September 5, 2008
Fallout 3 has been cleared for sale in the U.K. with no content edits required.
That's the word from the British Board of Film Classification, which yesterday stamped the much-anticipated Bethesda title with an 18 rating, meaning that it can legally be sold to those of that age and older.
Curiously, a "consumer advice" note posted with the rating decision does not mention the drug use which got Fallout 3 banned in Australia earlier this year. The only reference to content is "Contains very strong bloody violence and gore."
The BBFC, currently embroiled in a power struggle for control of U.K. game ratings, is best known to gamers for the outright ban it placed on Manhunt 2 last year. That decision was later overturned by Britain's High Court.
Comments
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
In the original fallout 1/2 you could murder children while on drugs and that made it to the USA fine. Didn't turn anyone I know into a child killing jet addictSmile. Though I think the children had to be removed from the European version.
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Madhu
www.legalx.net
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Looks like I'll be importing from the UK again. Eat shit Atkinson.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
I'm not really surprised. besides here in the UK violence is considered bad. Whereas bad language and nudity, no problem! But someone said that makes us Liberal? No, it just means we're not bible bashing idiots!
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Curiously, the only story in this story is the "curiously" paragraph that compares it to Australia. .
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
well, for once they have done something right
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
So much fail in this comment. No seriously, all of you US posters who had never heard of the BBFC until the Manhunt thing just really have no clue about things on this side of the pond.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
If by "for once" you mewan "the countless times outside observers fail to notice all the other BBFC 18-rated games" then, yes, i'd agree.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Good play BBFC!
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Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Can it be that everyone has run out of verbal napalm for these stories? A little of my faith in humanity has been restored! :P
Gift.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Dennis:
You summary of the events of Manhunt 2 only succeed in furthering the miscomprehension of the work that the BBFC does in an almost tabloid-esque fashion. Can we stick to the facts please?
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
I think this may be the biggest non story i have read unless it's a preamble to a ban coming in australia.
Basically this story says Fallout 3 gets an 18 certificate as expected. I don't recall hearing for a ban being called either.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Because the BBFC aren't silly.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
If people had actually paid attention to the BBFC *before* Manhunt 2, they'd realise this behaviour is par for the course. Them not mentioning the drug references is nothing special - they would have played the game and therefore realised all such references were both allegorical and contextual.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
I would have thought that the BBFC would have leaped at the chance to ban the game, unless the realized that banning something that is popular is a bad move.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
You mean like the ESRB jumped at the chance to rerate Oblivion 18 after mods were found or GTA to AO after Hot Coffee? What did the BBFC do? Nothing. Why? Because they didn't bow to the pressure and lies spread by papers and news stations over Oblivion (it being mods not actual content) and also even IF GTA *HAD* been released with the sex it in, it STILL would have gotten an 18 rating because we aren't all squeamish about sex this side of the pond.
Now go away and do some research on the BBFC and then come back.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
If it did contain real sex then it would have been given a 18R rating meaning it could only be sold in 150 out of 325,000 retail outlets in the whole UK.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
18R is only restricted to hardcore pornography. And 150 sex stores? Get real, Anne Summers is a licenced store thats allowed to sell R18 material and there is at least 150 of them in the UK alone.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
I stand corrected on that, I did some further checking and although I can't find up to date stats, 120 stores was the figure for 2001. I could have sworn I seen R18 dvd's last time I was Anne Summers but it must have been plain ordinary 18 dvds.
Its just seems like such a low number when you consider the crazy volume of R18 material thats avalible (for example check out the recent BBFC classification decisions DVD section, there are on average two or three new R18 movies a day.)
Anyways, sorry for the mistake on my part.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
If by "real sex" you mean humping of cartoon characters that didn't even show genitals... no, it would have got an 18 cert still.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Otherwise known as 'sex shops'. (Bit more than 150 though.)
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
????
Do you have any knowledge of the way in which games are rated in the UK?
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
A comment like that only goes to show you havn't got the first clue about the BBFC or how they function
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
The BBFC have been rating games since the 1980s and only twice have they refused classification, and that was only becuase of pressure from the media, something neither the ESRB or PEGI is immune to. What makes you assume they'd jump at the chance? They're not nearly as dranconian as US posters who have probably never even visited the UK make out. In fact, they're very liberal, leading to a '12' rating for Mass Effect, when everybody else rated it 16+.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits
Aww, I'm 17!
Thank GOD for amazon! (special edition baby!)
Error in summary.
The ban was not overturned by the British High Court. The only part the courts played was when the BBFC applied for a judicial review of the original report the VAC submitted. The High Court ruled that the report did not correctly address the criteria in the video records act and required the VAC to re-review its finding. The VAC then filed a second report that did address the video recordings act upon which the BBFC were required to issue the classification which they did.
At no point did the High Court overturn anything besides he VAC's original report.
Re: Error in summary.
Ya... and without the court to to go to the ban would never be lifted so thus in tuth the high court did overturn it becuse the bbfc didnt want to take it to full court.
At least try and addmit the process is bit suspect.. you brits can't be preft in everything! ^_~
I is fuzzy brained mew =^^=
http://zippydsmlee.wordpress.com/
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Copyright infringement is nothing more than civil disobedience to a bad set of laws. Let's renegotiate them.
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Re: Error in summary.
Actually Zipster, it was the VAC that didn't want to take it to the High Court, not the BBFC. The BBFC wanted a judicial review, hence the case being taken to a Judge. End of, really. Nothing suspect IMHO.
Re: BBFC Rates Fallout 3 an 18 with No Edits