In an exclusive editorial written for GameIndustry.biz, EA Games label president Frank Gibeau calls Australia's lack of an 18+ rating for games in the region a form of censorship against adult players. Australia has a ratings system for games that is capped at the 15+ mark, which means that 18+ content is not allowed. To get in stores, developers and publishers are forced to make serious changes to meet the standards of the lower rating. Gibeau says that this is unfair to mature players, who are forced to play content that has been watered down or completely altered for the wrong audience.
"There is also a real danger that by not supporting the local development community, Australia will miss out in the growth of the medium and detract investment in the region," argues Gibeau.
The thrust of his argument is detailed in this particular paragraph:
A government policy that keeps our mature games out of stores and forces developers to rewrite code is censorship. It also forces lesser quality games into that marketplace, often stripped of their intended content and features. What will be next? Will adults be forced to see edited versions of mature films? Read books with certain chapters removed? As policy measures increase restrictions on available content, so too will consumers increase the practice of parallel imports from neighboring or same-language markets, depriving their home country economy of the associated industry revenue.
Gibeau closes with an appeal for accelerated action by the Autralian government:
A change in the Australian age rating system is needed. We call on the Attorneys General in their next general session to vote unanimously in favour of the introduction of an 18+ rating for videogames to allow adults to make their own choices about the entertainment they choose to enjoy. The implementation of a new 18+ age rating classification is the right step for consumers, and for the industry, in Australia.
Read the whole thing here.
Comments
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
Oops ... Posted in wrong spot.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
I have been trying to find out what date the Standing Committie of Attorney Generals was meant to be held, but so far no information from either google or even the Attorney Generals websites.
Change will come, either with the R18+ rating with stores being heavily fined for not obeying to the classification laws...or a whole entire generation of gamers growing up to take office and then implementing the right changes.
However, since we need ALL Attorney Generals to agree on this, I honestly feel like we have overcome the first hurdle by mr Atkinson retireing from his position, but still, it is always hard to have a positive change when the requirement for change is always at a 100% yes vote.
Even worse still, I don't think that the same applies for this proposed internet filter in Australia that only just requires a majority vote of some sort of degree in the senate...it is like Australia has a law against freedom of speech and a different law with so called "community values"
Also, it is important to speak up about these things, because if you don't care or be aware about politics, then politics will rule you in the end.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
isnt there speech in games? both written and spoken? you can argue all day long that games arent speech if you like but the speech in the games is definitely speech.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
That´s the great problem with videogames today: they believe there is not speech on them, so they think they can ban or censor them without any reasonable argument. Any excuse is good. That´s why people in USA want to pair violent videogames with porn and qualify them as obscene.
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Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
I feel sorry for all those people who didn't defend porn back in those days...because of them we have to fight not only to enjoy our violent entertainment but also we have to fight in order to enjoy our sexy adult entertainment too....
But we can't go blaming the past for these things, what we do need, is for a mass of people who play games, people who watch movies, people who read books and people who fight for freedom of speech to really make an impact and get voted into power instead of sitting on the sidelines all the time.
And yeah, there will be a mass of opposition against us, like from the current day politicians and also from the news media that is governed by what the politics of the time says...
But remember...same thing happened to music back in the day of the 50s, 60s, and 70s when it was like you were anti-social if it was seen that you spent most of your time playing music, now we have a situration where we have people encouraging people to pick up and play music...
this is because most people in power these days in the western world play music or like music in some shape or form, even though many politicians hate rap music all because they don't understand that rap IS a different genre of music but it is still a form of speech and expression.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
Hi, Australia. Long time with no see you... seriously.
Well, this topic can go on and on. Until there is not a real change on Australia about freedom of speech (they first have to recognize videogames as speech), I think they will keep banning stuff they don´t like.
So, it doesn´t matter who speaks off against this, they just won´t listen.
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Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
News flash for you. There are very few countries that actually enshrine "free speech" in thier constitution. Australia is not one of them. Your point is moot.
That said, this is not an issue of free speech. This is an issue of making the classification laws consistent and fair. It will happen. Be sure of it.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
I already know that, thank you. That is one of the few things I´ve leanrned here.
If you see, EA´s Frank Gibeau is talking censorship. This is not only about government blocking people´s choice by banning +18 games, they are also making game producers to edit their products for the "sake of the children".
How is that not anything to do with freedom of speech, even when classifications are the main point?
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Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
How is not to do with free speech? It's a tricky one to answer. You'd need to shift the way you think to understand. All the American arguments about banning and censorship of game revolves around the concept of "free speech".
But consider a country that doesn't have "free speech" enshrined as a part of its constitution. Just take the free speech argument OUT of the equation. Remove it as a consideration altogether. (I know it's hard, but just do it ... trust me). Now examine the OTHER reasons why a balanced classification is a good thing:
* to provide a consistent approach across all media classification;
* to educate parents as the true content level of games before purchasing it for their kids; and
* to allow adults access to games that were designed to be played by adults.
These are the things that WE as Australians consider. Free speech is not part of the equation over here. Sure it is in America ... because that's the way your society is wired. Don't try and judge how another society should operate by your own societies values. We are not America.
Just because we don't have "free speech" enshrined in our consitution, doesn't mean we're not free. It just means we don't have carte-blanche to be an arse. We're free to pretty much say what we like and people do. The goverment has the ability to come down on things like "hate literature". And any government that curtails our actual ability to free expression won't find themselves in goverment after the next election.
On a side note, if you're thinking about the Australian "Internet filter" legislation, it's not going to pass the senate. The legislation has already been delayed and a backlash in the polls will see the government dropping it like a hot rock.
Re: EA: No 18+ Rating in AU is Form of Censorship
Just because we don't have "free speech" enshrined in our consitution, doesn't mean we're not free.
I never said you weren´t free. I understand you don´t have free speech on your constitution, and I´m not gonna to pretend to know how your own laws work.
As you said, this matter can be solved with education, but instead of that, politicians choosed censorship to resolve a problem which it really doesn´t.
It´s weird, because even when there is not a constitutional free speech amend on Australia, politicians choosed the same flawed arguments than americans.
Maybe this is not a freedom of speech matter on your country, but a problem with unfair censorship. And this is happening everywhere else.
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