Halloween video game banned in Australia — but not over the violence

Developer Illfonic's upcoming title Halloween: The Game recreates the terror of horror icon Michael Myers with especially gruesome kills, including stomping an opponent's head through a toilet seat or throwing them through a television screen. Yet the Australian Classification Board has refused to classify the game for sale in the country — not because of its violence, but because players can smoke marijuana to reveal Michael Myers' location and avoid being killed, which the board ruled constitutes a "gameplay advantage."

Under the 2023 Guidelines for the Classification of Computer Games, titles are refused classification if they depict illicit drug use tied to an incentive or reward. The decision has sparked significant backlash, with Illfonic's social media accounts flooded with angry comments from Australian players, and the board reportedly receiving more than 500 complaints over the ruling.

This is not an isolated case — games including State of Decay, Wasteland 3 and Saints Row IV were previously banned in Australia for the same reason, incentivised drug use, before later being reclassified and released after developers altered the offending content.

Experts point to longstanding flaws in Australia's game classification system, which assumes interactive media has a greater impact than similar content in film, and that games are primarily played by children — despite research showing most players are adults. Academics and industry figures argue the current standards are inconsistent and out of step with community expectations.

The Australian government is currently reviewing its classification guidelines, aiming for a more consistent approach across film, games and publications. Illfonic has so far given no indication it plans to alter the game's content to secure classification in Australia.