Fallout 3 banned in Australia?

  • By RandolphRam, GameSpot
  • Posted Jul 4, 2008 1:12 pm AEST

Source: A highly literate and seemingly Aussie games classification system-aware user on the GameSpot PC Forums. What we heard: Australia's game classification regime is known the world over for its strictness, with the lack of a comprehensive rating system resulting in any games deemed unsuitable...

Source: A highly literate and seemingly Aussie games classification system-aware user on the GameSpot PC Forums.

What we heard: Australia's game classification regime is known the world over for its strictness, with the lack of a comprehensive rating system resulting in any games deemed unsuitable for someone 15 years old banned for sale down under. Just last week, Shellshock 2 was refused classification in Australia due to its violent content.

If a user on GameSpot PC Forums is to be believed, then Australia's ratings regime may be about to claim its highest profile victim for 2008 so far. According to the original post, upcoming post apocalyptic action role-playing game Fallout 3 has been refused classification in Australia due to in-game drug use.

The original poster claims the in-game use of morphine has irked Australia's Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC). Australia's game classification rules state that titles that "depict, express or otherwise deal with matters of sex, drug misuse or addiction, crime, cruelty, violence or revolting or abhorrent phenomena in such a way that they offend against the standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults" will be refused classification. Under Australian law, computer games can be given a maximum classification of MA15+, as opposed to film or DVDs, which can carry up to an R18+ rating (the R rating prohibits sales to anyone under the age of 18 years old). Any games that do not fit under the OFLC's definition of MA15+ are refused classification.

Drug use is not uncommon in the Fallout universe. The two previous games in the series both featured significant drug use, particularly of the in-game substance known as Jet. In Fallout 1 and 2, players could take a wide range of drugs both to boost health and character attributes. Both games were freely available for sale in Australia and were rated M.

The official story: Red Ant Enterprises--the game's distributors in Australia--responded with a flat "no comment" when contacted by GameSpot AU. Coincidentally, Red Ant was also the distributors for Blitz: The League, which was also banned in Australia in early 2007. Blitz was refused classification due to its in-game drug use.

When GameSpot AU then contacted the OFLC, we were told no final decision had been made on Fallout 3, although the game had been submitted for classification. Fallout 3 is scheduled to hit Australia in October 2008 on the PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. The OFLC spokesperson said when a final decision is made, details will be made available on the OFLC Web site within 24 hours. (No such details had been published at the time of posting this article.)

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus for now, given the OFLC's official statement to GameSpot AU. But given Australia's track record, we'll be keeping a close eye on this situation and inform you with more details as they come to hand. For more information on Australia's game classification system, check out our special Censory Overload feature.

213 Comments

  • patrickncompany

    Posted Aug 20, 2008 2:39 am PT

    nah theyre not banning it , * its official

  • hail-fire2

    Posted Jul 27, 2008 11:59 pm PT

    I personally think this is outrageous. Who is stupid enough to do something they see on a video game. If we were that stupid then half of us would have robbed banks and the other half would have jumped of a friggen building. http://www.gameplayer.com.au/Petitions/Save-Fallout-3.aspx
    vote there to save fallout

  • jtdragon21

    Posted Jul 17, 2008 5:03 am PT

    i have some information about fallout 3 i have sent emails to Bethesda softworks and eb games and some other game store sites based in Australia and they have all said fallout 3 has not being banned in Australia they have said some parts of the game are going to be edited to meet Australian requirements what they mean is change the names of some of the items you use in the game and other stuff thanks to you for reading hope it helps i do live in Australia

  • gmh2000

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 1:47 pm PT

    "p1r4t8r Ahiru-San & joshChambers; It's not illegal to own a gun in Australia, but the laws are much tighter and not as many people own one as in the US. That being said there are still shootings etc in this country, type 'Martin Bryant' into google, he went on a killing spree and murdered 35 people. It's not just the US that it happens in."

    See, if that 1st person was armed, perhaps they could have stopped the fool from shooting up everyone...

  • gmh2000

    Posted Jul 16, 2008 1:23 pm PT

    collingtonuk:

    If someone breaks into my apartment, the .45 next to me certainly increases my chances of survival. It adds a certain protection to me. It DOES make me safer. It will keep the perp away from me. Firing my pistol from afar is much safer to me than getting in a hand-to-hand conflict with an intruder. So yes, it does make me safer, as it would any goodwilled person who wishes to protect themselves, their families and their loved ones.

    Our country was won, kept and retained by civilians with firearms. I suppose in the revolutionary war, the civil war, the Mexican-American war, etc...we would have been better off taking weapons from the citizens of the USA? NO...they are the ones who went out & fought these wars and kept us safe... If you were to take firearms from the goodwilled public, you are endangering us all. Civilians with guns keep us safe, not only from criminals, but from our own government as well. If you think each and every politician has public interest as their #1 priority, then you are in denial.

