StarCraft II players using unauthorised hacks and modifications to get a leg up on the competition might want to give fair play a try, as a Blizzard statement indicates the end of the line is in sight for cheaters. More »
Responding Australia’s refusal to classify upcoming shooter Aliens vs. Predator, developer Rebellion says it will not cut violent content for “territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices.” Ouch. More »
Microsoft’s Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb discusses the recent string of Xbox Live piracy console bannings, delivering an important caveat to those purchasing used machines in the process. More »
“A small percentage” of Xbox Live users with modded consoles that allowed pirated games to play woke up to find an early treat in their Halloween bag: a banhammer. More »
Word has hit the street that Silent Hill: Homecoming, due for release across major platforms in November, has been given the RC treatment by the Classication Board. That’s four this year, with one saved from the chop by judicious edits by Bethesda. We were unable to reach Atari for comment at this time.
If there’s ever a genre that speaks to a need for an R18+ rating, it’s horror. Clearly not for kids, dealing with mature themes, and scary as hell. And that’s why it’s called horror. Hope everyone has been sharpening their pencils to write eloquent letters discussing the merits of expanded ratings. We might still be awaiting the terms of public comment for the promised consultation on game ratings, but that’s a good excuse to start now and carefully polish a well reasoned contribution by the time they open the mailbox. Silent Hill: Homecoming [Classification Board](Thanks Matthew for the heads up)
UPDATE: According to Games On Net, the Classification Board report points to cumulative effect of “highly impactful” violence as the reason it cannot be classified MA15+. There’s some freaky stuff with drills and graphic kills mentioned. Doesn’t sound like the kind of content easily tweaked for re-submission. More »
Remember the recent news that Dead Space has been banned in China, Japan, and Germany? Well, GamePolitics isn’t buying it, saying the news doesn’t pass the ‘smell test’ for a variety of reasons. Dead Space cleared both Australia’s ‘notoriously censorious’ OFLC and the UK’s BBFC (the same commission that banned Manhunt 2); Germany perhaps makes sense, but “Japan? The home of Resident Evil?”; and, oh yeah, the lack of any word from EA on the issue:
