Michael Atkinson's Successor Will Push for R18+ Ratings

[Andy Chalk]

Michael Atkinson's Successor Will Push for R18+ Ratings

Michael Atkinson's successor as the Attorney General of South Australia says he'll push for the creation of an R18+ videogame rating but wants the MA15+ rating abolished as part of the deal.

John Rau was heralded as a mused [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/99385-Michael-Atkinsons-Successor-is-an-R18-Supporter] on the idea of bringing in the R18+ rating but scrapping MA15+ in order to more clearly delineate what is and isn't appropriate for children, and now he's ready to make the position official at the June meeting of Attorneys General.

Rau said he wants to see Australia's rating system changed to use only G, PG, M and R18+ classifications. "I will push for the South Australian position on MA15+ games to be adopted nationally, but if it isn't, I'm prepared to go it alone," he said.

"There has to be a clear difference between what adults can get and what children can get. At the moment, the MA15+ classification is like a crossover point between what is acceptable and what is unacceptable," he continued. "We want that to be a very clear gap. We will have a new classification R18+ and the MA15+ will disappear."

Opponents of the higher rating claim it will open the door to more violent videogames in the country but under the current system, many games that should be rated for adults end up squeezed into the MA15+ category, which actually approves them for gamers far younger than appropriate. Australia's Federal Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor has given the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General until its next meeting [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/108626-Australia-is-Tired-of-Being-a-Laughingstock] in June to come to some kind of consensus on an R18+ game rating, warning that the government will consider "other options" if the state-level AGs can't get it together.

Source: ABC [http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/28/3202605.htm?section=justin]


Permalink

 

[Sniper Team 4]

Wow. A politician who remembers that compromising is the best way to get things done. And one who also understands all the fact and how the real world works. After he's done in Australia, do you think we here in the U.S. can have him?
Sounds like Australian gamers finally have their knight in shining armor...or at least a page in practice armor.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Doesn't matter. The new Victorian AG is anti-R18+ so a unanimous vote looks as unlikely as ever. Good thing the Federal Government has given the idiots until June to get the ball rolling on introducing R18+ or face having any say in the national classification scheme taken away from them.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Wow. A politician who remembers that compromising is the best way to get things done. And one who also understands all the fact and how the real world works. After he's done in Australia, do you think we here in the U.S. can have him?

No, you can't. In a few years, with any luck, he'll be Premier of South Australia... Not that he's great but he's the best of a piss poor bunch of options.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

That's a pretty stupid idea. There are so many games which would fit in-between PG and M, like Halo. Perhaps it's just because I live here, but in my opinion Europe does it best with the PEGI system (although I prefer BBFC ratings as 15 seems more reasonable than 16 for many games).

M is 15 in Australia. MA15+ only exists because film distributors bitched up a storm about losing a lot of cash because of a lot of popular US Action films were getting slapped with R18+s.

 

[Weaver]

I still don't get why this is so difficult to do.
Poor Australia

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Seems like a fair deal tbh. Now can we have a date that's not before your handover?

 

[Zhukov]

I would be totally okay with that.

But only because I'm safely over the age of 18.

 

[RicoADF]

Wow. A politician who remembers that compromising is the best way to get things done. And one who also understands all the fact and how the real world works. After he's done in Australia, do you think we here in the U.S. can have him?
Sounds like Australian gamers finally have their knight in shining armor...or at least a page in practice armor.

Not to mention that IF the attorney generals dont come to a consensus then the federal gov is saying they will overrule them anyway in favour of it. I think hes realized saying no is going to get nowhere, so by trying to compromise he may get something achieved.

 

[UnSub]

This is a terrible option. If MA15+ gets dumped for R18+, as Rau is proposing, then overnight Mass Effect becomes only legal to buy if you are aged 18 and over.

Plus you need to check what the restrictions are around advertising R18+ titles are on a state-by-state basis. There's a chance that R18+ titles may have to be displayed separately, or put under the counter, or even wrapped in brown paper.

This isn't compromise. This is possibly ending up with a more restrictive option than we already have.

 

[Trogdor1138]

As much as the idea about abolishing MA is, I would rather have the R rating so there really is a distinct difference. This will cause a LOT of problems still though and I know they'll fuck it up.

While there are a lot of MA games that should be rated R, there will be a lot of R games that clearly only warrant an MA. This is still going to be a massive problem and I foresee a time when publishers will be wanting to cut down their games to make the M rating in fear of losing advertising and sales, same as the film industry.

Besides, it's unfair to the underage people who should be able to play some of these. Can they honestly not just be simple about this and treat it the same as their film/tv ratings? What the fuck is wrong with these guys?

 

[Nackl of Gilmed]

This isn't compromise. This is possibly ending up with a more restrictive option than we already have.

Well no, there's no way it could be more restrictive, because now there will be no need for games to be banned and censored. There might be less access for teenagers, and I would probably care more about that if I was still under 18, but it's definitely less restrictive.

It is still a bit silly, of course. Surely the MA15 rating became a crossover point between child-based and adult-based games because there WAS no rating for adult games. Still, it's probably a compromise for the sake of making at least some progress, as others have said.

 

[Goldeneye1989]

I.....i am happy with this. I think it should be G Pg R18 and Ma15. But i can compromise with this.

The reason for this is because that it can fit into one category or another. Debate over what is right to show kids and what isint is good. It people can reason for one topic and why they think they should have the right to see it then.... job done, you have shown them that this topic is debatable.

 

[Toeys]

get the feeling that nothing is allowed in australia.

now and then a show about the australian bordercontrol is shown on TV.. and i generally feel that the borderrules here in europe are hard enough, but after watching a couple of episodes about how it is in Australia i dont feel tempted to come for a visit.

theres nothing but speculation to support that violent videogames are harmful, atleast not to the minds of adults over 18+..

If it is so bad you should ban alcohol and smoking cigarettes as well, seeing as those are just as easy if not easier to get hold of for a minor

 

[ddq5]

Seem fine at first glance, pretty much identical MPAA film ratings (G, PG, PG13, and R [and NC-17 {but no one makes those }]). It may or may not pass over with the rest of the government, and then it may or may not work in practice, but it definitely looks like a step ahead.

 

[ultimateownage]

It makes sense to me, but I think if they were to do that it shouldn't be an R18. It should be of a similar effect but not so it's just the US system with the middle one missing. Compromise is more than cutting out something.

 

[Jumplion]

Sounds like a mostly reasonable deal, though I don't see why the MA15+ should be removed. The M rating in Australia is recomended for 15 year olds, right? So what would fall between R18+ and M? Maybe MA+15 could move up to 16, but I have no idea how the Australian board classifies games. So long as they finally introduce an R18+ rating it's all good.