Censorship laws

Video games are not all about Pac-Man and Space Invaders – and equally, they’re not all about Grand Theft Auto and Manhunt. The video game market is diverse, with pre-school titles, R18 shooters, sports simulators, fitness programs, and free web games all jostling for attention. The methods of acquiring and playing games are also expanding beyond retail models.

These developments put our censorship laws increasingly behind the times, says Chief Censor Bill Hastings.

Labelling issues

Anything that gets rated as MA15+ in Australia has to pass through Bill Hastings’ office. He says that “we probably see 50-70 games a year, which is obviously only a small portion of the games that arrive in New Zealand”. This is something he’d like to change. “I want to repeal a section that exempts video games from labelling requirements,” says Hastings. “It came into force in 1994, when video games were apparently seen as too harmless to require rating.”

This is hardly the case today. So why hasn’t it been changed? Hastings cites dealing with two departments: it’s administered by the Ministry of Justice and the Department of Internal Affairs. “But I’m hoping my proposal to the new government will see some movement on this front.”

The result of this law is video games have a variety of labels from New Zealand and Australia which can leave parents confused about what titles are appropriate for their children. Hastings wants every game here to carry a New Zealand label, bringing them in line with other media such as DVDs.

In the meantime, it’s still worth paying attention to labels: anything with an “R” is inappropriate for children.

Rating labels found on games in New Zealand

New Zealand ratings	Australian ratings

These labels are found on electronic games sold in New Zealand. All games with R labels are legally restricted. All other games can be bought, given to, or played by anyone.

The law and parents

There has been an outcry over R16 or R18 video games getting into the hands of children. “Parents are a funny bunch,” says Hastings. “Often you’ll get groups or individuals saying we shouldn’t be letting our youth play these R18 games. My standard reply is … you shouldn’t be letting your kids play. So they come back and say it’s obvious kids are playing them, so we should ban them all.

“We’ve got the developers on side – they market only for an older audience and spend their resources targeting those who are allowed to play their games. And we’ve now got the retailers educated: they have posters up in their stores. And yet still we hear through various surveys that kids are getting their hands on these restricted games – and the only place left is the parents.”

It’s illegal to allow children to play restricted video games, even in your own home. But many parents aren’t getting the message. “They treat these games simply as babysitters. Anything to keep junior quiet for hours in his bedroom has to be good, right? Well, no, actually!” says Hastings.