Valve responds to Left 4 Dead 2 ban

With the news of the Australian Left 4 Dead 2 ban dominating the headlines across gaming related media, Valve has issued a statement on the decision.

Valve's Vice President of Marketing, Doug Lombardi issued a statement toShacknews, voicing Valve's disappointment at the Australia's Office of Film and Literature Classification 's decision: "We were surprised to hear of this news yesterday. Obviously, everyone at Valve is pretty bummed."

The OFLC has refused to classify the zombie shooter sequel, Left 4 Dead 2 due to its "realistic, frenetic and unrelenting violence," effectively leaving Aussie gamers high and dry.

It is unknown at this time whether the game will receive any changes - just as Fallout 3 was forced to undergo in order to be sold in Australia - in order to comply with the Australian regulations. Lombardi didn't offer any solution to the decision, merely lamenting on the move: "It would be a shame if folks in Australia, or anywhere else, are unable to purchase Left 4 Dead 2 because of a ratings issue."

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35 Comments

Island_Wolf

2 years ago

I'm a fence-sitting person here just because R18+ games are games I wouldn't play anyway but I just have thoughts flying around my head and I just want to release it here.

Just because gamers aren't happy about a R18+, what about other groups of people?. I can safely bet that parents who are already whining that their underage kids are playing MA15+ that there will be R18+ and they would certain be even more angry. And yes, I know they are the one that provided the game to their kids but you know parents these days, rather give in to shut their kid up rather than putting up with screaming kids (and I see a lot of that just in toy stores alone). Best example is McDonalds, many parents more than happy to bring their kid to McDonalds to make them happy, and then turn to the gov when their kids turn fat and force them to take action instead, like removing the ad off tv, etc.

Our parliament also have not many young members so their ideas and values appears to be old fashion but it's not their fault entirely. They just happen to grow up with that and we in the future will have kids hating us for the decision our generation makes for their future, we just not old enough yet for that stage but it will come.

Also, the issue of R18+ game, I have no idea how long this issue has been going for but firstly, may I say, Michael Attkinson might not be the only A-G to oppose it, I don't know the full situation but it looks like to me he is made an scapegoat by other members of the parliament and other A-G. Am I the only one who thinks that?

Why was there no R18+ games? How long does it take for any sort of change to take place?. The problem is we are in a generation where we are expecting things too quickly while with issue like having an R18+ game might not become so until many years down the track, just wanting it now and not thinking how to get it in the long term might just delay having that rating. Setting up a website like Everybody's Play will help.

Just something to think about.

Qbert

2 years ago

Island_Wolf wrote

Our parliament also have not many young members so their ideas and values appears to be old fashion but it's not their fault entirely. They just happen to grow up with that and we in the future will have kids hating us for the decision our generation makes for their future, we just not old enough yet for that stage but it will come.

But we are one of the only countries in the world not to have a mature rating. Are politicians from other countries (eg. NZ, US, England) so much younger than our politicians? Of course not. Just look at John McCain for starters.

Island_Wolf wrote

Also, the issue of R18+ game, I have no idea how long this issue has been going for but firstly, may I say, Michael Attkinson might not be the only A-G to oppose it, I don't know the full situation but it looks like to me he is made an scapegoat by other members of the parliament and other A-G. Am I the only one who thinks that?

I'm pretty sure that he was the only AG against it as the time. Not 100% sure atm, but at the time I'm fairly certain he was the only one to oppose it.

Island_Wolf wrote

Why was there no R18+ games? How long does it take for any sort of change to take place?. The problem is we are in a generation where we are expecting things too quickly while with issue like having an R18+ game might not become so until many years down the track, just wanting it now and not thinking how to get it in the long term might just delay having that rating.

Again, why is it only Australia that it takes a while for change?

And the ironic thing is that those brainwashed people who think video games = bad, are making the situation worse by not having an R18+ rating. If anyone really thinks that GTA IV (just an example) would have lead to real life crime, but now will have no effect due to taking out controlling the camera in a sex scene and pools of blood on the ground, then they need their brain checked. If some video games really are so dangerous, then don't release them at all! Don't have some **** excuse that kids won't be pressured into taking drugs anymore because the name or a drug was changed to a make-believe one in Fallout 3.

Edit at below:

Martin: In a sample taken in this very classroom, a state inspector found 1.74 parts per million of asbestos!
Bart: That's not enough! We demand MORE asbestos!
[leads the class in a chant of `MORE ASBESTOS']

Karai Pantsu

2 years ago

Island_Wolf wrote

Just because gamers aren't happy about a R18+, what about other groups of people?. I can safely bet that parents who are already whining that their underage kids are playing MA15+ that there will be R18+ and they would certain be even more angry. And yes, I know they are the one that provided the game to their kids but you know parents these days, rather give in to shut their kid up rather than putting up with screaming kids (and I see a lot of that just in toy stores alone). Best example is McDonalds, many parents more than happy to bring their kid to McDonalds to make them happy, and then turn to the gov when their kids turn fat and force them to take action instead, like removing the ad off tv, etc.

