Bethesda vice president of marketing Peter Hines has decided to clear the air regarding the banning and subsequent unbanning of Fallout 3 in Australia over what their governing body called an improper in-game use of the prescription drug “morphine.” The body, the Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification, bans games on the basis of “promoting or encouraging proscribed drug use.”
After the initial ban, Hines related that Bethesda removed the prescription drug name from Fallout 3 universally, and replaced it with a fictional drug. He said that it was an attempt to “avoid confusion among people in different territories.” After replacing the famous painkiller’s name with a bogus name, the game was rated by the OFLC without an issue.
Hines brings up this fact because he feels that a “misconception” has been perpetuated by the media surrounding this issue. He wants to make sure that consumers realize that every version of Fallout 3 is the same. Also, to make sure that every region has the same experience, Hines and his team at Bethesda developed a new universal language. This language, while new and relatively uncharted, is easily learned in minutes if you buy their software.
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Contest:
10:12 PM on 09.09.2008
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Oh it was worse for me, after failing to get the book banned at my elementary school, some psycho christian conservative mom made it so we couldn't watch the Harry Potter movie in School...ever.
Australia is the worlds largest producer of morphine for medical purposes.
But to censorship, it is.
They shouldnt HAVE to fucking change the names to happy numby numb or whatever the fuck they are now. Yes the original Fallout games had those names, but did Bethseda name them that in Fallout 3? No, they fucking didn't, and now they have to.
Stop undermining the act just because it isn't "controversial".
Hey dude, fuck you. Direct you trolling to our classification board, not us.
It's simple - if drugs are defined as being fantastic wonderful things and are given correct naming (such as in Fallout) then with Australia this earns you an R rating. Thanks to one particular clown in SA we're being cock blocked for an R rating. The OFLC doesn't have a choice because that MAKES it an R rating. They're not masterminding some massive conspiracy. I'm sure the violence is so barely under R rating (or more likely they let it slide which is why we desperately need an R rating.
As for cases like Max Payne or Half Life and drug usage...all I can suggest is they get around on technicalities. Also in regards to violence and drugs...need I remind anyone here that in the US the stance on nudity. (See Witcher censorship and Fahrenheit).
Still fucked off with most of you american fuck heads in the Destructoid community telling every australian to get fucked because our government hasn't put in a R18+ rating, thus blocking that little bit more freedom that the OFLC should be allowed to have already.
The point is, the drug name change has absolutely NO affect on the games playability, story, ANYTHING. DOES NOT AFFECT IT so fucking get over it you emo fuck heads.
^^^^^^
This is the man to be angry with, not Australia or the Classification Board (formerly OFLC). This man denied Australia the benefits of an R18+ rating.
I can't wait for Fallout 3!
Morphine = bad
Shotgunning old ladies heads of = fine
.........just saying
Wow, you must need some morphine.
Also, this is one of the most pointless cases of censorship I've heard about in a while. And it doesn't set a great precedent, either. Just one country's silly law is affecting how the game will be released world-wide. I don't like it one bit.
Also Morphine isn't the prescription name it's the chemical name. prescription names for it would be like Roxanol, Avinza, Oramorph SR, MSIR, MS Contin, Rescudose, Kadian
:)
The whole thing is retarded anyway. There are drugs just as dangerous in bathroom sink cabinets everywhere anyway. All they should have done to stay responsible is to make sure the addictiveness of the drug is accurately articulated if they're going to call it Morphine. That's it.
Bethesda are choosing to censor the game themselves. Take it up with them, or the OFLC. I have zero opposition to the game needing an R18+ rating due to how it fictionalises the use of a prescription drug. I have a major problem with the lack of an R18+ rating, however.