Following the recent SCAG meeting, which spectacularly failed to provide any concrete information on whether the R18+ rating for games was going to go ahead or not, Australian Gamer has got hold of the decision summary from the December 10 meeting. We reprint it here below in its entirety:

Ministers considered further work done to analyse community and expert views, including:

(a) a national telephone poll conducted during November which provided Ministers with additional community feedback from a random sample of Australians from all States and Territories
(b) a literature review of research exploring links between computer games and violent behaviour
(c) a study of parity between computer game classifications internationally
(d) a panel discussion between representatives in the fields of computer games, psychology and classification, and
(e) advice from the Classification Board on the operation of the current MA 15+ classification and options for an R 18+ classification.

Ministers:

(a) will consider draft guidelines to be developed for classification of games at their next meeting, including a possible R18+ classification, taking into account concerns raised by Ministers relating to the difference in nature of film and games; and the interactivity of games; and that there will continue to be a refused classification category, and
(b) do not support the dilution of the refused classification category.

What does it all mean? Good question. What it really boils down to is that despite overwhelming community support, cripplingly inconsistent work by the Classification Board, and even the government admitting that there is no substance to the claim that the interactive nature of video games makes them more influential than any other medium, the future of the ratings system still remains entirely in the hands of men who remain generally unconvinced.

While we can understand that being an attorney-general involves a lot of pressure and that their duties actually do extend outside the realm of their role as Classification Minister for their particularly state or territory, the issue has dragged on for long enough now that the lack of resolution, or even in-principle support, is worrying. Hopefully the next meeting in March can give us something more.

Thanks to Australian Gamer.