The Board of Film Censors (part of the Media Development Authority (MDA), Singapore’s media watchdog) has released a statement saying BioWare’s highly anticipated sci-fi RPG Mass Effect has been banned in the country due to an intimate scene between two female characters. The scene in question came to light when the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) gave the game a 12 rating in September.

From the BBFC classification: “If playing as a male character the scene can take place between him and a human woman or a humanoid female alien. If playing as a female character the scene can take place between her and a male human or a female humanoid alien.”

Deputy director of the Board of Film Censors said that video games sold in Singapore cannot “feature exploitative or gratuitous sex and violence, or denigrate any race or religion” and “as such the game has been disallowed.”

All hope is not lost to those who want to obtain the game legally though - a new classification system should be introduced in Singapore next year that could allow titles such as Mass Effect to be passed and classified appropriately.

[Also see: Mass Effect Gallery]