Why are some video games banned in Australia?

There seems to be some confusion as to the issue of game censorship here in Australia, so we thought we would try and clarify what the actual issue is and why games are banned. Plenty of sites have non Aussie’s slating the entire country for its backward thinking ways, but this is not a fair reaction.

The only real issue is that the highest classification presently stands at 15yrs. This means a game like Call of Duty 4 (as an example) has a red label stating “MA 15+ Restricted – Not suitable for people under 15. Under 15′s must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian”. This is the HIGHEST rating possible. I include a video clip below, with further information. It’s an interesting / annoying view.

The following is a clip from an ABC panel series Q & A (Questions and Answers), ironically sub headed on the official site as “adventures in democracy”. In this clip a gamer puts forward the question of censorship with fairly awful results. You’ll note it seems said gamer actually seems to hinder the argument as opposed to help it, which is annoying. Try not to throw anything at your screens as the uneducated people of the panel start throwing around a lot of inconclusive garbage to support our crappy ratings system.

The real issue seems to stem from the notion of ‘interactivity’ as an entertainment medium versus the passive medium. Films in Australia for example have a highest rating of R 18+ and X 18+ and gamers argue these should carry across to the gaming platform. It is the interactive nature of games however that is always used to throw a spanner in the works.

Sure we all know (unlike the uneducated fools in this clip) that playing GTA doesn’t automatically turn you into a car thief, but this is their main argument. So in short, for those confused, Australian’s aren’t backward, Australia is actually a forward thinking / moving country in many respects. It just so happens that with regards to video game ratings and gay marriage, there are a FEW morons in positions of power that neither understand what it is they are doing, nor how to act in a democratic manner.

One Response to “Why are some video games banned in Australia?”

1. ShadowTiger says:

   September 28, 2009 at 5:35 pm

   Thanks for the link. I was curious about this so i looked at the webpage for the ratings board. Unfortunatley they don’t post reasons for their decisions for a vast majority of games/movies. Left 4 Dead does not have an explanation either. I feel like the “we don’t want our children” playing this mentality is kind of silly since lets face it, we got to where we are without electronic cyber prisons for our childrens minds… obviously the human condition can compensate for some images/experiences of criminal behavior. I would say that mysogeny and the widespread culture related to gender and race roles/stereotypes are much more dangerous than video games. Advertisements, television, movies and even the government promote these principles so I have a hard time accepting a reason why adults can’t handle certain ideas/themes.
   I think that they should at least give unofficial ratings to these games in case they decide one day to add a new rating for 18+. Otherwise they would have to spend alot of time going back to old games and re-evaluating them.
   Finally… it drives me nuts when people say obviously this game is immoral when they haven’t even played it. Like the Mass Effect woman who appologized after actually watching the “sex scene”