{
  "id": 2810668,
  "title": "Illicit deeds have just gotten a new Halloween video game banned in Australia – and it’s not because of the violence",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/23/illicit-deeds-have-just-gotten-a-new-halloween-video-game-banned-in",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-23T15:00:36.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Guardian Australia",
    "slug": "the-guardian-australia",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/games/2026/aug/24/michael-myers-halloween-video-game-banned-in-australia-drugs"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In a move that defies expectations, the Australian Classification Board has banned the video game Halloween: The Game, not due to its graphic violence or portrayal of murders, but rather because of its \"incentivised drug use\" feature. This decision has sparked debate among academics and former officials, who claim the ban reflects a confusing and inconsistent set of standards in the country's classification process.",
  "summary": "Academics – and a former director of Australia’s Classification Board – say Halloween: The Game’s ban due to ‘incentivised drug use’ highlights an incoherent set of standards Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Halloween’s Michael Myers is one of film’s most feared boogeymen, responsible for some of the most brutal on-screen deaths in horror cinema. US video game…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Guardian",
        "title": "Illicit deeds have just gotten a new Halloween video game banned in Australia – and it’s not because of the violence",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/23/illicit-deeds-have-just-gotten-a-new-halloween-video-game-banned-in-2812864",
        "published": "2026-08-23T15:00:36.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}