Michael Atkinson falls on his own sword and resigns from the front bench
March 21, 2010
Many weeks ago on a Geek Actually Podcast episode I said that we needed patience and sooner or later Michael Atkinson, the South Australian Attorney-General, would either be voted out or give up the fight. I was ridiculed by the chat room, they said that he was in a safe seat and he would be around forever. I tried to counter this with the Prime Minister John Howard example from 2007. John Howard was in one of the safest Liberal Party seats in the country, not only did he lose the election but he was so unpopular at the time, he also lost his seat in parliament.
Ha! The South Australian State Elections just took place and Michael Atkinson, although not voted out, has resigned from the front bench. Patience is a virtue my friends. He claims that the new Government has a majority of one and he didn’t want his controversial ideals to make waves for the re-elected Labour Government. This is probably the most reasonable and responsible act I have ever seen him make. Michael Atkinson will remain in Parliament, but he will stay on the back bench.
Now that Mr. Atkinson is no longer that states Attorney-General we might actually get an intelligent debate on the R18+ rating for games issue.
Goodbye Attorney-General Michael Atkinson, you will not be missed.
To read more read this article on AdelaideNOW
Help Support an R18+ Rating for Games – Here’s How
March 2, 2010
Our friends over at PALGN are running a campaign (in conjunction with Game – the gaming retail stores) to help usher in an R18+ rating for games. If you have been living under a rock and don’t know what this is all about, click here or here to learn more.
Many retailers and sites are helping to bring awareness to this issue but I particularly like the PALGN/Game approach. Instead of abusing the government or trying to convince people that gamers are mostly adults (true, but it is a hard sell to change perceptions) they are using the logic that some games (like movies) are not for children and we need to protect the children by bringing in an appropriate rating. To quote their site, everyoneplays.org.au:
“Some games are played by everyone, but some are only meant for those over 18.
Australia does not have an R18+ PC and video game classification. An R18+ classification will allow adults the freedom of choice to play games with mature content; and help ensure that mature themed games are not rated MA15+ under any circumstances.The Video Games Industry and the general public support an R18+ classificaiton rating.
We need to ensure that support for an R18+ classification remains top-of-mind for Censorship Ministers around the country.
Protect children from mature themed games.
Together – we can fix it.”
The discussion paper on this topic that is currently before the government has now been closed (as of February 28th 2010) to the public, however this issue still has a long way to go and if stop being vocal on this issue, you will be forgotten and swept under the mat.
We here at Geek Actually wholly support the R18+ rating for games and we encourage you to visit the PALGN page http://palgn.com.au/16060/palgn-everyoneplays-and-game-join-forces/ and the http://www.everyoneplays.org.au/ page for more information on how you can help and have your voice heard.
You will also be hearing about this program and issue across all of the Geek Actually podcasts over the next couple of weeks.
One last note: If we are going to successfully bring in this rating, we need to keep cool, logical minds. Rational argument is what will win. Getting loud and obnoxious or calling out abusive and threatening things to the government or Michael Atkinson does not help the cause and really only solidifies their misconceptions about gamers. We need this rating to bring us in line with the rest of the western world.
Go to a Game store and enter your opinion their by clicking the picture below.
Australia Needs an R18+ Rating for Games Now – You Need To Get Involved
February 5, 2010
We here at Geek Actually rant on about censorship issues constantly, one of these issues is the lack of an R18+ rating for games in Australia. The lack of this rating is leading to many games being refused classification (or banned in other terminology) so it is a serious censorship issue. Well, our friends over at Game Pron (hi, Jessica) have put up a wonderful post all about the discussion paper that was released recently and what they are doing. We have discussed the discussion paper before on the podcast and on this blog, Game Pron has even more information. Go to their page by clicking here now.
South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson Speaks
November 17, 2009
Kotaku has a very interesting letter online. South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson was sent a letter by one of their readers (Robert) earlier this year asking about the R18+ rating for games in Australia. He was recently sent a reply from Mr. Atkinson and Kotaku has it.
If you follow the link above you can read highlights from Mr. Atkinson’s letter, however I suggest you read the whole letter for full impact. You can download the scan of the letter here in PDF format.
Some of the juicier highlights include:
“What the present law does is keep the most extreme material off the shelves. It is true that this restricts adult liberty to a small degree, however, I am prepared to accept this infringement in the circumstances.”
I don’t know about you but I am not prepared to accept this infringement. Another highlight is:
“Classification of electronic games is very different from the classification of film. In cinemas, the age of movie-goers can be regulated… Rising game and console sales make it clear that this is a growing area that needs careful regulation, even more so than cinemas and private D.V.D. hire and purchase. Access to electronic games, once in the home, cannot be policed and therefore the games are easily accesible to children.”
Do you think anyone has told the OFLC this? Games carry the same classification system as movies and if you download the guidelines from the OFLC, games and movies are referred to side by side. His argument is flawed because what stops a child from watching the R18+ DVD once it is in the home? Once again I come back to the same argument that I always stand by, hold the parents accountable! Once it is in the home it is the parent’s responsibility to protect their children, not the government’s.
We will discuss this letter in the Geek Actually Podcast this week (ep 61 21st Nov 2009). I’d love to hear what you think about it, comment below.
Is Left 4 Dead 2 Coming to Australia?
October 8, 2009
Okay I am going to start by saying that I have no hard facts yet. However, that being stated, it looks like Valve’s Left 4 Dead 2 might get an Australian release with an MA15+ rating.
