its so funny though, the whole reason well michaels excuse is he does not want a R because than kids could get their hands on R games.
when that is EXACTLY! on what is happening now.
im almost 20.
when i turned 15 never, never was i asked for ID while buying a MA game movie or whatever.
from the day i turned 15 to now i have been asked for ID while purchasing a item probably 10 times max.
R rated items a different story.
every single time i buy or purchase a R rated game or movie.
every single time i go watch a R movie at the cinemas.
every single time i go to a bar, club or casino.
every single time i do a activity that requires you to be 18 i get asked for ID.
retailers and such are stricter with R than they are with MA because the law is.

so if anything, implementing a R18+ would be a improvement.
it would stop from kids getting hold of fear 2, or fallout 3.

me i dont see the big deal, as i mentioned above what does it matter.
why do you have to be over 15 to see some one get their head blown off like seriously.
why is society so protective and fussy these days.
its like were all turning into Christians.
no offense to the gay community but were all turning into a bunch of fags.

Yet here, because Aust politicians do not want to upset the bleeding hearts of the world who demand equal rights for all, leave them at 15+ saying that OUR kids are more mature.

If that’s the case, then how do some games get through that are 18+ overseas, yet others do not.

98% of parents or guardians I have asked about these classifications are stupified when I show them the very same games they are buying at Ma15+, with a PEGI or ERSB rating of 17 – 18 or M rating attached to the same game case and disc (meaning ADULT only viewing). Some have said that the games “obviously MUST be different if the Aust gov has put a MA15+rating on them”…..”after all, they are only for 15 yrs olds, how bad could they be, surely they have been changed for our ratings”

To which I tell them the only difference in the packaging and localisation.

Most, if not all are dumbfounded, and said that if the games, and many movies had stronger ratings that were “age appropriate” they would be must more aware of what they were buying for their kids. As they could see at a glance that the game or movie was NOT suited for their 12-14-15-16yrd old as we all know, 10 yr olds get MA15+ games here because the parents don’t think it’s all that bad, after all, how bad can it be if it has 15+ on it.

Aust’s are pacifists by-and-large, we allow others to dictate to us how things should be, we let small minority groups shape our politics and mould our way of life. Do you honestly think any of this would happen if it was say the US, Canada, France, Belgium, UK etc, No bloody way, it certainly would not, but it happens here because both the polies and the citizens have no spines.

End rant – sorry mate, having surveyed many parents, it just makes me boil when they say stupid stuff like” well it’s just for 15yr olds, so it must be fine. Then turn around and abuse shop staff when they bring the game back after seeing what is on it, yet were told that it would not suit their 13yr old (who’s mum and dad said that said child was/is very mature for his/her age) – yeah right.

I saw a MA15+ movie once that had full on sex scenes with insertion of foreign objects in certain female parts that you ACTUALLY SAW. And any 15yr old could walk out the shop with that in Australia – legally. Now that is absurd!

how can 1 man have power over several?
seriously i thought it was a majority rules, 10 say yes michael attkinson says no and michael wins?
any way, this proves what i have been saying for years.
the OFLC are the worlds largest hypocrites.

FEAR 2 is ok but dark sector is not.
ninja gaiden 2 is ok but soldier of fortune payback is not? left for dead is ok but left for dead 2 is not.
im still scratching my head trying to understand how that works.

even with movies.
prime example underworld.
a guy gets kicked into a helicopters blades and gets cubed and thats ok for MA but 1 severed head for a game is a no go?
or tropic thunder, that movie should be R, some bits in that made me want to bring up my lunch.
i dont understand how something in a movie is fine for MA but for a game? no no not accepted.
whats good for the goose should be good for the gander.

We have an article on the issue, stating the reasons behind the refusal. Funny thing is, WET got through which has a 18 rating from PEGI, as Mature rating from ESRB, yet gets a mere MA15+ rating here. Borderlands could well be denied classification, as there is heads blown off, limbs etc, which is one of the claims made regarding Left4Dead.

One man stands in the way of having a R18+ rating used in Australia. and it’s unlikely to eve change while he is in office. His veto can not be overruled even by the PM. As that is the whole idea of a Vito vote power, except it has the ability to be abused, which it is in this case.

As soon as the bill is moved by all other states to have public discussions, he places his vote to veto the idea, which then stops it dead in its tracks. This has happened several times already, and will continue to happen until his removal or that he changes his mind, which is basically never going to happen while he is in his position. it gains him a great deal of notoriety and public awareness, as well as support from religious groups which keep him in his position.

slightly off topic, but are the rumors true about L4D 2 being banned here in oz?
what for, i thought it was exactly the same as the first how can the first be ok but the second no good?
im lost.
its official australia is the worst country to live in for video games.
first we pay twice as much for games and accessories and the such.
than we have to wait weeks if not months for games which were out in the US weeks ago.
and than we miss out on half the games.
free country indeed, when were told what we can and cant play.
whats next?
the government telling me what shoes i can wear to the shops?
that would not surprise me since last night i got told off by the cops for walking and reading a map for gods sake.
your joking right?
your not allowed to walk and read a friggin map.
god talk about a dictatorship.