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Australia recently reversed its decision to deny Fallout 3 classification, essentially banning it from distribution in the country. The game had to undergo some minor censorship, but it’s not as bad as it could be. The following is directly from the report from OFLC, the committee that assigns ratings Down Under.

“The drugs depicted are fictional; drugs are depicted as stylised icons on a menu with the drug use itself not depicted. Whilst navigating a post-apocalyptic futuristic landscape, players can invoke the use of a variety of “chems” listed by fictitious names which include “Buff”, “Rad-X”, “Psycho” and “Ultrajet”. Within the context of the game’s narrative, the player may choose to make use of these “chems” to alter the physiological characteristics of their character in the game.”

It looks like drugs will still be there, as will their effects, but none of the use or abuse will appear on screen. It appears that Fallout 3 dodged a bullet, as this segment says that drug use at all is grounds for not receiving classification:

“In the minority view of the Board the drug use in the game is in excess of the general rule applied under the Guidelines. The drugs are unambiguous in their visual representations, which include pills and hypodermic needles, and are related to incentives and rewards in that the incentive to take the drug is that progress through the game is achieved more easily and the reward is an increase in the character’s abilities. The game therefore warrants and ‘RC’ classification.”

Source: IGN