R18+ Roundup, July ’09

Sunday, July 26th, 2009

Sincere apologies for the lack of updates. Personal issues that I won’t delve into here have prevented me from being as active as I would like. There’s been quite a bit of activity since I last posted, so let’s try and summarise it all.

1) Necrovision Banned, Censored, Unbanned

The alternate-history shooter Necrovision became the first casualty of the Australian Classification Board in 2009, being banned for excessive violence in April. In May, a censored version (with slightly less blood) was passed with an MA15+ rating. The uncensored edition is still available in other countries with an 18+ rating.

2) ACS Releases Policy Statement on Video Game Rating Recommendation

In a move that is to be applauded, the Australian Computer Society has come out in strong support of an R18+ rating for video games in Australia. This is a well-respected group of IT professionals in Australia and it’s fantastic to see them putting some more pressure on in favour of this much-needed change. You can download their policy statement by clicking here.

3) Australian Government To Censor Game Websites

On the flip side of the coin, the Australian Government has promised to use its incredibly controversial (and just plain stupid) internet censorship regime to block access to game websites that contain or promote content that would be Refused Classification in Australia.

Unfortunately, as we know, for something to be Refused Classification in Australia it simply has to be judged unsuitable for a 15-year-old to see. Which is, of course, utterly ridiculous.

So if you were hoping to use services such as Steam, idly click through some flash games which might have some animated violence, or even play World of Warcraft or Second Life (which aren’t technically rated in Australia), well… good luck to you. You’re going to need it.

4) R18+ Games Rating Discussion Paper Delayed

In April, the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General met to discuss the change to the classification system, but were unable to come to a unanimous agreement. As a result of this, each Attorney-General was going to release their discussion paper under their own name. So far, no discussion papers have been released, and no word about their release has been given. The discussion paper, like the future of an R18+ rating in Australia, remains entirely in limbo.

5) R18+ Games Australia seeking contributors

It’s become clear to me that it is impossible to properly maintain this site entirely on my own. My personal life is too disorganised to effect a constant flow of meaningful updates, and this is unacceptable to me given how important I view this issue to be. I am officially putting out the call for contributors – if you can write well, speak maturely, are abreast of current news, and are willing to contribute, then please get in touch with me and we’ll work something out.

That’s about all I can think of for now – feel free to email me if you’ve got anything I should know about. I have some large changes in mind for the site in future, and I’d like you and everyone else to be a part of it. Stay tuned.