Soldier of Fortune: Payback BANN^^^^ now neutered in .au

[Azazel]

Soldier of Fortune: Payback Refused Classification
Post by Nailbomb @ 01:00pm | 6 Comments | AusGamers News
The Age's Screenplay blog bears word that yet another title has received the big RC due to Australia's lack of an R18+ rating for video games.

Activision's Soldier of Fortune: Payback has become the second game this year to be refused classification by the Office of Film and Literature Classification.

The game was to be released in early 2008 on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.

The ban comes at a time when the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia is stepping up is campaign for the introduction of an R18+ classification as the country heads towards next month's federal election.

The IEAA says Australia is the only developed democracy in the world without a R18+ classification for games, ensuring titles which exceed the limits of the MA15+ category are refused classification and banned from sale.

http://www.ausgamers.com/

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Activision's Soldier of Fortune: Payback has become the second game this year to be refused classification by the Office of Film and Literature Classification.


The game was to be released in early 2008 on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3.


The ban comes at a time when the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia is stepping up is campaign for the introduction of an R18+ classification as the country heads towards next month's federal election.


The IEAA says Australia is the only developed democracy in the world without a R18+ classification for games, ensuring titles which exceed the limits of the MA15+ category are refused classification and banned from sale.


Earlier in the year, Blitz the League was banned because the classification board argued that it feature drugs used as incentives or rewards.


Other games refused classification in recent years include Reservoir Dogs, 50 Cent Bulletproof, Postal 2 Share the Pain, Narc, The Punisher, Singles: Flirt Up Your Life, Manhunt, Shellshock Nam 67, and Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude.


Posted by Jason Hill
October 18, 2007 8:25 AM

http://blogs.theage.com.au/screenplay/archives//007736.html


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So anyway, if the game is any good, and not available on Steam, etc (or blocked by IP) does someone want to pick it up for me at some stage? 







http://blogs.theage.com.au/screenplay/archives//007736.html

 

[schild]

Soldier of Fortune is a budget piece of shit Soldier of Fortune as far as I know. It's kind of like Call of Duty 3 that way. Just to be skipping.

[UnSub]

Chance of games getting an R18+ classification with the current Federal Government in charge: 0%

Chance of games getting an R18+ classification if Labor wins the election: 10%

However, I note the irony that most of the games thus far refused classification have been of pretty poor quality.

[Azazel]

That's true.

As for SoF. I never played part 1, but enjoyed Part 2 greatly, and was horribly disappointed at the time to find that Raven were working on some kind of X-Men action RPG. My plan for SoF:PB was to wait for the reviews, and then for whoever here played it, before then downloading the demo from somewhere, and then finally buying it via proxy if it passed all of the above.

CoD3 was console-only, correct? I'm somewhat eagarly anticipating CoD4. Unless it turns out to be a POS.

[stray]

And that X-Men RPG turned out to be pretty fun.

[Azazel]

Yeah, it was quite decent. I never finished it, though.

[UnSub]

The next game to appear on the OFLC's blacklist: Manhunt 2. It could be called Manhunt 2: Viva Pinata, and it's still getting on that blacklist.

[Chenghiz]

What in the world is so horrible about the game that it gets this? Isn't it just a mercenary-sort of FPS?

[Azazel]

It also has bodily dismemberment as one of it's traditional features. I imagine with the graphics shiney we have these days it's gotten to the point of too scariness of our delicate local politicians and friend at the OFLC.

[Calantus]

The thing that annoys me about Aus games censorship is that nobody gives a shit. Really. There's hardly any coverage at all on violent videogames that isn't just a segment we've gotten from american TV. It's not a result of public outrage or scoring points with voters... the IEAA just does not think we should have these games. This disturbes me.

[Azazel]

You've got your acronyms mixed up - the IEAA want us to have the R18+ rating so that we can have these games. As it stands, anything that the OFLC deems to be over a MA15+ is banned from sale.

[taolurker]

This video shows why it's mature

I had many hours of fun with SoF2, and the multiplayer was the best part of this game.

The questions that come to mind about this is that it's NOT being developed by Raven, and is being developed by Cauldron a Slovokian company, and according to the Activision Q&A here the PC version will not have Punkbuster.

It's also based on an entirely new engine (NOT the Ghoul engine), based on Doom3, with 36 different body separation points (ooo dismemberment) and is actually supposed to release next month?

