Office of Film and Literature Classification

From the Super Mario Wiki

The Office of Film and Literature Classification is a statutory censorship and classification body which provides administrative support for the Classification Board which classifies films, video games and publications in Australia, and the Classification Review Board which reviews films, computer games and publications when a valid application has been made.

It is basically Australia's equivalent of the ESRB or PEGI.

The Classification Board and the Classification Review Board are established by the Classification (Publications, Films and Computer Games) Act 1995 (Cth). This Act also contains the National Classification Code. Though the Office of Film and Literature Classification has taken 'censorship' out of its title it is able to censor media by refusing classification and making the media illegal for hire, exhibition and importation to Australia. This has attracted particular controversy in the case of computer and video games as the R18+ classification does not exist for video games.

[edit] Ratings

G: (General) These games are for suitable for all ages. The content is very mild in impact. Most Mario games receive this rating because of their mild, cartoon-style violence which is not unsuitable for young gamers. Recently, Mario games have been receiving less G ratings and more PGs, for reasons such as "mild gambling references" and "gaming experience may change online" for Wi-Fi compatible games.

PG: (Parental guidance recommended) - These games contain material that may confuse or upset younger viewers. The content is mild in impact. This is commonly used for games that have mild fantasy violence, mild gambling references, etc. Games such as Super Mario 64 DS have gambling references which are minor in the game but very obvious, but this particular game is still rated G, despite having a factor that usually contributes to a PG rating.

M: (Recommended for mature audiences) - Games containing material that requires a mature perspective. This classification was formerly known as M15+. There is no restriction on purchase, however. The content is moderate in impact. This rating is common for games with moderate violence, coarse language and/or sexual references. As Mario games generally contain no blood-and-gore violence, none have received this rating; Super Smash Bros. Brawl, however, did receive an 'M' rating from the OFLC.

MA15+: (Not suitable for people under 15) - The content is considered unsuitable for play by persons under the age of 15. Persons under 15 may only legally purchase or exhibit MA15+ rated content under the supervision of an adult guardian. This is a legally restricted category. Video games which exceed the impact of what the MA15+ rating allows are refused classification in Australia, and cannot be distributed. Games refused classification may be edited and resubmitted by their developers to garner an MA15+ classification. The content is strong in impact. No Mario or Super Smash Bros. games have ever fallen into this category.

R18+: (Restricted to 18 and over) If any game reviewed by the OFLC fits into this category, it is not allowed to be distributed in the country. The company that made the game may have to modify their product to achieve a MA15+ rating. No Mario or Super Smash Bros. games have ever fallen into this category.

X18+: As it is beyond the 18+ rating, this does not apply to video games.

Companies
AlphaDream | Arika | Artoon | Camelot | Capcom | CERO | DIC | ESRB | Fuse | Game Freak | Good-Feel | HAL | Hudson Soft | Intelligent Systems | Jupiter | Konami | Namco Bandai | Next Level Games | Nintendo | OFLC | Paon | PEGI | Rare | Sega | Sora Ltd. | Square Enix | St.GIGA | SUZAK Inc. | TOSE | Treasure | Valiant