Evil Attorney General Michael Atkinson is the man solely responsible for Australia having to pay more for less content. He is the man standing in the way of his country joining the real world and having an 18+ age rating, the lack of which has led to a number of games being heavily censored or outright banned. He doesn't think this is a problem though, because "imaginary worlds" aren't important.
"I am baffled and worried about why proponents of R.18+ games are putting up their hands and saying 'Give us more cruel sex and extreme violence!'," said the mollycoddling GA to a concerned gamer. "I cannot fathom what State-enforced safeguards could exist to prevent R.18+ games being bought by households with children and how children can be stopped from using these games once the games are in the home. If adult gamers are so keen to have R.18+ games, I expect children would be just as keen.
"... I think you will find this issue has little traction with my constituents who are more concerned with real-life issues than home entertainment in imaginary worlds."
It's amusing to note that Atkinson believes this issue is unimportant, yet also believes these "Imaginary worlds" are capable of so much damage that the public needs to be denied access to them. You better pull up your pants, Mr. Atkinson. Your double standards are showing.
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
1:40 PM on 11.16.2009
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Those games sound awesome!
Now if you'll excuse I have to go enjoy not being Australian now. Enjoy your censored games and killer ants Aussies.
The problem isn't retailers, or developers or publishers. It's parents who are ignorant to the medium. An average adult can look at a film case and tell nearly straight away if they want their child to watch it. With a video game they have no experience and nothing to compare it to.
While he's certainly going a little far, it's a valid problem.
somebody kill this guy for freedom. he's a traitor to his own land.
It sounds like someone doesn't know much about modern video game consoles, because they have filters on them to do exactly that.
He needs to be alerted that "children" do not need his protection nor are they asking for it. If they were asking for some they would go to their parents not the goddamn government.
When he is referencing "... I think you will find this issue has little traction with my constituents who are more concerned with real-life issues than home entertainment in imaginary worlds." He is talking about those individuals championing an 18+ rating. The current standard is that there is no rating and thus certain games cannot be sold in Australia. He is saying that his constituents are not interested such a rating, and as such having those game being on sale in Australia, and so he challenges his opponents to run someone in an election against him on the issue because they will fail.
Do you understand?
Okay, let me spell it out for you.
Atkinson. We don't want to have an 18+ rating in Australia, because we don't want those game in Australia.
Atkinson's constituents. Yeah! We agree!
Atkinson's opponents. We should have an 18+ rating in Australia.
Atkinson's response. If you feel that way, why don't you run a candidate against me in an election? While you are wasting your time trying to win them over on an 18+ rating, I'll spend my time on real world issues rather than championing the virtue of violent games.
Atkinson's constituents response. [to opponent of Atkinson] Umm... yeah. We really don't care about creating this new 18+ rating. K. Thanks. Bye.
Clear?
I'll just say this -- legal brothels.
The ESRB is BY FAR the most in depth, most accurate, and most specific rating system of ANY form of media out there.
Looking at the back of a game box tells you CLEARLY why the game has been rated so, spelling out if the game has realistic violence, sexual situations, etc.
Beyond that, going to the ESRB website gives you access to SPECIFIC reasons and scenes in the game that caused the specific rating.
The problem isn't that parents are uninformed, it's that they're too lazy to GET informed because the information is plain as day and only 30 of website viewing away.
@Deny Everything,
We all already know that.
Nothing about this post was misleading and everything you said was already obvious in the article.
Yes, I agree, while the information is completely available to the parents, it is still a relevant problem that they just don't give enough of a shit to understand the information being thrown at them.
Motherfucker probably read "Glugs of Gosh" and saw nothing more than silly words.
Enhance your calm man!
By which he wears an ass on his head.
He is more concerned with real life issues, but he is on a solid quest to ban all imaginary ones. If he were more concerned with real life issues, he wouldn't be doing this.
I guess he isn't torn up at all by the fact that their dollar is so high right now its pushing Hollywood productions out of their country because filming is just to expensive right now. That his government and country men aren't making as much money because of that.
I guess he doesn't care that its also happening to neighboring New Zealand?
People like him, who live in "Free nations", with "Freedom of Speech", really piss me right the fuck off, no matter what country they're from.
Thank you for being so starkly condescending. I would counter your major point by gesturing toward every other medium having rating systems which allow adult-oriented content to exist in mainstream.
You're arguing that he was elected specifically because of his stance on this issue, and only for this issue. He apparently stands for no other "real world" (har har, c-wut-i-did-thar) issues. If the public is truly demanding with their voting voice that this be the case, then why aren't they demanding that books, music, television, and movies have their respective "bad" content be removed from sale?
You've gone out of your way to infer that the commenters here don't understand how freedom of speech works, and I'll say as amicably as I can that I think your assertion that a government limiting which content can be viewed reflects this freedom is not only wrong, but despicable. If a majority voted to abolish a representative republic, the second that vote is put into action, that nation ceases to follow the voice of its people. The protection of freedoms works both ways with citizens and their leaders.
A more realistic view of what's happening is that he has been elected for any of a spectrum of political and social views he espoused in his campaigning, and this more extreme view slipped through the process.
"I am baffled and worried about why proponents of R.18+ games are putting up their hands and saying 'Give us more cruel sex and extreme violence!'," said the mollycoddling GA to a concerned gamer. "I cannot fathom what State-enforced safeguards could exist to prevent R.18+ games being bought from my household with my children and how my children can be stopped from using these games once the games are in the home. If adult gamers are so keen to have R.18+ games, I expect my children would be just as keen.
"... I think you will find this issue has little traction with my constituents who are more concerned with real-life issues than home entertainment in imaginary worlds."
We don't have porn at 5pm.
They're called 'arthouse' films.
i dont know what happened to this guy in his teen years, was he deprived of videogames, was he trapped in a piball machine..
if i see him im gonna throw my GTA4 import copy on his face
One word. SHOCKED. This kids parents must do their job!
Then he left and we played a few hours of MW2.