Some might recall my last blog post about my disgust about the lack of knowledge and respect towards the gaming industry, especially on the lack of an R18+ rating (which many of you shared my outrage). I made special mention of the deafening silence of both the Game Developer Association of Australia and the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia, which gave the impression that they aren't doing enough to educate our politicians and law makers about our beloved medium.

Then, Tom Crago, CEO of Tantalus and president of the GDAA, spoke up about the issue.

Say what you will about Crago's company (I don't think highly of it), but his words are a good sign. I'm glad he is willing to fight for acceptance and justice for our freedom of expression. However, having the president of one of Australia's top game industry bodies post a blog on the ABC website isn't the solution. What I pose onto Crago and the rest of the gaming industry is to educate the general public of the issue, of the inconsistencies in classifications (drugs are bad in Fallout 3, but fine in Medal of Honour: Pacific Assault and Max Payne) and the sheer ignorance their elected officials have on the medium.

The GDAA and IEAA must work together with our game publishers, distributors and retailers to have a national advertising campaign breaching all forms of advertisement. The Attorney Generals of both State and Federal level are working on a method to get a public decision on the inclusion of the R18+ rating, so there has never been a better time to get people enlightened on the ridicule that our games industry has faced from the apathetic and ignorant attitudes of conservative politicians.

So, fellow Dtoiders, do you agree with my proposal? If so, is there anything you would like to add to it? If not, what would be a better way to get the wheels turning?

Links:

GDAA: http://www.gdaa.com.au/
IEAA: http://www.ieaa.com.au/
Office of Film and Literature Classification (Australia): http://www.oflc.gov.au/