The Albanese Government has recently proposed a change in the way video games should be rated based on the players’ access to gambling within said games. According to the government’s recent press release, the changes in ratings go as follows:
The Commonwealth will seek the agreement of States and Territories to introduce a mandatory minimum classification of R 18+ (Restricted to 18 and over) for games which contain simulated gambling and M (Mature – not recommended for persons under 15 years) for computer games containing paid loot boxes.
This is potentially a big deal for multiple different game companies. Gamespot notes that one of the companies that might be affected by this the most is FIFA. FIFA is normally a G-rated game, meaning that it is for general audiences. However, their use of loot boxes would now make FIFA games rated 15+ M rating. That being said, that rating does not mean that children cannot still buy FIFA, as an M rating only means that it is recommended that people need to be over 15 to play. This does not apply to the R18+ ratings that might occur with other games that more directly simulate actual gambling. R18+ ratings signify that a person under 18 is not allowed to buy the game at all.
While ABC news notes that this gambling restriction is important for games that put a heavy emphasis on that feature, the same types of ratings will also be given to games where gambling will be less prominent as well. In a statement made by Communications Minister Michelle Rowland, she notes that:
“We want to be very clear and very binary in this regard, and the certainty that is provided by a proposal that says if there is simulated gambling in a game, then it is subject to a particular rating.”
This is not a new issue. The Austrian court was recently in a lawsuit over FIFA loot boxes deeming that they violated the country’s gambling laws. This new proposal seems to be the Austrian Government’s method to cracking down on games akin to FIFA that could influence minors to gamble in an unrestricted way.