So, what - you think this kind of lazy parenting should be encouraged? Balls to that.
At any rate, last time any decently sized poll was taken on the issue it was something in the area of 90% 'Yes' to an R rating - and this was across all demographics (unless my memory fails me).

I'd like to see the reaction from the general public if there was a call to abolish the R rating for film media, and as part of that remove all current and future R rated films/DVDs from sale. I wager there'd be a fair sized backlash.

Edit: Then again, the cynic in me says 'Well of course there'd be a big backlash - people will get riled up when you try to take anything away, regardless of what it is...'

Island_Wolf

2 years ago

Our gov. has been know to be slow at times, even for a change... I can spend all day but it will just be time wasting, but one example is Howard's view on climate change.

Edit 2 - (Wording it better - this is in favour of 18+) Not having a 18+ game will generate a lot of news and have an effect by having people who might not even be interested in the game looking up banned content, instead of the possibility of only people who are interested will get it, if they are not, they might not heard about it.

Edit - Karai Pantsu ninjaed!!!. No, I strongly do oppose lazy parents, in fact, I accidently cut the part about lazy parenting out to make my post small. I deal with lazy parents all the time and it **** me off that I am more a mother than their mothers themselves. But when they ask me to then help their kids to play less violent games... I say no just because I wasn't the one who bought it for them in the first time, they did and they should deal with it.

Karai Pantsu

2 years ago

Err, what? Games continuing to be banned will have an equally 'bad effect' in that people will make a point of looking up these games and, more than likely, downloading them just to check out the naughty, illegal game. I think that's a pretty flimsy reason to not make the step up to R ratings.

Besides, as has been well documented, having MA15+ as the highest possible rating ensures that titles that should fit under an R rating violence will keep being pushed through as MA15+ and getting sold to people it shouldn't be.

Edit: Ah, my mistake then. I thought you were suggesting we shouldn't move to an R rating because those people would have a whinge about their kids having access to even more violent titles.

lapzod

2 years ago

When you sit on the classification board, you are only there for four years, so the board is kept up to date with society. There was a change over about 3 years ago, so there should be one coming up soon.

Quote

and it **** me off that I am more a mother than their mothers themselves.

This is interesting because it's kind of related to the issue at hand about lazy parenting and what to allow children to see. What you are saying is very similar to what the government is doing. *trying to word properly but can't*

(also, not having a dig at you, just interesting)

edit: shenanigans everywhere.

Island_Wolf

2 years ago

Karai, I did say not having 18+ will cause people, even non-gamers, to take notice and a bad effect is them checking up on it (I wasn't opposing it)

. I know it happened for Silent Hill when all my non-gamer friends said they check up on youtube just to see why what was the fuss was about because it was in the news.

Edit - sorry, re-read my post and I guess I could've worded better, lol. Okay, fixed up my other post.

Qbert

2 years ago

lapzod wrote

Yeah but, as you probably know, the people on the classification board have no power over rating a game R18+ because that rating doesn't exist for games. So it wouldn't matter if they changed every day, no one on that board could rate a game R18+. Without a mature rating for games, it's impossible for them to keep up to date with society.

shadeslayer

2 years ago

How they could police this when steam is an US service....

Karai Pantsu

2 years ago

Answered in the previous L4D2 thread by someone more knowledgeable than I:

Jellyfish wrote

You might think that the Steam code might work here but you're forgetting something. Steam already knows your country by IP address, remember Activision charging higher prices for Australia than anywhere else? That same "technology" can block Steam game activations for RCed games as well so you might want to hold off purchasing from another country just yet.

RooRage

2 years ago

shadeslayer wrote

How they could police this when steam is an US service....

And whilst I know there is a big PC L4D following, don't forget us heathen console FPS gamers...

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Left 4 Dead 2

Pre-order or buy:
PALGN recommends: www.Play-Asia.com

Australian Release Date:
  19/11/2009 (Confirmed)
Publisher:
  Electronic Arts
Genre:
  Shooter
Year Made:
  2009
Players:
  2
System Requirements:
- OS: Windows Vista, XP or 2000
- CPU: 3.0 GHz P4, Dual Core 2.0 or AMD64X2 (or higher)
- RAM: 1 GB for XP / 2GB for Vista
- Disc drive: DVD-ROM Drive
- Hard drive: At least 7.5 GB of free space
- Video: Direct X 9 compatible video card (Video card must be 256 MB or more and should be a DirectX 9-compatible with support for pixel shader 2.0)
- Sound: Direct X9.0c compatible sound card

Read more...