Saints Row 4 Banned In Australia

Deep Silver has confirmed that Saints Row 4 was denied an age classification in Australia, because of an “Alien Anal Probe” joke weapon that’s in the game. The game was effectively banned despite Australia‘s new adult R18+ category for computer games.

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This makes Saints Row 4 the first computer game in Australia to be Refused Classification under the Guidelines for the Classification of Computer Games that commenced on January 1st, 2013.

As a result of the ban, the developer Volition are reworking some of the code to create a version of the game for this territory by removing the content which could cause offence without reducing the outlandish gameplay that Saints Row fans know and love. In Europe and America, Saints Row 4 has been awarded PEGI 18 and ESRB M for Mature ratings where fans can enjoy their time in Steelport as originally intended.

Read the full Australian Classification Board statement that explains the ban in hilarious detail: 😆

“The game includes a weapon referred to by the Applicant as an “Alien Anal Probe”. The Applicant states that this weapon can be “shoved into enemy’s backsides”. The lower half of the weapon resembles a sword hilt and the upper part contains prong-like appendages which circle around what appears to be a large dildo which runs down the centre of the weapon. When using this weapon the player approaches a clothed victim from behind and thrusts the weapon between the victim’s legs and then lifts them off the ground before pulling a trigger which launches the victim into the air. After the probe has been implicitly inserted into the victim’s anus the area around their buttocks becomes pixelated highlighting that the aim of the weapon is to penetrate the victim’s anus. The weapon can be used during gameplay on enemy characters or civilians. In the Board’s opinion, a weapon designed to penetrate the anus of enemy characters and civilians constitutes a visual depiction of implied sexual violence that is interactive and not justified by context and as such the game should be Refused Classification.

The game contains an optional mission which involves the player obtaining and smoking drugs referred to as “alien narcotics”. Smoking the “alien narcotics” equips the player with “superpowers” which increase their in-game abilities allowing them to progress through the mission more easily.”

I talked about circumventing the ban with an Australian friend who owned a game store, and he said that importing the uncut game from the same PAL region Europe would be met at the Australian customs with really heavy fines! So that’s not even an option for fans of the series in Ozzy.