Q&A: Aussie ratings board head Des Clark

Ask any Australian gamer what the most pressing issue is for games Down Under, and chances are they'll say the country needs to introduce an R18+ rating for software. The lack of an R rating--which essentially means that any game deemed by the Office of Film and Literature Classification as unsuitable for anyone under the age of 18 is banned--has resulted in games like Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure and more recently Blitz: The League being unavailable in Australia. GameSpot AU caught up with OFLC director Des Clark at the International Ratings Conference in Sydney this week to ask his opinion on games classification Down Under.

GameSpot AU: How does Australia's ratings system for games compare to other nations?

Des Clark: We're unique in that we early on recognised convergence, and therefore we recognised it was necessary to converge our ratings system all the way across. I'm unaware of any other country that does that, although many are interested in the way we do that because it makes good sense. The systems compare reasonably well--we all speak the same language, so to speak. The difference is that some countries are industry-based systems, like the US and Europe, and others are regulated, like Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand. But there are enormous similarities across the board, except that we don't have an R rating for games, and those other cultures do.

GS AU: Do you think the Australian community is generally accepting of the fact that we don't have an R rating for games?

DC: The community is very, very accepting of the current system. Those are issues [introducing an R rating] that government ministers have considered in the past and are not prepared to proceed with, so that's the way it is. That's the reality.

GS AU: For games, how important are classifications, particularly for parents looking for advice?

DC: I think it's really important, because there's a lack of certainty with a lot of parents about what the content is likely to be. There's a broader lack of trust within some sectors of the community about games, and so therefore the more that ratings of games are providing sound advice for parents, the more we will build greater trust in the games and their content, and especially teach young children how to play with them and make choices.

GS AU: Should Australia have an R rating for games?

DC: That's a policy question and not something the Classification Board will respond to in any way.

GS AU: Do you forecast that it will eventually happen?

DC: I'm not speculating.

GS AU: Apart from an R rating, what other pressing issues are there for games classification?

DC: Online gaming is one of the issues that need to be looked at in the future. I think the level of resolution of graphics and the impact of games will also be a bit of a challenge as time progresses.

GS AU: What is it specifically about online games that is a concern?

DC: We believe it's possible to rate [online games]. Games where you buy a physical device to go online do have to be rated. And so we're proposing a new statement [to add to a rating]; something along the lines of "Gameplay may change when online," so that we're providing further advice. We're currently talking to the industry about this, and they will respond to us shortly. It's a new bit of consumer advice that we're proposing to use to inform Australian consumers.

GS AU: What about downloadable content that is made available after a game's initial release?

DC: That's fine, because that's a choice that people make. I think game manufacturers are pretty realistic and reasonable--if they know something is rating at a particular level, they're not going to start putting in stuff at a higher level, particularly if it's stuff that children play, because consumers will react. Consumers will have their say if the game manufacturers start doing silly things. In my experience with the game industry, they're a very responsible group of people who do the right thing.

GS AU: Des Clark, thanks for your time.