Yes, in single player | Flying, exploring, pets, races. No violence. |
| Car Flight Simulator 2024 | 4+ | Yes, optional | No | Yes | Driving, flying, vehicle upgrades. No violence. |
| Submarine VR | 4+ | See Meta Store | No | Yes | Ocean exploration. No combat, no fail state. |
| Flying Dragon's Life Simulator | 9+ | No, paid once | No | Yes | Hunting animals, creature battles, boss fights. |
| Rogue Robot Simulator Extreme | 12+ | Yes, optional | No | Yes | Robot combat as a core mechanic. |

For a child under about seven, Car Flight Simulator 2024 is the simplest recommendation in this list: 4+, no violence, no multiplayer, fully offline, and the only thing to manage is the purchase toggle you have already switched off.

## A note on screen time and open-world games

Open-world simulation games have no natural stopping point, which is a genuine design difference from a level-based game and worth knowing about. There is no "you have finished the level, put it down" moment, so the boundary has to come from outside the game.

The practical fix is a Screen Time app limit rather than a rule you have to enforce in person: Settings, Screen Time, App Limits, then set a daily allowance for the Games category. The device gives the warning, which turns the negotiation into a fact about the phone rather than an argument with you.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is Flying Unicorn Simulator safe for a 6 year old?

Yes. Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 is rated 4+ with no violence or frightening content, so the game itself is suitable for a six year old. Two things to set up first: turn off in-app purchases in iOS Screen Time or Google Play, and open the PIN protected parents section inside the game to decide whether chat and multiplayer stay on. Chat is already limited to an approved safe word list, and the game can be played entirely in single player.

### What does a 4+ age rating actually mean?

A 4+ rating on the App Store means the app contains no objectionable material: no violence, no frightening imagery and no mature themes. It does not say anything about in-app purchases, advertising or online chat, so those need to be checked separately on the store listing.

### How do I stop my child making in-app purchases?

On iPhone, open Settings, tap Screen Time, turn on Content & Privacy Restrictions, tap iTunes & App Store Purchases and set In-app Purchases to Don’t Allow, then set a Screen Time passcode different from the unlock code. On Android, open the Play Store, go to Settings, Authentication, and require authentication for all purchases.

### Which mobile games have no in-app purchases at all?

Flying Dragon’s Life Simulator is the Extremesoft game with no in-app purchases and no ads: it is a single $9.99 App Store purchase and nothing else is sold inside it. It is rated 9+ because it involves hunting animals and fighting creatures, so it suits older children rather than very young ones.

### Can strangers talk to my child in these games?

Only Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 has online multiplayer; the other Extremesoft games are single-player, so no one can reach your child inside them. In Flying Unicorn Simulator, chat is limited to an approved safe word list, so free text, personal details and abuse cannot be sent at all. You can also switch chat and multiplayer off completely in the PIN protected parents section inside the game, or stay in single player.

### Are simulator games good or bad for kids?

Open-world simulator games are generally low-pressure: no scores to lose, no timers and no failure states, which suits younger children better than competitive games. The trade-off is that they have no natural stopping point, so the practical control is a Screen Time app limit rather than anything inside the game.

### Which Extremesoft game is the most suitable for a young child?

Car Flight Simulator 2024 is the simplest choice for a young child: rated 4+, no violence, no multiplayer, plays fully offline, and the only thing to manage is in-app purchases, which you can disable at the device level. Flying Unicorn Simulator 2024 is also 4+ and offers much more to do, if you are comfortable managing the multiplayer setting.

### Is VR safe for children?

Submarine VR itself is rated 4+ with no combat and no fail state, which makes it one of the calmer VR experiences available. Separately from the game rating, Meta sets its own minimum age for using a Quest headset, so check the headset requirements as well as the game rating before letting a child use it.