Australia is slowly getting closer to an R18+ classification

Following last year’s in-principle agreement between Australian censorship ministers that a new R18+ rating should be introduced, comes news that the bill will be introduced in parliament next month.

The new Federal Minister for Home Affairs, Jason Clare, has confirmed with Gamespot AU that the timeline set in place by former minister Brendan O’Connor will remain unchanged, with the bill being introduced when parliamentary sittings re-commence on February 7.

While this is good news, Australian gamers shouldn’t expect a swift introduction of the classification, as the bill will need to pass through the House of Representatives, and then the Senate, before it’s even close to being secured. With the recent banning of Syndicate, how many games will we lose before the politicians pull their finger out? But hey, at least something is happening.

Shaun Prescott
Australian Editor, Games Group

Shaun is the Australian editor and news writer for our sister site, PC Gamer, but he occasionally dabbles on GamesRadar too. He mostly plays platformers and RPGs, and keeps a close eye on anything of particular interest to antipodean audiences. He (rather obsessively) tracks the movements of the Doom modding community, too.