Sorry for the Pun, but seriously, another game banned from being released in Australia.
The game is called ‘The House of the Dead: Overkill’. “But wait” I hear you say, “isn’t that game already out the Wii and already rated only M15+?”
The short answer is ‘Yes’; however the game in discussion is the new updated 3D, PS3 Move compatible version of the game which has seen an overhaul of the graphics to HD and a few extra levels. Labelled by Sega as ‘Longer, Harder, Gorier’ I guess the rating board also had a label to offer the game ‘Illegal to Sell’. That’s right the board thought it best to just ban this filth in our fine land, girt by sea.
The full reason from the board seems a little strange (read an exert of the decision below). Yes, I agree it has had an update to HD, but that is what the PS3 is for. If the game was released on the HD console, on a BluRay disc with sub standard Wii style graphics the game would flop. However it is the same game! The graphics are clearer and look much prettier, but it’s the same thing on the screen. Since when has a game that splatters pixelated blood all over the screen been ok on a Wii, why not just let us have the HD version? Moreover on a console with a hardcore gaming and older fan base, more tolerant to graphic violence in gaming. I have seen Wii’s in old folks homes and kids after-school-care’s; this is not a game I can condone for them, even in a low-res medium.
The release statement is “The game contains very frequent, unrelenting and detailed violence accompanied by copious blood and gore detail inflicted on zombies and mutant beings. The player can use a variety of weapons including a crossbow that causes the zombies/mutants to explode on impact as well as handguns, hand cannons, machine guns, mini guns and assault rifles that may cause decapitations, dismemberment and blood spray. The “Hardcore” game mode allows the player to play in a manner that exceeds strong in impact engaging a headshot-only mode which results in frequent, detailed blood and gore as the zombies and mutants heads explode into bloody pieces that spread around the environment and onto the screen.” Sounds fun right?
Sega’s Managing Director Darren Macbeth has already been quoted as saying ““We will do everything we can to prove that House of the Dead: Overkill is worthy of an MA15+ rating in Australia. There are far worse titles currently available in the marketplace which involve more than shooting down mutants in humorous circumstances,”. So we can hold out some hope the game will see a TV screen somewhere in our country, at some time. Maybe Darren and Sega should just nut it out a few months and see if we receive an R18+ Classification within the near future and resubmit the game then. Instead I think we will see a dumbed-down version with no exploding babies and no screen splatter.
