Fallout 3 banned in Australia
According to the Australian government the gore in Fallout 3 isn't an issue - the drugs are.
Apparently though, according to Kotaku Australia, the reason the game was banned was nothing to do with the level of gore or death, both of which feature heavily in the post-apocalyptic RPG. Instead, the game was banned because of the drug use featured in the game:
"Corresponding with the list of various "chems" are small visual representation of the drugs, these include syringes, tablets, pill bottles, a crack-type pipe and blister packs. In the Board's view these realistic visual representations of drugs and their delivery method bring the "science-fiction" drugs in line with "real-world" drugs."
Drugs have long been an important part of the gritty world of Fallout, with the use of chems and the possibility for addiction being a key element of the gameplay for characters who were lacking in certain stats.
Apparently though, the drugs were a little too much this time and the Australian regulatory body has refused classification to the game rather than giving it the highest rating it can, MA15+.
The whole arguement that the drugs weren't sci-fi enough seems a little weird to us too - but what do you think? Let us know in the forums.
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Discuss in the forums ReplyHeck, you could even kill children....in uncensored versions.
Sucks to be Australia!
Unless, of course, the game sucks, then it might not suck so much :D
Who gives a crap? It's not like playing the game is going to make an 18+ year old think "I really need a bit of smack right about now".
Utterly ridiculous.
I can't wait... It'll be awesome.
=O don't tell mr rudd on me lol he will fail and throw*or try* to throw a ball at me lol
I thinks its because the drugs in-game are "realistic visual representations" whereas the old fallouts didn't quite have real life looking drugs but that's all argument at this point for me because I've never seen the drugs in game
funny thing is, here in NZ they use the 'banned in Australia' as a marketing gimmick on some games. a few years ago I went into blockbuster to rent a couple of games and saw rows of the game 'BMX XXX' on the shelves with a huge yellow stripe across the case saying "Banned In Australia!" along with the R18 sticker on it. TBH it did make me want to play them game more than if it didn't have the 'banned' sticker on it, but I was all of 14 or 15 (I think).
anyway, I'm going to go skate along the guttering of house roofs an skate down long roads going down hills while 'busting a move' and collect those giant floating letters that are hidden all around my city cause that's what they do on those tony hawks games, then I'm going to grab a massive sword that weighs three times a s much as I do and attack an animal 20 times my size a la final fantasy.
Looks to me that the COUNTRY isn't mature enough. Instead of fighting the drugs itself, they ban the games...
Aye, I don't watch films and play games which involve drug use and then think... "Yeah, that looks cool, maybe I'll do a line of coke now." Most adults have reached a conclusion on drugs.. and have made the decision on whether they're awful and should be avoided at all costs, or not as bad as people say and are okay to take in small amounts.
I don't know how they think it could be worth rejecting a classification over. It's really insulting to the adult population of Australia, saying "None of you are mature enough to play this game without then going on to become smackrats and crackwhores."
I don't even think it's illegal to own it... It's just illegal to distribute and then sell it.. Without classification. That's all classification deals with, distribution and retail... once it's out there, no one cares.
At least that's my understanding... of British Law, I don't know Australian Law. It may be similar.
There was a sidequest to get rid of the Jet addiction via Myron. Me, I stayed away from drugs all through the games. It was always a better idea to save the cash needed to sustain any addiction.
+1 Yeah I love that guy!
no, its just that the controlling bodies are f*ckwits :p Aussie gamers have been pushing for an R18+ rating on games ever since Carmageddon got banned, and someone always rains on our parade (despite the average aussie gamer being 24+ according to surveys a few years ago). Worst of all, people listen to the family groups who say that having an R18+ rating means that the games will be accessible to those under 18, which is completely ridiculous as we (unlike the US) actually have legal systems in place to prevent such sales, and if they really want a game they can get it illegitimately through torrents anyway.