Now before we start cheering, we don’t know if it is an edited version or the uncut version. The only real information we have at this point comes from kotaku.com but a little birdie (that will remain nameless at this time) has told me this from another source as well.
I will keep my eye on the major news sources and report if I see any real hard news about this surfaces.
In the meantime, we really do need to keep up the effort to bring in an R18+ rating for games to Australia so this doesn’t happen again. Write to your state’s Attorney General and tell him that you want an R18+ rating brought in to effect in Australia. This is particularly important if you live in South Australia as it is your Attorney General who is keeping the R18+ classification from being brought forward. If enough people get involved we might be able to bring about change.
Holy Crap, Left 4 Dead 2 Banned in Australia!
September 17, 2009
My sister (and occasional co-host) Sarah will be shattered at the news that Valve’s new game ‘Left 4 Dead 2′ has been refused classification (RC) in Australia. This means, for all intents and purposes, the game is banned in Australia.
I was alerted to this from an email from one of my listeners (Brad over at MovieFanHouse) and immediately went to work to confirm this. The best article I found (there are many) was on gamespot.com.au. I am reposting some of their article here. To read the full article click the link:
Left 4 Dead 2 was slated for a mid-November local release, but events today have put a giant question mark over the launch after news came that the Australian Classification Board had put its legislative foot down. The Classification Board is the government body responsible for rating all video games content authorised for sales in the country. According to the Classification Board website, Valve’s upcoming first-person shooter has been refused classification for failure to adhere to the current maximum MA 15+ ratings guideline–film can reach a maximum R18+ rating. The announcement means the title is now illegal to sell, rent, or promote within Australia.
They went on to say:
Left 4 Dead 2 marks the fourth game banned in Australia this year, joining Risen, Sexy Poker, and Necrovision–the latter two of which were approved for sale after being resubmitted with changes. The original Left 4 Dead game was given the maximum MA 15+ rating when it went on sale in Australia in November last year.
They then had this update:
GameSpot AU has received the official ruling from the Classification Board. The refusal largely focuses on the Board’s interpretation of the game’s violence finding that “The game contains realistic, frenetic and unrelenting violence which is inflicted upon “the Infected” who are living humans infected with a rabies-like virus that causes them to act violently” The ruling goes on to say that “However, it is the use of the “melee” weapons such as the crowbar, axe, chainsaw and Samurai sword which inflict the most damage. These close in attacks cause copious amounts of blood spray and splatter, decapitations and limb dismemberment as well as locational damage where contact is made to the enemy which may reveal skeletal bits and gore.”
Go to gamespot.com.au to read the whole article. This all leads to the major question that we raise all the time here at Geek Actually, why don’t we have an R15+ rating on games here in Australia. I have talked about this often on the show and even wrote a long blog on this awhile ago. You can read that post here.
What are your thoughts on this? Comment below or come over to the forum to discuss. Click here for the forum thread.
Geek Thoughts: Will Wii drop its price now?
August 31, 2009
The last two weeks bring some interesting developments in the console wars.
Ps3 finally coming out with both its price drop and also its slim model in one
swift and powerful blow, finally we see the titan of the previous generation pull its special move out and force the whole industry to adapt.
So, then we see the rest begin to fall into line… Microsoft announces its own counter attack with their elite console dropping a further 100 dollars(aus$) bringing their top of the range console to Ps3’s level and removing its 60gb model from production. This leaves one competitor unchanged so far.. Nintendo.. With its long standing placing at the top of the pile it begs the question…How long can they stay strong? Will they react aggressively to this news?
Well, speculation is high and in my opinion they can not maintain its price tag for long even with its hold tightly on the social market. I honestly believe that before the November – Christmas push we will see a drop of 50 to a 100 Australian dollars otherwise we may see the motion master topple and fall from its pedestal..
well its a thought anyway..
Thoughts people?
http://geekactually.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=42&sid=c9fb18937891b4a73c4c939b78de7c38
PS3 Firmware Update 3.0 coming…
August 25, 2009
It’s a nice update from what I have seen and will make it easier for us to navigate through and find out ‘Whats New’ for Playstation. Also they added more avatar pics to choose from yay?.. But what I like the most was the new dynamic themes which are being made by companies like ‘Media Molecule’ who did ‘Little Big Planet’. It’s cool having sackboy running around a planet while your going through the XMB .
For more info check out the vid.
Geek News: Ps3 Slim announced! Ps3 Price Drop!!
August 19, 2009
Today rumours have been confirmed that the ps3 is being re-released, we had suspected this for a while as stocks had been shrinking and sony had been as typically quiet as they usually are before a big announcement.
Ps3 slim will be hitting Australian markets on the 3rd of september.
PS3 SLIM:
- 120GB hdd
- 32% smaller
- 36% lighter
- 34% less power usage
But the best is yet to come! The price has been confirmed to be Aus$499!!
This is great news and exactly was sony needs to push their hold on the games market, with this move microsoft may need to do some serious thoughts as to hardware/price change.
For Techheads the ps3 slim will not have linux support.
Thoughts ?
http://geekactually.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=25&sid=c08cfda0123413468f35e358680b7b67
The Force Unleashed – Again
July 26, 2009
The Little Geek was visiting YouTube and came across this trailer for a sequel to the Lucasarts game, The Force Unleashed. The new game, The Force Unleashed: Ultimate Sith, is a “what if” story focusing on the concept of the Sith being the winners. This looks hot and I will be eagerly waiting for this. Check out the trailer below:
