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‘Disco Elysium: The Final Cut’ refused classification in Australia

The heavy themes found within Disco Elysium: The Final Cut have proved a little too much for the Australian Classifications Board, who have refused classification on the game.

This news comes in just before Disco Elysium: The Final Cut’s intended console launch on March 30th.

While the digital copies of the game are not affected by this decision, it does hold a somewhat ominous forecast for the physical copies that were set to release for PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch consoles.

Disco Elysium

The board’s decision to not classify Disco Elysium – or rather, classify as ‘Refused Classification’ (RC) – means that retailers are not able to physically stock or sell the game. According to the official website, being refused classification entails that, “films, computer games and publications that cannot be sold, hired, advertised or legally imported in Australia.”

If you wanted to look deeper into the reasons for a non-rating, it is generally because “RC-classified material contains content that is very high in impact and falls outside generally-accepted community standards.”

Which is exactly what the Australian Classification Board have quoted their decision to be. Basically, the themes within Disco Elysium were said to “depict, express or otherwise deal with matters of sex, drug misuse or addiction, crime, cruelty, violence or revolting or abhorrent phenomena in such a way that they offend against the standards of morality”.

Many weren’t satisfied with this reason.

Published by ZA/UM in 2019, Disco Elysium soon became a standout CRPG title well known for immersive detective roles, hailed as one of the best role-playing games in recent years. It was listed as PC Gamer’s Game of the Year in 2019 and achieved a score of 91 on Metacritic, and that’s just a few of its accomplishments.

Without giving away any major spoilers, the game starts off with the protagonist waking up absolutely guttered in a hotel room with with a massive hangover and amnesia. As you do. A lieutenant approaches soon after, where players then embark on a journey to solve a murder and uncover the identity of the protagonist – with drugs and alcohol accompanying the characters side-by-side.

It’s an evocative gaming title to say the least. But that’s what lured so many people in.

However, since the Australian Classification Board has effectively banned the game from retailers, the future remains as fuzzy as ever for the Disco Elysium universe. Not all hope is lost, though.

There have been instances in the past where games were refused classification due to certain forms being incorrectly filled out – but nothing is certain until an official statement is released.

In the meantime, keep an eye out on Steam to grab a copy of Disco Elysium: The Final Cut when it officially drops on March 30th.