Gory zombie game toned down
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The makers of Left 4 Dead 2 have changed the highly-anticipated zombie video game so it can go on sale in Australia.
The sequel to the popular zombie killing experience Left 4 Dead is set for worldwide release in November.
But Australia's censorship board last month refused to give it the virtual zombie hunt classification at all, saying its high impact violence made it unsuitable for people under 18.
But the board has given the OK to a toned-down version of the game because it meets Australia's MA15+ requirements.
The board's report said melee weapons such as "axes, crowbars and chainsaws" were still in the game, but other features had been edited out.
"The board notes that the game no longer contains depictions of decapitation, dismemberment, wound detail or piles of dead bodies lying about the environment," it said.
The changes have left some gamers and online right groups up in arms.
Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA) board member Geordie Guy says the Left 4 Dead 2 case shows how far Australia is behind.
He says Australia needs an R rating for video games, like films have.
"We're a little bit of a laughing stock in the global gaming community," he told ABC News Online.
"Other countries in the world do have adult ratings for computers because they recognise adults play computer games and enjoy different sorts of computer games than those for children.
"It's sad that we don't get the full experience of the game but still have to pay the full price and it's sad that developers have to jump through hoops in Australia that they don't have to jump through elsewhere in the world."
Jeremy Ray, a reviewer from ABC TV's Good Game, has played the sequel in the US and does not think it is too different from the first.
"It's on the same engine as the last game; it's got a few extra weapons," he told ABC News Online.
"The main fuss was about the melee weapons, which you can use to take the limbs off some of the zombies.
"But the additions are actually pretty small - instead of bullets in some guns, you'll have flaming bullets and stuff like that.
"It's pretty frantic zombie killing."
Ray, also known as the Junglist, says there are worse games already on the market.
He believes the classification issues are leading to bigger problems in Australia.
"In a way it's sort of encouraging Australian adults to buy from overseas, or even worse, pirate games," he said.
"As adults gamers are going to get the content that they want - we're a very internet-savvy generation."