Remember those stupid ‘Gambling Starts With Games’ ads that the South Australian government thought were a good idea to curb child gambling? Turns out the SA Government will change them to something less idiotic after the local gaming industry cracked the mega-feels.
Above are the offensive ads in question, which we first said was completely misguided and demonised gamers.
GAMBLING STARTS WITH GAMES
That’s the slogan on the ad, written in big ugly bold letters, above a young girl with pigtails, sitting at a poker table with what is clearly an original iPad. The insinuation is that now in her impressionable youth she’s playing a game with simulated gambling, which means that she’ll become a future gambling addict when she reaches adulthood.
Shocking logic leaps aside, the ad demonises games and gamers alike, especially those who encourage their kids to play games.
The IGEA demanded that the ads be pulled down, and now the South Australian government has complied, changing the campaign material from the stupid slogan and replacing it with:
GAMBLING IS NO GAME
You could read that this still infers a ridiculous link between gaming and gambling, but only if you squint.
The full changes to the campaign, as well as the new ads, can be seen on Kotaku.