Australia's first R18+ game is... Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge.
Australia's notorious for its stringent treatment of videogames. Previously, any game rated higher than M15+ by the Australian Classification Board would get the boot from the country, forcing Australian gamers to find alternative avenues to get their hands on mature-rated games. There was controversy over Bethesda's Fallout 3, as the country originally banned the game for encouraging drug use, forcing the developers to change morphine to stimpaks.
Back in June 2012, the Australian Parliament passed legislation allowing R18+ games to reach the country's shores. However, the legislation was only recently enacted after New Years' Day, and only in select parts of the nation, as some territories have yet to approve it. Ironically enough, the first R18+ game approved by the Classification Board for the country was Ninja Gaiden III: Razor's Edge, which is published by kid-friendly Nintendo.
According to Classification Board director Lesley O'Brien, Razor's Edge earned the R18+ rating for "violence that is high in impact because of its frequency, high definition graphics, and emphasis on blood effects."
Ninja Gaiden III: Razor's Edge has already launched in the U.S. and Japan as Wii U launch titles and just launched in Europe today. The game's Australian release date is still to be determined.
Even though the average age is now over 30, the previous rules basically treated everyone as if they were 15. If it's too violent for a 15 y.o. then it's the same for everyone over 18. This might of worked in the 1990's when video games were targeted at kids but unlike the religious people who opposed this change, those kids grew up.
Well, when you're the new kid on the block on the entertainment scene, you're going to get the short end of the stick on being scrutinized.
Movies were treated no differently not too long ago.
So, all things in good time.
My bad...
Banning 18+ videogames is like banning the sales of condom/porno throughout the country.
these religion minded politician need their brain checked.
No where near as bad as it's made out to be. Worst thing about living here is the markup we pay for everything..
At least we don't have psychos shooting up primary shools and high schools every other week, and every idiot running around with automatic high powered firearms. I'd much rather have poisonous critters.
Okay...you have a point. ...sort of....
Remind me not to end up in an Australian hospital then if the government disapproves of morphine for pain relief.
Its just backward enough to appreciate what you have lost.
Hopefully this isn't the last R18 game for you guys.