DayZ Gets Banned In Australia Over Something That Doesn’t Even Exist Yet
Though Bohemia Interactive’s zombie survival-shooter DayZ has long been available digitally across multiple platforms, the developer recently began plans for a physical release in Australia. However, it appears the road to a disc-based launch Down Under has hit a considerable snag, as the country has reportedly opted not to classify DayZ and banned sale of the game based on a supposed inclusion of marijuana.
According to Kotaku AU, the Australian Classification Board has deemed DayZ unfit for physical release after discovering references to a health-restoring “cannabis” item stored in the game’s files. While not currently implemented in-game, the existence of weed in an unused capacity was still enough to fully disqualify a release in Australia. The denial specifically cites “illicit or proscribed drug use related to incentives or rewards, ” an action which “exceeds what can be accommodated within the R18+ classification.”
This ruling to ban DayZ is in spite of the game’s MA15+ rating, which was previously awarded upon its original digital AU release. However strange, this physical snub was only be the beginning, as the Board has also fulfilled plans to pull classification from digital storefronts as well, effectively banning all sales of the game in Australia. Developer Bohemia addressed the shooter’s complete unavailability in a new statement, confirming work to alter the game’s content to better meet the these updated standards.
Assuring an “authentic” gameplay experience, the studio expressed a desire to keep the DayZ experience streamlined as they prepare to deploy the appropriate tweaks across Australia, in addition to all other available regions. “We don’t want to separate Australian players from the rest of the world, since many people play cross-region,” the studio confirmed with Kotaku AU. “We love that DayZ is the place to meet with friends and experience the game without dramatic regional lag. We don’t want to change that.”
At the moment, we are editing the global version of DayZ so it will fit into the Board’s requirements. The key objective is to keep the gameplay as authentic as it was, so players are not affected by this change.”
While weed in games is nothing new in 2019, the substance nonetheless continues to be a sore subject among many of the world’s governments. That being said, it’s still somewhat difficult to wrap one’s mind around Australia’s ban of DayZ, especially as the decision hinges on material that isn’t even readily available in the game. Still, with devs working to get the game back online, one also has to commend Bohemia for not leaving Australia out of the fun, even if it means fans won’t get to blaze it up in an in-game celebration of 420.
DayZ is currently available in non-Australian regions for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
What do you think? Are you baffled by the decision to ban DayZ, or are you unsurprised by any ruling by the notoriously strict Australian Classification Board? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day! For more headlines recently featured on DFTG, check out these next few news stories:
Eric Hall2712 Posts
Phone-browsing Wikipedia in one hand and clutching his trusty controller in the other, the legendary Eric Hall spreads his wealth of knowledge as a writer for Don't Feed the Gamers. Be sure to catch his biweekly "Throwback Thursday" segment for a nostalgic look at trivia from the past.
