Valve has submitted an edited version of Left 4 Dead 2 for classification in Australia, the company's director Gabe Newell revealed at a press conference in Sydney yesterday. The game was effectively banned after it was refused classification by Australia's Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) three weeks ago, a decision which Valve is appealing.

Newell was surprised at the OFLC's refusal to classify the game as originally submitted. "I thought Left 4 Dead 2 would get the same treatment as Left 4 Dead 1," he said. Australia does not have a rating for games higher than MA15+, which means games with mature content that elsewhere receive higher ratings (such as R16 or R18 in New Zealand) are not able to be sold in Australia without being censored.

New Zealand gamers should not be affected if Australia does receive an edited version of Left 4 Dead 2. The game is currently being reviewed by the NZ OFLC, and Electronic Arts NZ told Gameplanet that because there is an R18 classification here, EA is "confident that an uncensored version of Left 4 Dead 2 will be available to NZ consumers." EA confirmed it would be able to bring in the global version of the game for NZ, regardless of what stock Australia received.

Here's today's roundup of top stories from elsewhere on the internet:

OnLive closes its biggest round of funding so far (GamesIndustry.biz) - Gamers might consider the service to be vapourware that will never get off the ground, but apparently some big corporations have faith in it. Cloud gaming service OnLive has closed a "major round of funding" from AT&T, Autodesk, Warner Bros, Lauder Partners and Maverick Capital. OnLive CEO Steve Perlman said the funding – an undisclosed amount – was much larger than previous rounds and "gives us a serious jolt of rocket fuel" as the company prepares to launch its on-demand gaming service this summer. It began beta testing in September.

Australian authorities split over video game ratings (News.com.au) - The recent decision by Australia's censorship board to refuse classification of zombie shooter sequel Left 4 Dead 2 (Valve is appealing the decision) has highlighted Australia's broken ratings system, which tops out at MA15+ for video games. Bringing in an R18+ rating would require all of Australia's attorneys-general to agree, but South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson is holding out. He said the interactive nature of video games meant they had a much greater influence than viewing a film or reading a book.

 

Valve has formally appealed the Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) decision to refuse a rating on zombie shooter sequel Left 4 Dead 2. Without a rating the game will effectively be banned from sale in the country.

Left 4 Dead 2 is currently being considered by the New Zealand OFLC for classification, with an R16 or R18 rating likely. Australia however does not have a rating higher than MA 15+, which has repeatedly caused problems for mature games being released in the territory.

If the game remains banned in Australia it should not affect its release in New Zealand, however if Valve is forced to censor the game to get it on sale in Oz, then kiwis buying the game at retail may get stuck with a censored version as well.

Fans may have been outraged that Valve is leaving the first game for dead (ha, ha) so soon, but here's some new screens of the zombie-killing sequel anyway.

The Left 4 Dead Steam community has joined together to campaign against the release of Left 4 Dead 2.

Fans are outraged that developers Valve have failed to provide extra content for the original Left 4 Dead, and that the additional content announced for Left 4 Dead 2 doesn't warrant a standalone sequel.

The Steam community page in question contains statements such as "The release of Left 4 Dead 2 as a stand-alone sequel will split the communities and decrease the quality of multiplayer gaming", and "Left 4 Dead has not yet received the support and content which Valve has repeatedly stated will be delivered." The group demands that Valve "honour its commitment to release ongoing periodic content for Left 4 Dead", and that "Left 4 Dead owners be given discounts for Left 4 Dead 2, should it be released as premium content."

 

Valve have today announced that Left 4 Dead 2, the sequel to the highly acclaimed Left 4 Dead, is in development.

Coming exclusively to Xbox 360 and PC on November 17, the title adds melee combat to enable deeper co-operative gameplay, with items such as a chainsaw, frying pan, axe, baseball bat, and more.

"A large part of how Left 4 Dead became 2008's top-selling new IP on Xbox 360 and the PC was the custom-tailored gameplay made possible by the AI Director," said Gabe Newell, president and co-founder of Valve. "With the knowledge gained from creating the original, new technology, and a passionate team, Left 4 Dead 2 will set a new benchmark for cooperative action games."