This year’s spate of gaming marathons and charity events for the now burgeoning gamer’s charity Childs Play has officially begun, with the now infamous Mario Marathon come and gone. But if you are in the mood for some shenanigans, crazy accents and sleep deprivation based entertainment, the fellows over at the Australian based gaming community GameArena are playing Borderlands for 48hrs; seeking tasty donations in return for crazy requests.

We all graciously appreciated your support for our successful Piece of Heart marathon that we very barely completed last year, and the guys over at GA would also appreciate your monetary and emotional support while they slog through the game for the next 18hrs. Bring your friends! Cause havok! Ask them to do anything for money, because it’s likely that they are the types of dodgy guys that would. We’re a different breed down here.

Point your browser here and join the party.

It’s been a long time between drinks, but we finally have another competition to bring to you lovely folks. In conjunction with EB Games Australia, we’re giving you the chance to win an exclusive Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days Demo Pass for Xbox 360.

If you’re keen to play both the single player and multiplayer features of this highly anticipated release, then read on to find out how to enter.

Australian and New Zealand gamers can head over to EB Games Australia’s promotion page here and enter the exclusive Gamer Limit code. Simply enter your details, as well as the code “GL” (without the inverted commas, obviously), and you’ll be in line to win one of 30 Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days Demo Passes that have been set aside for Gamer Limit readers.

The Demo Pass can be unlocked through Xbox Live and contains a single player mission, as well as three different modes in a special multiplayer map.

The competition will finish on July 1, so get in quick! We will be announcing the winners here on Gamer Limit at the end of the promotional period.

Good luck!

Enter here using the code GL

We all thought that once Michael Atkinson scooted off to his G-rated world of unadulterated innocence we’d perhaps see some progress on the R18+ debate.

Unfortunately for Australian gamers, and any gamer with a hatred for old coots telling us what we can and can’t play, the push for a strictly adult classification has hit another wall.

Despite there being overwhelming support for an R18+ rating to be introduced into Australian video games, including backing from the Catholic Bishops Conference for Christ’s sake (sorry, Bishop), it seems that the blokes in charge of this, at times, backward nation still aren’t happy with a 98.2% approval rating.

“Consultations, by their nature, attract submissions from people who are passionate about the issue,” said the Minister for Home Affairs, Brendan O’Connor. “Ministers would like to consider other legitimate views from as wide a cross section of the community as possible.”

This sort of mindless drivel seems to be becoming more and more common amongst ministers involved with the issue. Mr. O’Connor seems to believe that gamers, who make up an estimated 68% of Australians, according to this IA9 survey, are simply a small “interest group”.

I tend to disagree. But then again, I am biased. I’m a gamer, you see. I suppose the majority counts for nothing.

Source: IncGamers via GameSpot AU

The most anticipated gaming milestone in Australian history has come one step closer over the weekend with Michael Atkinson, the chief opposition to introducing an R+ rating, resigning from his post.

Mr Atkinson was the only classification minister who was opposing the new rating standard, so (potentially) the new amendments to the legislation should go through without any more hitches.

He resigned claiming:

“There are talented people on the Labor backbench who deserve a go. I don’t think we want all the Labor ministers leaving in a bunch about the 2014 general election and so it’s important that that renewal be staged.”

Despite this statement, there is speculation that he may have been requested to step down due to the venomous backlash caused from all his recent controversies.

Source: SMH

As many of our regular, devout readers have noticed, we’ve been borderline obsessive on the debacle surrounding the push for an R18+ rating in Australia. Recently, the EveryonePlays campaign, headed up by Australian gaming site PALGN, has teamed with national retailer GAME to keep the government in the spotlight.

Being advocates for the rights of gamers the world over, Gamer Limit has teamed up with EveryonePlays to spread the word, chalk up support and hold both the South Australian and Federal administrations to account. Since public submissions closed on the 28th of February, it’s critical that the issue doesn’t float of the public realm.

If you’re interested in keeping abreast of the campaign, hit up “EveryonePlaysAU” on Twitter, and head over here for Facebook.

For those who don’t know about the situation, a short rundown, courtesy of the campaign, is below.

In Australia it is illegal to sell a video game or movie that has not been classified by the Classification Board (formerly the Office of Film and Literature Classification – OFLC). [1]

Under the National Classification Code 2005 [2], games must be refused classification if they;

1. depict, express or otherwise deal with matters of sex, drug misuse or addiction, crime, cruelty, violence or revolting or abhorrent phenomena in such a way that they offend against the standards of morality, decency and propriety generally accepted by reasonable adults to the extent that they should not be classified; or
2. describe or depict in a way that is likely to cause offence to a reasonable adult, a person who is, or appears to be, a child under 18 (whether the person is engaged in sexual activity or not); or
3. promote, incite or instruct in matters of crime or violence; or
4. are unsuitable for a minor to see or play.

