This has probably been posted already, but i am posting it just in case.

After being accepted by ratings boards in North America, New Zealand, Germany, and the UK, Grand Theft Auto IV has hit its first stumbling block in Australia. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the game has been edited in order to qualify for a MA15+ rating in that country. Rockstar declined to comment on what exactly had been removed.

This type of censorship is not new to Australians though, as that country's ratings board does not have the equivalent of a Mature, or 17/18+ rating, and as such is forced to edit many mature titles to make them more suitable for that age range. It is especially not new to Rockstar, who was forced to release edited versions of GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas, in addition to the upcoming GTA IV.

GTA IV is due to hit Australia, as well as the rest of the world, on April 29 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Source

OMG GTA would not be GTA if it was censored.

This has got to help PS3, because most gamers will not want a censored version.

Thank Sony for PS3 region free games.

Was anyone here from Australia previously going to buy the X360 version, but is now importing the PS3 version because of this? 

the thing i wish they would take out is teh drunk driving game---its just not right to promote that type of thing

i have had friends die b/c soe ass thought he could get behind a well while drunk

There was a pretty lengthy discussion in Game Informer about the drunk driving aspect of the game. Personally, I'm glad they kept it in when they know they're going to catch a lot of flak for doing so. From what Rockstar was saying, it's not a "funny" aspect of the game and is just one more aspect of the title that brings in a bit of realism to the series.

Like killing hookers and taking their money.

I like how they talk about the controversy of drinking and driving in the game. There's nothing that tries to get you to drink and drive in the game, they've just given you the ability to drink, and the ability to drive. YOu could get drunk and take a cab or walk home as well, it's not like drinking and driving is the only option.

i remember reading in EGM when they sat down with the Dev he was talking about some of the best parts will be going out with your in game friends then trying to make it home in one piece...its just not cool they should have sent a more responsible message that after a point your keys get pulled and he refuses to take a car and mumbles something about being to trashed

i once knocked a guy out so he could drive home (at my bachelor party..clocked him in the jaw square)

That's really messed up. So.. if its above a 15 nobody can buy it in Australia? Adults should have the right to play whatever they want,  without a nanny looking over their shoulders.

It's not entertainment's job to teach people responsible behavior.

So that's what you do with your free time when you're not gaming.  I knew it! 

It's true that some people will take the wrong message from this, but I don't want my gaming to be restricted because of a few dumb asses. I understand your disgust, but I personally am going to try it out for shits and giggles, and I'll laugh about all the stuff I hit while trying to get back home. Does this mean that I'm going to drink and drive in real life? Fuck no, it simply means that I wanted to try something that I'll never do in real life without the consequences that go along with it. That's a big part of what gaming is about if you ask me, doing things in a video game that you can't or wouldn't do in real life.