They better get some kind of better news out about this game too, heck their Official site isn't even built yet.

[UnSub]

You've got your acronyms mixed up - the IEAA want us to have the R18+ rating so that we can have these games. As it stands, anything that the OFLC deems to be over a MA15+ is banned from sale.

The OFLC is bound by the law - they can't give any game higher than an MA15+. If it falls outside of those boundaries, their hands are tied.

Oh, and I did see an item on Sunrise (I was flicking and caught the promo) about Rule of Rose. The presenters were running from whatever had been printed in the AAP wire about the game and brought on a Families of Australia (or whatever) spokesman about the game. None of them had played it and made a lot of threateningly vague statements about the game and its contents.

What annoyed me most was that if they'd actually done their research, they could moved on past the bullying that is seen in the game and into some things that really would have gotten their audience riled up - you know, the pedophelia and child murder that the game contains.

[Azazel]

This video shows why it's mature

The questions that come to mind about this is that it's NOT being developed by Raven, and is being developed by Cauldron a Slovokian company, and according to the Activision Q&A here the PC version will not have Punkbuster.

That video makes me want to purchase this game. It appeals to my more childish and baser instincts. Well, except that it might be crap (seeing if Raven was involved was the first thing I checked). The lack of Punkbuster's not a big deal to me. There's so many quality MP FPSes out there right now that I'm happy to SP my way through quite a few if they're quality.

The OFLC is bound by the law - they can't give any game higher than an MA15+. If it falls outside of those boundaries, their hands are tied.

Oh, and I did see an item on Sunrise (I was flicking and caught the promo) about Rule of Rose. The presenters were running from whatever had been printed in the AAP wire about the game and brought on a Families of Australia (or whatever) spokesman about the game. None of them had played it and made a lot of threateningly vague statements about the game and its contents.

What annoyed me most was that if they'd actually done their research, they could moved on past the bullying that is seen in the game and into some things that really would have gotten their audience riled up - you know, the pedophelia and child murder that the game contains.

I wasn't disagreeing at all. It's a government level thing, though the OFLC is politically-influenced as much as anything else, of course. Never heard of Rule of Rose. It sounds pleasant.

[UnSub]

To ruin a game you will never play, it's a dark fairy tale / nightmare that doesn't start out telling you it's a dark fairy tale. However, I believe I've made it sound more interesting than it actually is.

[Azazel]

new news:

Soldier Of Fortune Changed to Meet Classification
Post by Steve Farrelly @ 04:40pm | 5 Comments | AusGamers News
The OFLC have had their way once more with Activision and Cauldron HQ altering the game to meet the 'Australian standard'. Changes made include reduced ragdoll physics, no dismemberment of enemies (alive or dead) and toned down blood effects.
Soldier of Fortune Payback thrusts players into adrenaline-pumping mercenary combat action after a routine escort mission goes horribly wrong. The game evolves the signature gameplay of its predecessors with refined controls, tension-packed warzones, and an enemy damage system that may be shocking even to experienced FPS players. Players are armed with an impressive arsenal of more than 30 weapons, including sub-machine guns, assault rifles, and projectile explosives, as they hunt down an insidious enemy that respects neither laws, nations, nor armies. The game also offers individual and team based online modes including: Death Match, Team Death Match, Elimination, Team Elimination, Capture the Flag and Demolition.
This isn't the first time the OFLC has stamped their collective hoofs, nor is it the first time a game has had to altered as a result. Just more evidence we need an R18+ rating for videogames. 

[Azazel]

So if this thing gets half-decent ratings, is anyone in the US willing to pick up a copy for me and ship it across the water? Fucking OFLC.

[UnSub]

So if this thing gets half-decent ratings, is anyone in the US willing to pick up a copy for me and ship it across the water? Fucking OFLC.

I disagree - they did their job. Games need to be allowed to carry the R18+ rating. That's a legislative issue.

[Strazos]

So if this thing gets half-decent ratings, is anyone in the US willing to pick up a copy for me and ship it across the water? Fucking OFLC.

PM me if you like.

[Azazel]

I disagree - they did their job. Games need to be allowed to carry the R18+ rating. That's a legislative issue.

They did do their job, and I agree it's a legislative issue. However, please allow me to vent general frustration in a semi-coherent manner on an online gaming forum.

[rk47]

This game trades destructible environment for destructible human anatomy....I guess I can somehow, accept that. But knowing Singapore..  Nahh....it won't come