At the moment though, they’re still not in the running – they need to register as a political party first, and to do that they need 150 members who are over 18, enrolled to vote and live in South Australia to sign up. Fortunately, the guy behind the party, David Doe, is going to be down at Rundle Mall between 5:30 and 6:30 pm today gathering signatures. If you’re in SA, and want to actively try and combat Australia’s backwards classification strategy, you should probably get down there.

You should also check Kotaku later this morning for an exclusive interview with David Doe.

UPDATE: Interview’s now live here.

[Kotaku]

For those of you who haven’t yet caught episode two of Byteside, last week’s games show tackled the whole R18+ rating debate. What made the discussion really worth mentioning however was the inclusion on the panel of Paul Hunt, former Deputy Director of the OFLC. You know, the guys who actually ban games.

While you should definitely watch the entire show over at Byteside’s website, this clip is one of the better discussions on the topic I’ve heard/seen/read/been a part of. Especially to know how awkward a position we are here in Australia. Check it out.

[Byteside]

South Australian Attourney General Michael Atkinson has publicly stated to David over at Kotaku that one of the biggest reasons he’s against an R18+ rating is because he doesn’t feel that the OFLC is capable of appropriately managing explicit adult content in the gaming medium. It’s an argument he reiterated to Gamespot AU: “I am critical of the OFLC [the Classification Board of Australia]. I believe it bends over backwards for the industry rather than the public interest.”

Therefore, it’s not unrealistic to assume that for an adult rating for gamers to be introduced, there would need to be some changes to the OFLC in order to get Atkinson’s tick of approval, which will be needed for the ratings system to be changed. And that is probably something you’ll want to consider when you’re commenting publicly on the discussion paper when it’s released.

There’s a lot of passion in this debate – particularly on the side of the gamers – but it’s important to remember that passion won’t get you very far in politics. You need to be intelligent and logical… In other words, don’t bother commenting on the paper if you’re just going to go on a rant about shooting hookers in virtual life compared to not shooting them in your real life. It won’t help the cause, and considering the freedoms that are at stake hear for both the people who create the games and the adults who wish to play them, staying focused on the cause is paramount.

Head on over to Gamespot to read their coverage of the announcement – it offers a lot of good insight into the current situation.

[Gamespot AU]

Atkinson also revealed to Kotaku the reasons why the proposed discussion paper on the issue has been delayed for the past year. Kotaku had heard previously that it was Atkinson himself who had failed to deliver his feedback on the draft paper set for public consultation. But the minister now accuses his fellow Attorneys-General of stalling over proposed changes to the paper.

One thing you can’t accuse the minister of is failing to engage the issue, as he also took time to respond to a host of Kotaku reader comments. While some may accuse him of “trolling”, it’s refreshing to see a state politician willing to dive into the debate.

I would welcome a challenge in Croydon at the next general election (due in March 2010) about my record on censorship. Any reader who would like to challenge me should write to me c/- 488 Port Road, Welland 5007 and I will send him or her a nomination form to stand for Parliament.
Alas, one cannot stand for Parliament anonymously, so any contenders will have to supply a real name and street address, not a pseudonym and an email address.

Mr Atkinson, while I’m sure plenty of people would love to see you voted out in order to bring sanity back to the argument of classification in this country, it’s never going to happen and you know it, at least not off the back of this issue. What we want is for you to address the issues that have been raised in the quest for an appropriate rating for adult material, rather than blindly hiding behind the catch-all phrase that you’re “protecting the children”.

Still, if anyone is game to take on the Attourney General, or wants to read his letter in full, head on over to Kotaku for more details.

[Kotaku AU]

In fact, he’s so stoic against the criticism he’s received, it’s like he’s not really a politician at all, but an unsung Australian superhero, using his disproportionate level of Government powers for the advancement of the society he’d like to live in. A world where every game is Wii Sports and nobody has to make decisions that influence the lives of adults or children but him alone. You almost have to admire him…

Oh, wait. No you don’t. Stop being a douche, Atkinson and give us an R18+ Rating. I’m sick of being treated like a child, while you claim a moral highground and inadvertently cause more harm than good.

[The Age via Kotaku]

Back in March, he agreed in principle to the idea of a discussion paper and public consultation, which would provide a wide selection of research and opinions on the issue. While it wouldn’t actually mean the new rating would be introduced, it at least meant that the issue was on the table for discussion, and there was hope for adult gamers across the country. Now that hope has been dashed by Atkinson’s refusal to even support the research, meaning any official discussion has also been shelved.

