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Aliens Vs. Predator Wins Appeal In Australia
by Leigh Alexander [PC, Console/PC]
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December 18, 2009
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Sega has won its appeal to Australia's ratings board on behalf of Rebellion's Aliens vs. Predator, which had initially been denied a rating due to its gory gameplay.
Titles denied a rating in Australia generally have to be edited to the classification board's satisfaction before they can launch in the region, but publishers usually appeal the ratings denials at first.
It's rare that appeals succeed as Sega did in this case. Valve's appeal on behalf of Left 4 Dead 2 failed, and ultimately the developer had to release an edited version of the game in the region.
The classification board takes particular issue with the nature, manner and "impact" of human death in games, often citing dismemberment, impalement or bone-breaking as specific factors behind ratings denials.
Rebellion had said that while it understood the board's determination that Aliens vs. Predator was appropriate only for adults -- a category for which Australia presently lacks a rating -- it would not release a "sanitized" version of its game.
"We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever," a Sega spokesperson told consumer weblog Kotaku today.
Australia's lack of a mature, or "R18+" rating for video games has been hotly contested in recent months. Numerous classification denials for major titles have led the region's developers and some of the gaming public to press for changes in the way the Board approaches game ratings.
Attorney General Michael Atkinson has firmly opposed the institution of a mature rating for video games in Australia, expressing concerns that an excess of violence will have a harmful effect on citizens.
But just this week, the government opened the issue to public debate, offering a full report presenting both sides of the issue and inviting consumers to submit their feedback.
"This is a big win for Australian gamers," says Sega. "We applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game, and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians."
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The people making the ruling on the appeal are not the same people who originally rated the game.
During an appeal, the original rating and all the decisions made to get that rating are reviewed as well as any information, explanation, changes etc the publisher wants to add are weighed as well.
While it does seem odd, it is not without precedence. I think the key point that wasn't touched on here is that the Appeal board looked at the context of the violence and how much control the player has over it. They determined that contextually and interactively, the violence was inline with the MA15 rating.
I think that it is a good move as it puts the game in line with the movies which have all been rated MA15 or below.
There's back room politics going on or, now that the issue is out in the open and there's public support, they're trying to backpeddle and they look like idiots.
Effectively they neutered L4D2 and any chance of it being as big a hit as it should, and are giving AvP a free run. I would be pissed if I was Valve for 1. Ruining my game and 2. Forcing me to spend tens of thousands of dollars (possibly millions) to bend to the governement's will and censoring my art. And then, a couple weeks later, let a more violent game slip by. Maybe Valve doesn't understand how to grease the palms of politicians as well as Rebellion.
I love that Aussies love games, but damn they need to fix that government and get themselves an adult rating.