Rule of Rose[b] is a 2006 survival horror video game developed by Punchline and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2.

Set in England in 1930, the plot revolves around a nineteen-year-old woman named Jennifer, who becomes trapped in a world ruled by young girls who have established a class hierarchy called the Red Crayon Aristocrats.

Development on Rule of Rose began after Punchline was asked by Sony Computer Entertainment to make a horror game.

The team drew inspiration from the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tales for the narrative, and the Silent Hill series for graphics and art style.

Rule of Rose was the subject of a moral panic in Europe prior to its publication there, based on rumors of its alleged content.

The game has been compared to Silent Hill and Haunting Ground, due to the psychological horror elements and the presence of a canine companion for the main character.

The game is largely linear and the player cannot affect the story through their actions, although they are rewarded for exploration with secret items, additional details and combat upgrades.

While following him to the dilapidated Rose Garden Orphanage, she finds a dog collar in a shed, and witnesses masked children beating a bloody sack.

Jennifer frequently faces punishment for incidents caused by higher-ranking members, but manages to rescue a yellow Labrador named Brown, who accompanies her.

She befriends other lower-class members, Amanda and Wendy, and gradually recalls an oath she had made as the experiences of Jennifer reflect the storybooks.

The Aristocrats attack Jennifer, who wakes up back at the orphanage where all the children from the airship are present, but they either ignore or harass her, except for Wendy.

Wendy confesses to having Brown killed out of jealousy and reveals that she manipulated Gregory into becoming Stray Dog and used him to massacre the Aristocrats by disguising herself as his son Joshua.

Before meeting Wendy, Jennifer was kidnapped from an airship wreck by Gregory and made to live as a boy in order to replace his deceased son, the real Joshua.

In the end, Jennifer locates Brown inside the shed within her memories, gives him the collar bearing his name, and inscribes her oath on a chalkboard.

[3] Though the game has garnered comparisons with William Golding's 1954 allegorical novel Lord of the Flies,[16][17] the developers did not draw inspiration from it,[3] instead focusing on the "mysterious and misunderstood" nature of girls.

[14] The team visited Hyde Park for the accuracy of details such as the garden in the opening scene, and sought assistance from the British government and archives to gather information about the R101 airship that influenced the setting of the story.

[5] The story formed through trial and error as the developers figured out how to create a sense of fear, ultimately adding the children's secret society, the Red Crayon Aristocrats.

The entire score was produced by studio musicians, including the Hiroshi Murayama Trio, and vocals by Kaori Kondo.

[22] At E3 2006 Atlus announced that it would be releasing Rule of Rose in the United States,[23] following Sony's decision to pass on an American release, as the game "wasn’t really in sync with their corporate image" and the company had wanted the game to "be a bit tamer, if it were to have the Sony name in the U.S."[3] The developers disagreed with this, saying that "the theme is supposed to be one of intimate familiarity" and that they had intended to portray how children behave "without the filter of guilt or sin.

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.

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.

"[26] It was also proposed that the game be prohibited from being sold in France as part of an amendment presented by Député Bernard Depierre in the French Parliament,[27] while the Deputy Minister of National Education in Poland, Mirosław Orzechowski, sought to prevent the game from being disseminated by submitting a report to the district prosecutor's office in Śródmieście, Warsaw, although he did not specify which article of the Polish Penal Code was allegedly being violated.

In response to the press and Frattini's comments, the VSC's Secretary-General, Laurie Hall, stated: "I have no idea where the suggestion of in-game sadomasochism has come from, nor children being buried underground.

"[46] Edge found neither plot nor gameplay appealing: "It’s just a murky brew of meaningless, exploitative dysfunction filling an empty game, and it leaves a bitter taste.

While enjoying the "refreshingly adult take on sexual awakening and repressed memories that's consistently unsettling without ever resorting to cheap shock tactics," it criticized the game's "totally broken" combat and "thoroughly excruciating" backtracking, controls, and camera angles.

[50] Because of the limited number of copies published, Rule of Rose has garnered a reputation as one of the more expensive video games to buy second-hand.

Although they "can't guarantee that any of these initiatives will have more than a 1% chance of happening", they would like to give it a try after remastering a previous title for the Nintendo Switch called Moon.