Considering that all six of the other AGs support the discussion part, if not the introduction of the R18+ rating itself, how can we truly call ourselves a democracy when one narrow-minded, outdated man can ignore the facts and enforce his personal opinions on a nation? Especially when that opinion leaves us drowning in a tide of stupidity while the rest of the developed world looks down at us from the comfort of their deckchairs on the beach of common sense?

I don’t know enough about politics to understand what processes need to occur to bring it about, but the simple fact is that the system needs to change. No one man should have the power to hold the country to ransom.

[Screenplay via Kotaku]

The survey was conducted across 1600 households and involved more than 75 questions in a 20 minute survey. Among the other findings are that 66 per cent of adults aren’t aware that there isn’t an R18+ rating for video games, and 91 per cent of both gamers and non-gamers believe that the rating should be introduced.

It also found that gaming is a social, family pastime, with 70 per cent of parents in a gaming household playing games and 80 per cent of those playing with their kids.Some of the other key findings:
*The average adult gamer has been playing for 11 years.
*The average game play session is one hour.
*Older players mainly use PCs and play Board/Card, Puzzle and Strategy games.
*Younger gamers and young adults make up the bulk of handheld and console game device users and prefer Action, Racing, and Adventure games.
*The Australian computer games industry is growing at more than 15 per cent
per year and conducted sales of AUD1.3 billion in 2007 according to GfK point of sale data.
*17 per cent of adults in game households admit to having pirated games in their collections with nearly 10 per cent of all games in Australian homes being illegal copies.

The author of the report, Dr Jeffrey Brand from Bond University, perhaps summed up the R18+ shamozzle best when he said:

“78 per cent of parents stated that an adult is present when games are purchased and 92 per cent of parents are aware of what games are played in their house.

“The proposed R18+ classification for computer and video games will not result in the availability of games containing excessive violence or explicit sex. Material within the R18+ classification would be strictly in line with permissible content as set out in the classification guidelines.”

And that guy’s a doctor. What evidence do you base your opinions on, Mr Atkinson?

A full copy of the report is available from the IEAA website.
[IEAA]

Among the most revealing bits of information are that customs can seize any items contravening regulation (like an game refused classification) and you could be fined up to $110,000; that they board doesn’t actually play the games that they classify; and exactly what the reasoning was behind Fallout 3 being refused classification.

It’s an insightful read, even if it doesn’t alleviate the frustration at a flawed system. Make sure you check it out.

[Kotaku AU]

You see, Logan over at Kotaku got pointed in the direction of this clips from ABC program Q&A. It’s a fairly new show that lets people in the audience ask questions of politicians and their kind about topical current events.

As you can see from the video, the topic in question here is the need for an R18+ rating for games in Australia. What spews forth from the politicians’ mouths is something many would find more offensive than any super-violent game – total ignorance. This wouldn’t be so bad if they admitted they weren’t in a position to make any kind of judgment, but instead most of them used it as an opportunity to propagate their own beliefs and opinions without a passing consideration for the facts.Of course, matters weren’t helped by the discussion being started on a misinterpretation of the recently refused game Fallout 3. The gent who asked the question (who gets FULL credit for asking it, by the way) obviously wasn’t familiar with the reason the game was refused classification, as he agreed with the host’s summary that the game lets the character “self-inject intravenous drugs so that they can kill more people”.

In any case, the conversation moves on from there, and instead of addressing the real issue – that adults should have the right to choose what games that they play and more responsibility should be placed on the parents of children to restrict inappropriate content – most of the members of the panel merely announced that restricting content that will negatively effect others makes sense, and by making up examples to suit their argument.

It’s enough to make you want to run out, carjack some helpless old grandmother, drive past the ABC studios as the next session of Q&A finishes filming and pepper all their bodies with bullets from a submachine gun out the window as you drive past, all while injecting myself with morphine so I can kill more politicians.

Oh, wait. No it doesn’t.

Because no matter how many violent video games I play now, as an adult, I was fortunate enough to have parents who educated me on both right and wrong and the difference between my imagination and real life.

The politicians need to wake up and realise that it’s not their role to raise children – that job falls to the parents. And the fact that they think they can decide what’s appropriate content for an adult shows that they firmly believe that they’re parenting not just the kids, but the grown ups too.

[Kotaku AU]