It is important to note that point (d) in the classification code explicitly states that any game only suitable for people over the age of 18, must be refused classification in Australia.

We’ve been reporting about the R18+ rating debacle for the last year or so, where adult gaming in Australia has become hampered by an outdated, complicated and generally ridiculous scheme that bans any title that doesn’t fit the requirements of your standard 15 yr old.

In December last year, the federal government of Oz released a discussion paper on the subject and invited the public to make submissions for or against the introduction of an R18+ rating for gamers. 3 months on, and there has been a resounding response from the gaming community, local industry and general concerned public in support of the rating.

How successful has it been? Most public submission calls usually rope in a few thousand responses at the most. This one has brought in a whopping 22,000+ submissions. These aren’t just signatures folks, since they can range from a simple template based response, to full blown 17 page researched and referenced essays. In any case, every single one is obligated to be published and submitted to the Attorney General.

Based on answers to questions asked from the Senate Estimates committee (Page 23), over 6000 valid submissions had been received by department at the end of January. Of those responses, only around 1000 had been processed, with an amazing 99% in support of a R rating. That’s not only unanimous, but what many pundits would call a freaking landslide.

Additionally, Pro-R18+ lobby group “Grow Up Australia” teamed up with retailer EB Games to push the campaign into hundreds of stores. Signs and staff directed customers to a website where the submission form could be filled out quickly and easily.

At the conclusion of the campaign, which only went for about a month, an astounding 16,055 submissions were completed and submitted to the department.

Submissions close in 3 days, on the 28th of February. If you’re an Aussie and want to make your voice known, now is your last chance! Get the submission forms here.

The smart fellows at sister gaming e-zine Pixel Hunt realized, like the rest of us, that a significant amount of great, or at the very least “anticipated”, games are coming out this year. They also thought it might be a good idea if someone took at look at, well, all of them.

So, they rounded up some of the best writers from the likes of IGN and Hyper to tell you why you should, or shouldn’t, take a second look at the plethora of titles hitting our streets over the next 12 months.

The best part? 60 pages of easily packaged, produced and gloriously coloured previews are yours for a single dollar. I liked it so much I paid $10, so you can take my word for it. You can grab it here, or hit the jump for more info.

60 pages. All commentary based preview from some of the best writers in the Aussie gaming media. God of War 3, Bioshock 2, Alan Wake, Dead Rising 2, Heavy Rain, the list goes on. Hell, there might even be a few that might not even be on your radar.

What else do you need to know? Grab it now!

Some of you Australian based gamers may have heard the murmurings of The Mana Bar, a pet project of Zero Punctuation famed critic “Yahtzee” and AustralianGamer.com’s Yug.

Based in Brisbane, Australia, the hometown of yours truly, the bar promises to combine the two passions of the modern gamer – gaming and drinking – in a way that promises to suit every taste; from Retro (Vodka Martini) to Rock Band (JagerBomb).

The still-in-production website offers the opportunity to play unreleased titles, attend launch parties, multiplayer tournaments and other special game related events. It’s also pretty likely that most of Brisbane’s burgeoning gaming industry will make it their local, so prospective game developers may find themselves with an opportunity to smooze.

It’s planning to open next month, so if you’re a local, subscribe to @TheManaBar on twitter or hit up their facebook page for updates on upcoming events and specials.

From the site:

Opening in February 2010 in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane – Australia, the Mana Bar is the first venue of it’s type.

Featuring the latest in next generation video game systems available to play 7 days a week with the latest, greatest, and most social games available. You’ll even be able to play games before they’re released!

It’s not just the games though, first and foremost the Mana Bar will be one of Brisbane’s most funky drinking venues, with a unique selection of drinks and custom cocktails on offer.

It’s been an interesting few months for the rights of gamers in Australia.

After years of fruitless deliberation and gerrymandering between state attorney generals, progress has been made. It was only a year ago that SA AG Michael Atkinson had originally promised a total scrubbing of any public discourse on an R18+ rating for games.

Eventually, he bowed to pressure from fellow colleagues and gamer lobbyists for a public submission inquiry to be released, but looked like it was never going to come.

But, as we all know, it did. But the campaign is far from over. Read on to see how you (Australians!) can help. Or, alternatively, you can read Gamer Limit AU’s submission to the inquiry here.

The public submission may have finally arrived, but you can’t sit on your laurels. A public submission is the first and last chance to make our case for a new classification guideline. The reasoned public support will support our cause significantly more then writing sarcastic blog posts or making crank calls to Atkinson. If you decide to make a submission, and if you live in Australia, you should, then follow these easy rules.

