Plenty to talk about, as the guys discuss Cities Skylines 2, The Elder Scrolls 6, Phil Spencer’s old emails, the Steam Deck 2 and The Division 3. However, the main focus of discussion lies in the Nintendo Direct, PlayStation State of Play and Xbox Tokyo Game Show conference and what to expect in the future.
The news otherwise features:
Let us know what you think.
This week’s gaming podcast, we’ve got 3DS coverage and we’re going to make sure you know it all before you guy. What are you getting, what’s the 3DS slider do? Why do you want this thing? Find out here! This weeks news:
So, now you know everything you need to about the 3DS, really want one? Don’t have to answer that, but… Question of the Week: Are there any games you enjoy that require physical exertion?
This week’s episode has no Gaming Flashback, but there is a lot of talk about how awesome the Good Old Games digital store is.
The week’s news items include:
Let us know what you think.
A new draft of the R18+ classification has been released by home minister Brendan O’Connor through the Australian Federal Government. The new guidelines closely match those in place for Australia’s film industry. The new R18+ rating removes restrictions on bad language, drug use and nudity; in contrast, the current guidelines forbade the classification of any adult-themed games.
O’Connor’s draft claims that the R18+ rating will allow “virtually no restrictions on the treatment of themes”, and violence in games “except where it offends against the standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults to the extent that it should not be classified.” As far as sex, the draft says, “Sexual activity may be realistically simulated. The general rule is ‘simulation, yes – the real thing, no'”.
Of course, “standards of morality, decency and propriety” is still troublesomely subjective, while “simulation, yes, the real thing, no” is comicly inept for videogames, where everything is simulation. You may be able to tell when live actors are actually performing sexual acts, but when can you tell a videogame character is actually having sex?
O’Connor stated:
“The Gillard government wants to provide better guidance for parents and remove unsuitable material from children and teenagers. The introduction of an R18+ classification will help achieve that and will also bring Australia into line with comparable nations. This issue has been on the table for many years, without the necessary progress to make a change. We’ve recently seen several states publicly express their support for an adult only rating for games and I’m keen to reach a unanimous decision at the July meeting.”
Rather than banning games, why not punish stores for selling mature games to underage children? Or put the onus of raising children on the parents?
