Aries_Split:
No. If they edit, I will lose any respect I've ever had for Bethesda.

You do know that Interplay (Publishers of the original Fallouts) edited the UK version of Fallout so that there wouldn't be children in it so that you couldn't kill them, right?

So when you say "edit", do you mean only for Australia or for everyone that gets a copy of the game?

J'aen:
I have a rough idea of how to use a gun thanks to games/movies, even hough I'm too young to get one legally. This is not a problem, as I will probably never own, use or even hold a gun. Even if I did get my hands on a gun somehow, I would know to be very careful with it, so that's still not a problem.

So I still don't get why the Australian government are refusing to classify Fallout 3.

Ever been shooting before? Some damn good fun to be had, try it.
ON TOPIC: So I'm getting if they change the name to like : "Stim pack" or something, it'll get through?

From what I understand, the problem is two-fold. One part, the use of real world drugs, is easily changed (It's not the injection that's objectionable...look at Bioshock). THe second, however is harder: the game mechanic of addiction to said drug.

clarinetJWD:
From what I understand, the problem is two-fold. One part, the use of real world drugs, is easily changed (It's not the injection that's objectionable...look at Bioshock). THe second, however is harder: the game mechanic of addiction to said drug.

Australia needs to stop being difficult.

I just hope they don't pull a No More Heroes.

And on the drug use problem, isn't addiction a bad thing? Do they really think that people want to be addicted to drugs?

Aries_Split:

clarinetJWD:
From what I understand, the problem is two-fold. One part, the use of real world drugs, is easily changed (It's not the injection that's objectionable...look at Bioshock). THe second, however is harder: the game mechanic of addiction to said drug.

Australia needs to stop being difficult.

Blame This man: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Atkinson

Aries_Split:

clarinetJWD:
From what I understand, the problem is two-fold. One part, the use of real world drugs, is easily changed (It's not the injection that's objectionable...look at Bioshock). THe second, however is harder: the game mechanic of addiction to said drug.

Australia needs to stop being difficult.

That's the real problem, I guess!

Why they don't have an 18+ classification for games, like they do for every other media form, I have no idea... Just glad my country isn't so quick to ban games.

z121231211:
I just hope they don't pull a No More Heroes.

And on the drug use problem, isn't addiction a bad thing? Do they really think that people want to be addicted to drugs?

?
I'm not sure what to say about this statement other than you need some proper drug education.
drug addiction in a nutshell: no, people don't want to be addicted. Say for instance, someone tries a particular drug (let's say cocaine). They like the feeling after using cocaine, and continue to use it. Over time and continued use, their mind/body begins to crave the drug. At that time, the drug is no longer a want, but a need (in most cases anyway). That's addiction.

So...how does this relate to the problem relate to fallout 3? As I said in an earlier post, its seems like the law is aiming to cut out situations where drug use is not taken seriously or encouraged. Sorry to say, but in a way, Fallout does encourage drug use. You could argue the there are stiff penalties for becoming addicted within the game, but negative stats hardly equate to its real life equivalent.

^^^ No, but negative stats also show that the game doesn't endorse druge use. While a -5 in Concentration may not seem like much, it shows that drugs within the Fallout world are more a negative force than they are a positive. If Bethesda had implemented drug usage in a way that rewarded your character with stat boosts, then perhaps their moral integrity could be called into integrity. As far as I can tell however, the game gives you the option to use drugs, but never actually encourages you to do so.

I have to admit, ever since checking these forums and seeing how absurd Australian censorship is, I've lost a lot of respect for the country. I mean, I used to think it was this crazy place with beer and kangaroos, dingos eating babies, men in khakis wrestling stingrays. But really it just seems like your country is run by my grandmother, it's so timid. Isn't there some provision in Australian law providing for Free Speech?

@j-e-f-f-e-r-s: Well of course. I'm sorry if what I said came out wrong. I didn't mean it that the the game says "here, eat this. It's good for you"; and not that it encourages drug use in a fasion that forces you to use them to get through the game.

With respect to Bethesda, I'm sure they've handled it tastefully, as did Black Isle before them.

Unfortunately if AU law is dead set against drug usage in this form of media; allowing its use in your game, in any form, is a pretty big red flag.