1. Answer the question

Comments are optional in the submission, if you don’t want to make a case, then you can simply answer the multiple choice questions and send off your reply. If you do decide to write something, then make it short, concise, and sweet. Try not to go off topic, chose a point from the paper that you would like to argue and give a proper reason why you support or oppose it. Remember, only 250 words!

2. Be polite and articulate

Don’t embarrass the campaign. It might feel witty or “damning” to write a sarcastic haiku or dump on Atkinson, but all that will do is push his case that gamers are nothing more then Peter Pans (overgrown kids). Use a spell checker, don’t use dry humour, and don’t get angry. It’s understandable, especially after all the hyperbole, but if we can overwhelmingly convince everyone else, Atkinson will have no choice but to cave.

Grow Up Australia has created a fantastic online form that will save you time and effort. Public submissions close on the 28th of February, but the sooner you can get it in, the better.

Additionally, the Queensland Government e-petition is still available here. Public submission or not, this is still an important option. The law states that if a specific state chooses, it may implement changes to its own classification guidelines for its own citizens. As such, all of the other states could proactively implement an R rating, even if the other states do not.

This, however, is pretty unlikely. The national system was established in 1992 to allow consistency throughout the federation, so something bought legally in one state was available for distribution in another. One, or a number of states breaking from the chain would need to be based on a pretty significant charge, and although we have seen some strong support by the ACT and VIC AG’s, it’s not very likely any of them consider this to be a deal breaker from the national scheme.

That said, EVERY letter, every email, every submission, every signing shows real, political support for change. I’d guarantee that the only reason a public submission was released was thanks to all of the press and correspondence generated in the community. If we keep going and refuse to give up, we will prevail.

Also, I’d like to give a quick shout out to Gamers 4 Croydon, a grassroots political party campaigning against Atkinson on this issue the next South Australian election held March 2010! He’s recieved over $6000 in donations already, head over to his website and show your support.

Oh, snap!  After being denied OFLC classification in Australia for their upcoming game Aliens vs. Predator, game developer Rebellion re-submitted it to the OFLC’s review board.  They had originally refused to censor the game, essentially guaranteeing that it would never see an Australian release if the appeal failed, which seemed incredibly likely.

The kicker: they actually won.  See what they had to say about it after the jump.

Darren Macbeth, Sega Australia’s general manager:

It is with great pleasure that we announce the success of our appeal. We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever. This is a big win for Australian gamers. We applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game, and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians.

The game will carry an MA15+ rating, the highest rating allowed in Australia under the current (broken) system.  Yay!  Maybe now Australia can get a patch to fix their castrated Left 4 Dead 2…?

Source: Kotaku

If there has ever been a time for Australian gamers to punch the air in excitement, or flip the bird at Michael Atkinson, it is now.

The Attorney-General’s Department has officially released a consultation reform paper entitled “An R18+ Classification for Computer Games – Public Consultation”

Hit the jump to find out more details.

“The Commonwealth Government has released a discussion paper which briefly summarises the key arguments for and against an R18+ classification for computer games. Censorship Ministers have considered the issue of an adult classification for computer games on several occasions. However, they have not undertaken public consultation on this issue.

Submissions are being sought on whether the Australian National Classification Scheme should include an R18+ classification category for computer games. Submissions can be made by downloading and completing the submission template. Submissions may also be mailed or faxed. The discussion paper and submission template contain the contact details for making a submission”

The closing date for submissions is February 28, 2010, so I’m certain that we will be hearing a lot more about this in the near future.

[Update]: Gamer Limit Australia will forward a formal submission to the public discussion by the first week of January. We will, of course, post it for your public discourse in due course.

Today word got out that Australia’s Office of Film and Literature Classification has refused to rate the upcoming movie monster shooter Aliens vs. Predator, essentially banning the game.

Much like Valve’s Left 4 Dead 2, Aliens vs. Predator has been refused classification due to “various types of violence.” Specifically “the Predator collects ‘trophies’ by explicitly ripping off human heads, their spinal columns dangling from severed necks…heads can be twisted completely around…eyes can be stabbed through or gouged, leaving empty, bloodied eye sockets…extensive post-mortem damage, including decapitation and dismemberment, is also possible.”

AvP developer Rebellion responded to these claims by stating: “we will not be releasing a sanitized or cut down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices.”

Publisher Sega has also responded, saying “we will continue to investigate all options available to us, including the possibility of appeal.” However the chance of the appeal being approved seems slim, especially considering Valve tried to appeal the L4D2 ban to no avail.

For non-Australian gamers, Aliens vs. Predator is slated to arrive on the PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 in February.

Source: Shacknews.com