Nintendo Has No Plans To Censor Video Games Like Sony

They censored games on Wii U but nice to see the change of heart.

Sony, take notes!

This makes me hopeful that Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE could get a re-release on Switch with an English dub and reduced or no censorship.

What a time to live!!!! 😆

This is the best statement I have ever read from Nintendo. I am saving this.

@TempOr ...wasn't that a mistranslation about trying to make the clothing more realistic for her character, and not her...um...'chest size'?

Could be wrong, but I think that was the case.

@DrLockdown @TempOr Yeah it was a mistranslation:

https://twitter.com/aevanko/status/1141838679242969088

This link showed the guy translating it again and what it was supposed to be

The irony of this is that the platform holders won't allow AO rated games, but have no problem with 18+ ratings of other jurisdictions.

For example, the Australian R18+ rating places virtually no restrictions on nudity, so a developer can make a game that contains an all-nude-at-all-times cast, with exposed and detailed genitalia, and it would get a pass, and the three major publishers would supposedly allow it because R18+ games are fine, so long as they don't dare to release it in the U.S.

Stupidly though, some of the Senran Kagura games have received R18+ ratings in Australia in spite of there being no overt nudity at all (which I strongly disagree with in light of how much more permissive the guidelines are regarding sexual content and nudity). A couple of the games contained the consumer advice of "demeaning sexualised behaviour" which is one of the more descriptive and perhaps more ridiculous instances of consumer advice. Another bizarre one (which was given to a DVD) was a PG rating for "Industrial conflict themes".

That's great news.
I just hope that Nintendo of America follows suit, because they're the ones localising and often censoring games from Japan. I think it's been fine lately though. It'd be even better if Nintendo of Europe would start localising games themselves again.

Well that's great! I'm not one to buy games because xxx game exists. So yea.
I also want games to show blood or whatever scene if the developer wanted it to show certain things. (Obviously nothing crazy, but if that is the vision they are going for, then I don't want that to stop a team from brining it over to the switch because censorship)

Maybe we can have native voice chat, and have the parental control thing to block kids from chatting online if there is any concern? Maybe they can start using the parental controls more in games to add more things into games (voice chat, messaging, etc)

@Andigaming
Actually, Nintendo did not censor any third party games since the Gamecube era.

What they censored during the Wii U days (and would probably still feel free to censor) are western versions of their own first party games, which is a separate issue

But wasn't Nintendo for little kids and Sony for "hardcore gamers"? Wasn't Sony "for the players"? Wasn't nudity, pointless profanity, drug abuse, violence,... "mature"? I don't know anymore, humans with their weird double standards and stuff...

@darkfenrir Yeah thought so. That's the problem with E3; people are rushing to translate things so fast that they often make mistakes.

This company gets it. It's the whole point of ESRB & Co's existence, and "thinking of the children" in regards to any work already rated 18+ upwards (or outright refused ratification like some omega labyrinths out there) is the job of parents and other legal guardians. Account restriction systems are in place across the industry, and taking an occasional look at your child's purchase history with possible eShop/PSN/whatchamacallit cards is no rocket science either. Implying otherwise to any degree can border on an insult to Fiction - and lobbying any content restrictions on such a basis pretty much crosses that border.

@JR150 TMS is a first party title. I may have heard wrong, but didn't Xenoblade 2 cover some extra skin in the west, too? Rating boards clearly seem to have different standards in different regions, but if a high profile Nintendo game can be sold to a demographic in Japan, they want it to be a valid sale to this demographic in the west as well - hence adjusting stuff that could potentially bump up the rating there.

Well done Nintendo. Now try and stick to a position for more than a few years.
It was only about 5 years ago you were removing bust sliders from Xenoblade X.

I would like to see a follow-up on this where games like Tokyo Mirage Sessions, Xenoblade Chronicles X and Project Zero: Maiden of Black Water were released on Switch in their full glory.
Repairing damage done to Fire Emblem Fates would be nice as well.

@nhSnork XC2 characters had their skin covered only in Smash Bros. Ultimate.

@nhSnork No actually. Xenoblade 2's characters have the exact same designs in the West as Japan.

@TempOr I'm not sure about in the original game, but it doesn't seem there's aim for censorship anyway.

@DrLockdown yeah, the worst thing is that this can easily be solved by hiring a J-E translator! It's weird that the top brass of news site don't really have a translator enrolled, at least the likes of IGN at minimum, it's not like they need translator in a lot of amount too.

It's great seeing a company that used to make blood green or non-existent has now done a 180, decided to abolish censorship and leave it up to the customer to decide what to do with the ratings given by the various rating boards. It's too bad that Sony now decided to do a 180 on their previously lenient policies, though.

@JR150 @Preposterous the more you know, thanks.

@Andigaming Which games?
Nintendo refused to censor any game on Wii U. They even said they embraced violent games for Wii U because of the demand, but Nintendo had to leave that to other devs.

Ninja Gaiden 3 were more gory on Wii U than on PS3 and 360.
Later they released Wii U version on other consoles.

