EA calls Australia's Syndicate ban regrettable

Yesterday it was revealed tha🐷t Starbreeze's Syndicate reboot had been refused classification by the Australian Classification Board, effectively banning it from sale within the country. Today, EA released an official response deriding the decision, and urging swifter policy changes.

“It's regrettable that government policy in Australia is denying adults the right to play Syndicate," said an EA rep in a , adding, "The game will be not be available in Australia despite its enthusia☂stic response🍃 from fans."

T༺he reaction comes two days after the Classification Board released its on Syndicate, calling the titled “unsuitable for a minor” due in part to the game's excessive violence, realistic portrayals of dismemberment and decapitation, and a cooperative gameplay mechanic which rewards players for civilian casualties. The report concluded Syndicate's content exceeded Australia's maximum 15+ rating requirements, and therefore had no place on retail shelves.

at a federal level. While a promising first step, the Classification Branch's Manager of Applications, David Emery, it could be years before the mature rating is o▨fficially adopted, explaining, “There is legislation that’s been put to Parliament about the changes...What happens next is a long process again — it’s probably going to take another couple of years before you’re actually going to get an R18 that you can aꦅpply for, like a conventional classification that you have today.”

EA acknowledged the proposed revision in today's response, adding, "We were encouraged by the government's recent agreement to adopt an 18+ age rating for games. We urge policy makers to take swift action to implement an updated policy t🎐hat reflects today's market and gives its millions of adult consumers the right to make their own content choices."

In short, there will be no Syndicate for Australia anytime s🎐oon... but maybe a 2014 Special Edition?

Matt Bradford wrote 🌳news and features here at GamesRadar+ until 2016. Since then he's gone on to work with the Guinness World Records, acting as writer and researcher for the annual Gamer's Edition series of books, and has worked as an editor, technical writer, and voice actor. Matt is now a freelance journalist and editor, generating copy across a multitude of in🧸dustries.