I've never been particularly bothered with "banned" games before, as none of them have really interested me much, but Fallout 3 was something I most certainly was looking forward to. I see two solutions to getting the game here: First, is (finally) adopting this R18+ rating, second is Bethesda editing the "visual representation" to something that will pass. OK, I guess a third option is to import the game, but the R18+ farce has really gone on long enough.
i did too, was kinda confused for a bit, and after reading title 3 times it hit
and in the process screw everyone else in the planet..... YEAH RIGHT!!!! why don't you guys make some kind of petition to force them to make the +18 range?
It'll probably be one of his more profane episodes.
we have, several times. we always gets vetoed at some point down the track though.
Again, i still really hope beth doesn't spoil it!
heh, I kept feeding him jet to get his stats back up. didn't work out so well. kind of made doing any quests a bit harder.
drugs=bad
The problem comes when Australia doesn't have a R18+ classification for games (but does for films) and the MAXIMUM classification is MA15+ (children over 15). That means, for those of you who have comprehension and thinking difficulties (seemingly a good number of you given the comments posted above), that the game HAS to be suitable for 15 year olds.
Don't whinge about the ban, Fallout fanboys, whinge about the lack of an R18+ classification which lead to the ban.
In fact go and bombard the South Australian Attorney General with fanboy anger because he has flat-out refused to even consider discussing the issue with other state AG's, therefore the classification rules cannot be changed.
Here you go, tell him your thoughts on the matter: attorney-general@agd.sa.gov.au
Or you can phone him on +61 08 8207 1723 or fax him on +61 08 8207 1736. I'm sure he would be pleased to take your call and hear what you have to say. Those are his real phone numbers by the way, but you'd probably only get a secretary unless he's bored and has nothing better to do.
I don't agree with the no-R18+ policy, but it is NOT the fault of the OFLC and it is not the fault of a "backward country" as many seem to imply. It is the fault of politicians who aren't listening to reason and using the subject to ingratiate themselves with the mainstream ignorant masses.
This is just lazy parenting, but what do I care, I like in the UK.
Then they should change it, it's not hard, it didn't take very long for the BBFC to bring in the 12A rating when loads of people complained their kids couldn't go and see Spiderman. Too many people are stuck in the way of thinking that video games are for kids only. As far as I can tell, this is the only reason why AUS doesn't have an 18+ rating.
Buffout- A green tablet that boosts user's physical attributes. Addictive if taken excessively.
Psycho- An addictive injection developed by the military. It boosts the user's agility and damage resistance at the cost of intelligence. During withdrawal, user suffers agility penalty and gains intelligence boost.
Jet- A highly addictive methamphetamine-like substance. Comes in the form of an inhaler. Plays an important role in the world of Fallout 2.
Mutagenic Serum- An attempt to reverse the effects of Forced Evolution Virus.
Ice in the chamber and cool smoke living and dying and loving in my body... Don't exhale! that's wating magic :D
Unless you are an Australian, I can understand how you could think this. But that is not the reality. Australia is a federation of states similar to the US, whereas the UK is a unitary state where powers can be formed and abolished by a single authority (i.e. London). Thus the federal government cannot change the laws governing classification without the agreement of ALL six state Attorney Generals (the territories don't get a vote) who regularly meet.
If you care about the constitutional powers available to the Australian Federal Government, see here. But somehow I think you would be like me and couldn't care less. :D
And as I stated in my post, the AGs have already been prompted by the public to discuss the classification anomalies but the South Australian AG Michael Atkinson has already flatly refused to even discuss any changes. This, in effect, vetoes any potential changes. :(
I don't disagree with your other arguments about parental controls and public perception of games, but as the restrictions on games affects a minority of the general public, most people just don't care.
Whenever someone tries to inform him of the facts at a press conference, if it is against what his narrow minded beliefs are then he just talks over them and calls them a liar or abruptly ends the press conference early and storms out like a spoilt brat.
The sooner he is removed from office the better, if I was in his electorate I would have been voting against him all along, I have never liked him or his idiotic ideas even before he was appointed AG.