Saints Row IV Banned Down Under

Saints Row IV will be the first game in Australia to be banned under newly implemented guidelines for the Classification of Computer Games, which was put in to place on January 1st, 2013. The Classification Board have classified the game as RC (also known as Refused Classification), which means Saints Row IV will not be displayed or sold within Australia.

The board’s reasoning behind their decision was that the game included interactive, sexual violence which wasn’t justified. I think it’s safe to say ‘The Penetrator’ from Saints Row: The Third wasn’t a hit with the board then. The Board also didn’t like how Saints Row IV includes elements of drug use, which gave players rewards or incentives. I wonder if they like Dubstep…

“Apart from today’s decision, since the beginning of the year, the Board has classified 17 games R18+ under the new guidelines” said Acting Director of the Classification Board, Donald McDonald. Since January 1st, no game has exceeded the R18+ rating, until now. The games creators, Deep Silver, can appeal the decision but with the footage seen so far of Saints Row IV, it seems rather unlikely.