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Left 4 Dead 2 Banned In Australia
An anonymous reader writes "According to Australia's Office of Film and Literature Classification, Left 4 Dead 2's content exceeds that allowable for an MA15+ rating. Any such game is rated as Refused Classification, effectively banning it. From the report: 'The game contains realistic, frenetic, and unrelenting violence which is inflicted upon "the Infected" who are living humans infected with a rabies-like virus that causes them to act violently. The player can choose from a variety of weapons including pistols, shotguns, machine guns, and sniper rifles. However, it is the use of the "melee" weapons such as the crowbar, axe, chainsaw and Samurai sword which inflict the most damage. These close-in attacks cause copious amounts of blood spray and splatter, decapitations and limb dismemberment as well as locational damage where contact is made to the enemy which may reveal skeletal bits and gore.'"
I didn't know valve did such a good job of making a proper gorey zombie game.
A bullet may have your name on it but splash damage is addressed "To whom it may concern."
Sounds like the nanny state is extending across the former empire. We all know the Indians are even more prudish than us Americans, the Aussies appear to be bowing to the idea that a game can be too violent for an ADULT to play, what's next the Canadians deciding drinking is too much fun and that it keeps people from serious work? The Puritans may have died out as an organized religion but the harm they have done to the western world is pretty endemic.
There are 4 boxes to use in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, ammo. Use in that order. Starting now.
This is different than the evening news? I'm all for sex over violence and a happy world but honestly the stuff that happens in that description is up nightly on TV.My friend down in AU says he watched 28 days/weeks later, so how is this any different?
Well, don't take this as support of the ban, but there is a difference between totally passively watching violence (and simulated violence) and actively controlling simulated violence. Different bits of the brain get used, and I believe there's some evidence that both can negatively impact social development in children, with the latter having a measurably stronger impact. I'm not aware of any research showing that either adversely affects adult behavior when viewed as an adult.
The silly thing is that when they ban a game, they increase the number of local torrenters, which increases availability to those under 18.
Adding a new rating requires an all in favour vote by the Attorney Generals of each state. There is a particularly rabid religious AG who always votes no. We're waiting for him to die.
Yay me!
Actually, a lot of people will have that reaction. I'm not planning on buying it any time soon (too many other great games coming out at the end of this year), but a local ban on it would certainly remove any of my moral reasons not to pirate it.