Australia has taken a lot of flak over their lack of an 18+ rating category within their OFLC age rating system for games. Without one, mature rated titles literally cannot be sold in retail stores without significant content changes. Comments from industry insiders about this situation have generally been less than civil.
EA Games Label Head Frank Gibeau has written a decidedly level-headed response on the topic in a GI.biz editorial. In it, he urges the government to consider that “the average age of a gamer is 28.”
“At EA we are committed to the belief that adult consumers can have responsibility for their entertainment choices,” Gibeau writes. “Just as a grown up can decide to see a film or read a book with mature themes, so should he or she be entitled to choose the same in interactive entertainment.”
He cautions the government on censorship, saying that “government policies that don’t allow for the rating of mature content in videogames effectively censor entertainment choices for adults. These policies show a poor understanding of today's videogaming audience. “
He later outright calls their legislation censorship: “A government policy that keeps our mature games out of stores and forces developers to rewrite code is censorship. It also forces lesser quality games into that marketplace, often stripped of their intended content and features. What will be next? Will adults be forced to see edited versions of mature films? Read books with certain chapters removed?”
“As policy measures increase restrictions on available content, so too will consumers increase the practice of parallel imports from neighboring or same-language markets, depriving their home country economy of the associated industry revenue,” says Gibeau, warning the government that they could lose revenue to software importing and developer investment. “As the Australian government moves to participate in the economy of the global gaming market, policy makers should consider the environment they create for game makers. Governments that design policies hostile to game developers and their creative medium will struggle to attract investment from the global industry. The global gaming industry is robust and growing faster than any other entertainment medium. It has already largely surpassed cinema and music. If Australia seeks to benefit from this tremendous creative and economic opportunity, its policies should reflect an understanding of the marketplace and a willingness to participate."
Gibeau also lets the government know that the industry is on their side when it comes to protecting younger gamers from inappropriate content. “We are committed to robust, easy- to-understand age rating systems designed to help people make appropriate content choices for the right age groups; the OFLC in Australia, the ESRB in North America, PEGI in Europe, CERO in Japan,” writes Gibeau. “These systems have been proven as the most efficient way to protect children from inappropriate content and offer parents the right set of information about a game through a recommended age rating, and on-pack information and icons to illustrate themes present within the content of the game.”
The industry as a whole stands hopeful that the Australian government will vote for an 18+ rating at the next general session of the Attorney Generals. “The implementation of a new 18+ age rating classification is the right step for consumers, and for the industry, in Australia,” Gibeau concludes.
1 Comments
May 10, 2010
Now that Atkinson is gone, there's a good chance it will go through soon regardless of what anyone says from this point forward. Wouldn't surprise me if they don't vote on it at the next session in order to help save face.
Whilst I appreciate Gibeau's effort, its not like these arguments have never been coherently and level-headedly put before. Still, I suppose it pays to be persistent and not let it fall off the agenda.