  • EzekielRogue

    Posted Jul 11, 2008 8:09 am PT

    MA15+ actually means that it is restricted to 15+. We have a 15+ rating here, the problem is, the game is considered too much for 15-17 year olds, and therefore it needs an R18+ rating. We don't have one of these because of one stupid man in power. Our government is pushing for one, but one idiot stands in the way, and without a unanimous vote, the classification can't be changed. Michael Atkinson, the Attorney General of South Australia is that idiot.
    None of this is the classification board's fault, they are just limited in their options due to his refusal to allow an adult rating for games here.

    Country codes aren't an issue for the PS3 or PC.

  • infamous_11

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 7:28 pm PT

    Whats next the will be banning MARIO!!!!!

  • infamous_11

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 7:26 pm PT

    These clowns have proboly never even picked up a good game like the looks of this one and sat down and played F*** these w****** make it 15+ and get on with the gameing boys

  • C-Brock

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 11:38 am PT

    Lame...

  • black_helven

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 3:35 am PT

    WTF THIS IS STRAIT OUT BULLS*IT ***KING OFLC MAGITES

  • skitzo_zac

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 3:11 am PT

    Its officially banned now, I am so F&*%ing P%$*ed off right now.

  • Pork_Lord

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 2:30 am PT

    This is now official

    http://www.classification.gov.au/special.html?n=46&p=156&sTitle=fallout+3&sMature=1&sMediaGames=1&sDateFromM=1&sDateFromY=2008&sDateToM=12&sDateToY=2008&record=228415

  • mathias897

    Posted Jul 9, 2008 1:10 am PT

    too bad for them

  • darthfanta

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 10:55 pm PT

    Instead of saying the stuff r drugs, just say they're medicines n r yankees wandering around gamespot australia?

  • smc_sewer

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 5:01 pm PT

    OFLC hmmm can anyone think of an alternative title for this gov department, i have a few already, none of which will pass the acceptable test on these forums. So you can guess where I live aye.

  • Kevin_268

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 2:44 pm PT

    i'm sorry but i have to say this:
    video games do not MAKE you do anything
    just because i shoot up places in GTA does not mean im going to rob a store
    just because the main character of a video game does drugs doesn't mean im going to (no matter how awesome i think he is)
    people might be slightly influenced by video games
    but im sure 99.999% of video gamers are intelligent enough to understand that what you see on a video game is not reality
    (That's why it is on your TV)
    Now I have no problem with Australia in particular (the place is gorgeous) but really let common sense decide these things please

  • dr_jashugan

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 12:13 pm PT

    It seems that it's tough for gamers down under.

  • Sheiko

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 7:53 am PT

    Good People Bad Gov censor.

  • curua02

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 6:44 am PT

    Culling rumors from industry sources, I can understand. Trade magazines, official websites, company leaks, all decent sources. But now GS is reporting on unsubstantiated rumors posted in their own forums? Come on, now.

  • p1r4t8r

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 1:53 am PT

    Ahiru-San & joshChambers; It's not illegal to own a gun in Australia, but the laws are much tighter and not as many people own one as in the US. That being said there are still shootings etc in this country, type 'Martin Bryant' into google, he went on a killing spree and murdered 35 people. It's not just the US that it happens in.

  • Irve

    Posted Jul 8, 2008 1:42 am PT

    oh please ...
    americans get uptight over nudity in games
    australians get uptight over drug use
    germans over Violence
    and the UK takes a political stand over a sequel to a game that the tabloids ripped into.
    and yet
    the amount of people gloating over what happens in Oz ... i know it's not a good situation and that Australians need an R18+ rating .. but it's not hard to import games from NZ .... and they have the added bonus of legal mod chips ... !! All those folks playing with the SCUMMvm and Mame on their Xbox must be pretty happy already

  • TES_Nut

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 11:39 pm PT

    jeez Australia's worse than the US was in the early 90's. Crocidile Dundee's gonna hafta kill someone

  • dulun19

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 11:27 pm PT

    ??...... i guess it will have no problem in the states...

  • Shantmaster_K

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 9:10 pm PT

    Sucks for aussies... lol @ mptrj

  • WhatTheDunk

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 9:02 pm PT

    Glad I'm an American.

  • Ranteal

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 8:30 pm PT

    At least here in America, the cases of Dingos eating babies are 80% lower than Austraila.

  • mptrj

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 7:56 pm PT

    GTA 4 US version: *Niko gets hit by a car* "I cant believe this f-ing sh!!!!!

    GTA 4 AU version: *Niko gets hit by a car* "Oh dear me I seem to have dented your hood! Terribly sorry! Here I'll get you a hot cup of tea!"

  • Erebus

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 7:49 pm PT

    SpoogeBoy said: "This is screwed im in australia & our game rating system is crap we get many of americas games & there censored eg. GTA4 was censored to hell"

    *ahem* Heck. Censored to heck.

