It seems there has been some small developments in the quest for an R18+ rating for video games in Australia.
The first bit of "news" is that the new game "FEAR 2: Project Origin" has been refused classification. FEAR is an action-horror type of game, clearly aimed at adults. Of course it's not appropriate for people under 18!
Secondly, a study, conducted by Bond University and Neilson, found that 91% of respondents (gamers and non-gamers) were in favour of an R18+ rating (a summary of the report is here). Also mentioned in that study is the fact that the average gamer is now 30 years old. That means if you were born in the 80's, you're younger than most gamers in Australia!
However, Michael Atkinson (whom I've mentioned before), was interviewed by ABC's Good Game and basically said the research was "totally bogus". His reasoning? It was funded by the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia.
Um, so? Research has to be funded by someone. Why don't you do some actual research yourself, Mr Atkinson, instead of just assuming that everybody agrees with you? And get a reputable company like Neilson to do the work and a reputable institution like Bond to perform the analysis! Oh wait, you don't need to do that, because it's already been done for you.