As Australia's plans to filter the Internet grow ever more expensive and ridiculous, the Sydney Morning Herald reports that video games are in the government's crosshairs as well. Australia's planned $125.8 million Cyber-Safety filtering system -- opposed by most ISPs as impractical and technically impossible -- includes two blacklists -- one which filters illegal material (no opt-out) and another that filters material deemed offensive by the Australian government (users can opt out). Australia's game rating system is notoriously stingy, meaning any game that's beyond the country's MA15+ rating designation would be filtered.The government is currently conducting trials with a handful of ISPs, many of whom have been very vocal in their beliefs that the filters won't technically work. The Australian government has admitted their trials have no quantifiable metric to determine whether the trials were a success or failure.

The British ISP industry recently gave the plan's brain child, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy, an award for his development of the plan. According to the ISPA website, Conroy has been given the "Internet Villain award" for "continuing to promote network-level blocking despite significant national and international opposition."