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| Game General News // Games: R18+ games classification to be considered. |
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The Age Newspaper wrote:
THE most violent video games available could soon be sold in
Australia after the Federal Government said it was considering updating
the classification system for games to include an R18+ rating.Read more for full story.
Unlike
films, magazines and other publications, there is no adult
classification for games in Australia, so any titles that do not meet
the MA15+ standard - such as those with excessive violence or sexual
content - are banned from sale by the Classification Board. Any changes
to the censorship regime must be agreed to by the Commonwealth and all
state and territory attorneys-general.
A spokeswoman for the
Minister for Home Affairs, Bob Debus, confirmed the issue of "whether
or not to allow an R18+ classification" for games would be discussed at
the next Standing Committee of Attorneys-General meeting on March 28.
The
games industry has long argued that the censorship regime is
unnecessarily draconian and prevents adults from making their own
decisions about the type of content they consume.
Research
conducted by Bond University in Queensland for the industry body, the
Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia (IEAA), found that
the average age of Australian gamers is 28 and more than 50% of gamers
are over 18. Another survey of 1601 Australian households, conducted by
the university in 2005, found 88% of Australians supported an R18+
classification for games.
Bond University associate professor
Jeffrey Brand, who wrote the research report, said Australia was the
"only developed democracy" that did not have an adult classification
for games.
He said the lack of an R18+ rating meant some games
deserving of adult classification were being let through by the
Classification Board as MA15+, and people who wanted to obtain banned
games could easily get them from the internet or overseas. "These games
are entering the marketplace despite the classification restriction and
so, very often, parents, who in some cases are the least savvy in the
household about games, are unaware that this adult content exists," Dr
Brand said.
But Australian Family Association spokeswoman Angela
Conway said even M-rated games now on the market had "concerning"
levels of violent and sexual content.
IEAA chief executive Ron
Curry said it would be up to states and territories and games retailers
to ensure those under 18 could not buy R18+ games
Posted on Monday, February 25 @ 21:07:34 EST by dust2death |
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