State of Decay Refused Classification in Australia

State of Decay has joined Saints Row IV as the second game in 24 hours refused classification in Australia.

Writing on the Undead Labs forum, executive producer Jeff Strain shared the bad news.

"I have bad news to share" wrote Strain. "State of Decay has been refused classification by the Australian Classification Board (ACB). We've run afoul of certain prohibitions regarding the depiction of drug use. We're working with Microsoft to come up with options, including changing names of certain medications in the game to comply with ratings requirements. Whatever our path forward, it's going to take a bit."

"I know this is frustrating – believe me, we're frustrated too – but each country has the right set [sic] its own rules about content, and it's our responsibility to comply with them. Rest assured we'll do everything we can to find a way to get the game into your hands. Stay tuned."

The Classification Board is yet to release a statement.

Yesterday afternoon it was revealed Saints Row IV had been refused classification in Australia for the use of an anal probe weapon the Classification Board felt constituted a visual depiction of implied sexual violence, plus drug use related to in-game rewards (in this case, superpowers).

Since State of Decay's launch on June 5 the open-world zombie survival RPG has gone on to become the fastest-selling Xbox Live Arcade game ever, notching up 500,000 paid downloads in less than two weeks.

Games containing drug use related to incentives or rewards have historically had problems being rated in Australia. In 2008 Fallout 3 fell foul of the guideline, prompting Bethesda to steer clear of using real-world terms like morphine in its game. A modified Fallout 3 was rated and made available for sale. In 2007 Blitz: The League was refused classification for steroid use. It remains forbidden from sale in the country.

Luke is Games Editor at IGN AU. You can find him on IGN here or on Twitter @MrLukeReilly, or chat with him and the rest of the Australian team by joining the IGN Australia Facebook community.

Source : ign[dot]com