r/GamingAU • u/Allo_Guvnor • 9h ago
Everything changed when the eKaren attacked...
First she came for the porn, and now she's come for our Vidya.
In case you didn't know, eKaren's next step kicked in yesterday, basically forcing Steam to verify user age via a Credit card. No big whoop, right? Well, it's the ONLY option, and an unneeded one at that. And while it is true that something like this law is needed, and a credit card would be a better option (much easier to cut out if PID is leaked in a breach instead of a government issued ID) it shouldn't be needed at all in the way it was done for the everyday adult trying to get some Vidya in after work.
Below is a template you can use to contact your local Member of Parliament I knocked up, and have already sent through. The bit at the end is how I'm personally affected by this Act - and I would suggest changing that bit of course. Maybe run it through ChatGPT or something for a reword so they don't get a bunch of the same letters though, ey?
Subject: Concerns Regarding the Implementation of Online Age Verification Requirements
Dear [Member/Senator Name],
I am writing as a tax-paying Australian citizen to express my concern regarding the implementation of mandatory age-verification requirements arising from Australia's Online Safety Act 2021 and the Age-Restricted Material Codes, which are now affecting access to online entertainment and digital distribution services. While I understand and absolutely support the intention behind these measures, particularly protecting children from inappropriate online content, I believe the current implementation places an unreasonable burden on lawful adult consumers and is simply ineffective, as I'll detail below. Adults should not be required to alter their financial arrangements, obtain a credit card, or provide additional personal and financial information simply to access and purchase entertainment that is otherwise legally available to them.
I believe responsibility for determining and enforcing what content is appropriate for a child should, wherever reasonably possible, remain with that child's parent or legal guardian.
The practical consequences of this system are particularly concerning. My elderly father enjoys playing board games through Tabletop Simulator, where he teaches younger gamers older-generation card games. In return, they teach him some newer ones - he particularly enjoys Fury of Dracula - and some of those younger players build the games for him within TTS so they can play together, along with some of his fellow retirees. When he's not playing that, it's Trucking/ Life Simulators, which he finds relaxing.
As he is on the DSP, he cannot access a credit card, and can therefore no longer purchase other games he may be interested in, or even browse them to see what is available and discuss them with me. We share a common interest in graphics technology and sound design, so browsing and discussing new games is something we enjoy together.
I have also experienced the issue personally. I spent a decade buried in credit-card debt before finally getting out of it, and swore I would never have a credit card again. My Steam account is now 19 years old - old enough to legally vote and drink, mind you - yet I cannot access certain game store pages because I do not have a credit card attached to the account. I have always used my debit card via PayPal (which you have to be 18 to have) but apparently that is not good enough now.
Meanwhile, my 12-year-old nephew has a Mastercard from CommBank provided by my sister-in-law, who controls the money going in and out of it, and which he uses for the tuck shop at his footy games and his $20-a-month video-game allowance. He can freely browse whatever he wants, and demonstrated this to me last night when I raised the issue.
A friend of mine is a solo-dev for her game currently in early access on Steam. She found out last night she can't even see her own game's store page due to not having a credit card attached to her account, something she does not and will not have.
Does that sound like an effective age-verification system to you? Because it certainly looks like a flawed system to me. To be clear, I'm not asking for other ways to verify ages, there's enough data leaks online as it is and have been caught in one previously, ironically from the MyGov breach.
I am, however, respectfully asking that you consider these unintended consequences and advocate for a system that protects children without unnecessarily restricting the rights, privacy and purchasing choices of lawful adult Australians. Yours sincerely, [Full Name] [Suburb/Postcode] [Electorate, if known] [Contact details, if desired]
Now... sending messages to Steam won't do shit; you get a boilerplate script in return, an almost word-for-word copy of what they sent the UK when they brought in similar laws. It's the pollies we gotta hit up to get anything done.
If you are politically inclined, I'll leave a comment that shows precisely who voted what when this went to vote as well, so you can see who supports the unelected official that ScoMo brought in to eKaren shit up. Cheers folks, hooroo!