Welcome on-board, Queensland. You now have an R18+ rating for video games like the rest of Australia, but it has come shrouded in a cloud of confusion.
"The introduction of this classification should be welcome news for parents, who will now have more control over the games their children are playing," said Jarrod Bleijie, Queensland Attorney-General.
"I encourage parents to be guided by these classifications, as I’m sure many are unaware of the levels of violence and adult material contained in some computer games."
R18+ came into effect for the rest of Australia on January 1, but Queensland missed the deadline to pass the legislation late last year.
The vote this afternoon to pass it through parliament was marred further confusion, reports Kotaku. The Attorney-General's office accidentally sent out the press release before the vote had taken place, forcing a retraction.
According to media releases, Queensland had an R18+ rating today, then didn't actually have one, and now has it again -- what an ordeal.
The good news is, at the end of that debacle, the R18+ rating for games is now standard across Australia, including Queensland, as long as the Governor signs off to make it legit -- considering the shambloic state of events, I wouldn't be surprised if there's a pen shortage.
By Ben Salter