Aliens vs. Predator unbanned in Australia

*The Deadman* · 12-20-2009, 01:04 PM

Sega and Rebellion's ratings saga for Aliens vs. Predator has come to a close on a positive note for gamers. Australia's Classification Review Board today reversed an earlier decision to ban the game, giving it an MA15+ rating with no content to be changed or removed.

Humans actually came out on top for this one.

The Rebellion-developed game for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC was initially refused classification at the beginning of December for high-impact violence. The board's ruling report stated: "The game contains first-person perspective, close-up depictions of human characters being subjected to various types of violence, including explicit decapitation and dismemberment, as well as locational damage, such as stabbing through the chest, mouth, throat, or eyes."
Following the ban, developer Rebellion made a statement claiming it would not release a "sanitized or cut-down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices."
Sega appealed the initial Classification Board ruling and today was successful in getting the game past the Aussie censors, making it legal to sell down under upon its release.
"It is with great pleasure that we announce the success of our appeal," said Darren Macbeth, managing director of Sega Australia. "We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever. This is a big win for Australian gamers. We applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians."
Aliens vs. Predator will be released in February 2010.

**ThirdMarioBro** · 12-20-2009, 05:29 PM

Yay, a crappy game made its way to the censorship hell that is Australia because nobody is going to buy it anyway. There is not enough money on Earth that could make me want to live in that hell-hole.

*Brodie* · 12-20-2009, 10:29 PM

Crappy game? I'm sorry, this coming from the guy who still thinks Gears of War multiplayer is the end-all-be-all of Multiplayer means nothing.

The important thing from this isn't the game itself, but the fact that the developer put their foot down about something and it worked out. Are you too thick to see that?

Also, AVP looks awesome.

*The Deadman* · 12-22-2009, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThirdMarioBro

Yay, a crappy game made its way to the censorship hell that is Australia because nobody is going to buy it anyway. There is not enough money on Earth that could make me want to live in that hell-hole.

more importantly, why did you have to take a shot at Australia?

~~AquaParade~~ · 12-26-2009, 12:27 PM

This is great for our friends down under, as they are always getting screwed when it comes to videogame censorship. I personally have some hope for AVP, and am looking forward to it, although I'm aware that the company hasn't done much good in the last decade.

Ra · 12-26-2009, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThirdMarioBro

Yay, a crappy game made its way to the censorship hell that is Australia because nobody is going to buy it anyway. There is not enough money on Earth that could make me want to live in that hell-hole.

...I live here...

I'm just happy that something made it past censorship. It's, like, a rarity. I don't really want to play Aliens vs. Predator, but hey. No matter if the game sucks or not, at least it's something. Hell, maybe Left4Dead2 might be unbanned one day so everyone doesn't have to do all these crazy backflips in order to get the uncensored version...

Highly unlikely though, but hey. It's not often something gets unbanned here. This is a cause of celebration.

12-20-2009, 01:04 PM	#1
The Deadman Foot Elite Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Maryland Posts: 4,170	Aliens vs. Predator unbanned in Australia Sega and Rebellion's ratings saga for Aliens vs. Predator has come to a close on a positive note for gamers. Australia's Classification Review Board today reversed an earlier decision to ban the game, giving it an MA15+ rating with no content to be changed or removed. Humans actually came out on top for this one. The Rebellion-developed game for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC was initially refused classification at the beginning of December for high-impact violence. The board's ruling report stated: "The game contains first-person perspective, close-up depictions of human characters being subjected to various types of violence, including explicit decapitation and dismemberment, as well as locational damage, such as stabbing through the chest, mouth, throat, or eyes." Following the ban, developer Rebellion made a statement claiming it would not release a "sanitized or cut-down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices." Sega appealed the initial Classification Board ruling and today was successful in getting the game past the Aussie censors, making it legal to sell down under upon its release. "It is with great pleasure that we announce the success of our appeal," said Darren Macbeth, managing director of Sega Australia. "We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever. This is a big win for Australian gamers. We applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians." Aliens vs. Predator will be released in February 2010. __________________ Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/Dead2009/ Backloggd: https://backloggd.com/u/Dead2009/ Dropkickd: https://www.dropkickd.com/user/Dead2009

12-20-2009, 05:29 PM	#2
ThirdMarioBro Tea Time! Join Date: Feb 2003 Posts: 8,905	Yay, a crappy game made its way to the censorship hell that is Australia because nobody is going to buy it anyway. There is not enough money on Earth that could make me want to live in that hell-hole. __________________

12-20-2009, 10:29 PM	#3
Brodie Certified Teacher Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Bizarro Metropolis Posts: 6,495	Crappy game? I'm sorry, this coming from the guy who still thinks Gears of War multiplayer is the end-all-be-all of Multiplayer means nothing. The important thing from this isn't the game itself, but the fact that the developer put their foot down about something and it worked out. Are you too thick to see that? Also, AVP looks awesome. __________________ Stupendous Monster

12-26-2009, 12:27 PM	#5
~~AquaParade~~ Banned Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 8,450	This is great for our friends down under, as they are always getting screwed when it comes to videogame censorship. I personally have some hope for AVP, and am looking forward to it, although I'm aware that the company hasn't done much good in the last decade.