  • rift_zone

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 7:10 pm PT

    @ JoshChambers . Why don't you do some research before you post. Guns are not illegal in Australia, but you do have to pass a test and get a licence before you can buy one.

  • raeganomics

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 5:52 pm PT

    ha ha, australia! you will miss out!

  • lamprey263

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 4:02 pm PT

    @gmh2000 - poverty is one of the biggest influences on violence, not whether or not people own guns, and we've a lot of poverty in the United States, just look, 1% of our population is in prison, and our unemployment rate is going to go up. Until our country starts taking greater consideration of those in poverty (or its economy for that matter), crime is just going to continue to stay up.

  • collingtonuk

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 2:26 pm PT

    GHM2000 , you can't seriously expect anyone to believe that having more guns around makes people safer. Its simply not true.

    Everywhere has censorship, it seems that the Australian take on game censorship is a bit harsh on the older, more responsible gamer.

  • lamprey263

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 2:04 pm PT

    I thought the drug use in the Fallout games demonstrated some important ideas like the benefits being temporary and the long lasting side effects being a big burden. So what's wrong with making an example of that? It's like a movie that initially glorifies drugs but then shows the negative consequences of drug use. That's an important message to convey to the public. The OFLC is only shooting themselves in the foot here.

  • Avenger1324

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 1:49 pm PT

    The latest victim to Australia's gaming censors.

    Out of interest did the original Fallout games also get banned, since they had blatant drug use, addiction, prostitution and over the top gory deaths (gotta love Bloody Mess )

  • MrOrmond

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 12:49 pm PT

    It really wouldn't be too bad, if you really think about it.

    I mean come on, the Enclave is back? With legions of Fatmans at their disposal?

  • Neo1O1

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 12:40 pm PT

    Australian gamers will be devoid of a great game. It's pretty sad that politics will hinder their gaming choices.

  • JoshChambers

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 12:25 pm PT

    to the person who said at least we dont see aussie's going on killing sprees. Thats because guns are illegal there. Its not like the US where you can walk into walmart and get a shotgun.

  • Ahiru-San

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 12:10 pm PT

    at least we don't see any aussie going on a spree killing or something like that.. well maybe i'm wrong (don't live there anyways)... best way to prevent teenagers wearing a red hot chilli peppers t-shirt from beating and stealing is banning a game.. well maybe they are just stupid anyways...

    btw, this game looks [a lot] promissing!!!!!!!

  • Ranteal posted Jul 7, 2008 11:12 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    Ranteal

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 11:12 am PT (hide)

    Wow, sucks to be in AU. Really, this is stupid. So glad I live in the USA where anything goes.

  • jumpnjackflash0

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 11:02 am PT

    More australians are buying their games from places outside of australia anyway. You can buy your games from somewhere like play-asia, pay the shipping fees and still save a good $20 to $30 dollars. In fact, everything in australia is ridiculously priced. I know someone who found to cheaper to fly to the U.S., buy a camera in a brick and mortar store, fly back, and still saved a good $400. Even digital downloads of games can be an extra $40 in australia.

  • grigjd3

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 10:12 am PT

    And don't forget, next month is conspiracy theorist month!

  • grigjd3

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 10:11 am PT

    This just in, some guy at the bar told me MGSIV sucks. Bogus or not bogus? Tommorow's edition, that same guy told me GoW2 is for losers. Next week, we provide a megaphone for every crazy yahoo proclaiming the end of the world on the streets of New York!

  • grigjd3

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 10:08 am PT

    Um, so now I can make up some BS and post it on the forums here and the gamespot editorial staff will send someone questioning about it? Alright gamespot, I heard this nasty rumor that Ross Perot is filing in a court in Zimbabwe to insure that the PS3 won't be allowed for sale in Russia! Check that one out! Ooh, here's another. India is going to pass a law that video games can't be played on Tuesdays. I've got another, China is officially declaring that the sky is orange. Why don't you send a reporter to go ask the Chinese government about that?

  • BarryObama

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 9:45 am PT

    Gamespot has sunk to a new low. using it's forum members as 'sources'?

  • torres_unix

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 8:23 am PT

    So, everything's banned in Australia? Why not ban aspirins too.

  • wopafoona

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 8:13 am PT

    Gawd bluss Amurca, dang!

  • IKKF

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 8:06 am PT

    If I remember correctly, they didn't ban BioShock. Did they not notice you sticking a freakin' needle in your arm, then granting you the ability to unleash bees on insane people? I have said this time and time again, but I will say it again. The majority of people who play games aren't even kids and the Australian government needs to recognize that. It isn't even hard. Create a similar R rating that they already have for movies and slap it on games. I know that just about everyone here agrees with me in this statement: WTF, Aussie?

  • kos1085

    Posted Jul 7, 2008 7:34 am PT

    That will suck if Australia misses one of the best rpgs of the year over a stupid rating system.

advertisement

Hot Stories

Newsmakers

Featured Stories

Submit News

Got tips? Send them in!