Rockstar's recently released downloadable add-on has has been? ?granted an MA15?+ ?rating from the Australian Classification Board without the title undergoing any cuts,? ?yet criticism is being thrown at the organisation because the DLC's host-title,? ?GTAIV,? ?was? ?awarded an MA+15? ?after it underwent content cuts.
Critics say that the strong similarities between GTAIV and The Lost and Damned add-on casts light on the disparity at the Australian classification group,? ?a body which had initially refused classification for a number of high profile games such as Silent Hill:? ?Homecoming and Fallout? ?3.
Yet the Board's handling of the matter may be advocated by the fact that its GTA IV? ?information page clearly shows that the title hasn't ever been refused classification.? ?Rockstar had censored the content before showing it to the classification board,? ?and the game was granted submission on its first attempt.?
Essentially,? ?the Board has accepted everything that Rockstar has submitted to it in this case without calling for a change to the content?; ?a sign perhaps that the group is more relaxed towards violent game content than its critics suggest.?
Yet the highest possible classification bracket in Australia remains at? ?15+,? ?meaning that the board will continue to review content under this rule,? ?and that publishers will continue to censor content to avoid having to pay for a second submission.