@EmirParkreiner this is also how I read it. They, as a platform holder, will not restrict permissable content from appearing on the platform, but that doesn't neccessarily mean they won't make changes to first party games during localisation. Really, they are just stating what they have done for a long time.

They censored Xenoblade on Wii U, I know it isn't 3rd party but that is what I was meaning.

@EmirParkreiner

I never said 3rd party but it is hard to censor them on Wii U when there wasn't many.

We have a ratings system for a reason, if you don't like certain content, don't buy it. But your morals should no dictate what other people can and can not do. So long as they aren't hurting anyone.

Nintendo is making the right choice by not censoring things and providing parental controls to allow parents to actually be parents.

On a final note, yes, it is the PARENT'S job to decide what their kids see, not Nintendo, or Sony, or Disney, or CNN or Facebook or whatever media or electronics company.

Nintendo doesn’t fear SJW cry babies!

@TempOr i think it may be Omega Labyrinth Life .. its advertised as in english and uncensored for the switch version

Nintendo has a parent control and a rating system, they shouldn’t censor the games

I wonder how it actually affects the sales on each platform and if many people will actually choose the switch over the PS4/5 for that reason

Don't forget: before making console and arcade games, Nintendo operated taxi service and 'love hotels' in Japan.

This is good news for futures jrpgs coming to both consoles as more people will buy the switch versions which in turn might make Sony changed their minds, also Sony said before that most the games they censor are mainly because of the age of the character which in most jrpgs are young teens

Saucy? The Victorians used to have saucy seaside postcards.

I'm not sure the developers thought 'let's make a saucy video game'. So who are they designing this game for? I would describe the characters as scantily glad female cartoons.

Does this need censored, no. Since this is made by and for the Japanese Market, I'm sure they know what their customers want. The teenage male market maybe, is who they are aiming at, the ones who need to get a life beyond video games.

If the censoring was more about the censoring of ideas or some sort of representation of ideas I think I’d care more. All this is, is skin. To watch the community get in such a tizzy because some game makers want to see women characters be treated more respectfully just comes off as whiney. The internet is filled with boobs. Real and fake...fake. If less cleavage really “destroys” your experience or a game, then maybe you aren’t a gamer and the game was never good to begin with.

I don't like to hear that.
I still believe Nintendo can still manage their kid friendly brands despite there are some 18+ games.
Please, Nintendo...
Don't change into Sony and Sony change into Nintendo.

@JR150 TMS and Xeno X were on my mind while reading this. Well, better late than never.

@Silly_G
You should check out the Australian cover for Boom Street on the Wii. The listed reason for the PG rating is: "Mild themes."

It’s crazy to see BOTH companies do such a radical 180, but good thing Nintendo changed course, what with Sony now even censoring not just content within games but also art books and game titles.

@JR150
I wouldn’t have hope for an English dub for Tokyo Mirage Sessions, we all know the game bombed - and hard - and dubs aren’t cheap (specially in a game with lots of dialogue like this, plus the songs). I do think we could see a digital re-release without the modifications they made, though.

@LUIGITORNADO
some game makers want to see women characters be treated more respectfully

That’s not the case though. They’re doing it to avoid controversy with the extremist SJW crowd, nothing more.

And it’s not that it “destroys” the experience, but it does hamper it for many gamers. Just like when Nintendo blurred out cleavage in #FE, and removed plot lines. It came off as corny and you were missing quality content just because they went overboard with the nanny state. And people complained PLENTY. Now Sony is the new nanny state.

Furthermore, respect is earned, and a fictional character with sex appeal isn’t “disrespecting” anyone. Fictional video game characters don’t represent “all women” and what you do toward them isn’t an action taken against women at large. Otherwise every time you killed a fictional video game character it could be equated to murder. Likewise, enjoying some digital imaginary eye candy isn’t disrespecting any real person or group of people. And even if it was, legislating “respect” through censorship policy isn’t the answer. Controlling what people see, play and do is authoritarian by nature. The people who enjoy that aren’t bothering you, and you have no right to tell others whether they’re gamers or not.

Now, I’m not saying you should necessarily care. In many cases it’s minor things that I don’t even care about. But it’s the principle of the matter, Smoky. Sometimes it will be things you care about. If not now, then eventually.

@TempOr

Tifa's breasts are still big in the remake. She's wearing a training bra so they aren't flapping around while she fights. My god you people are insufferable.

Good on Nintendo for not censoring games, though I'm personally not interested in over sexualized characters just for the sake of it.

(Edit: not interested in the remake since it's going to be released episodically)

Do keep in mind they specifically mention rating boards.

If cleavage and bust sliders interfere with their desired rating, of course they'll make the changes required to get it.

@JaxonH Times are changing. Having skimpy clad women characters are mostly at odds with their personality anyway. Only character I can think of where it works is Bayonetta because her character and the way she presents herself. In most instances it comes off as men playing dress up with their sister’s Barbie. Basically they’re treated as objects.

I do not understand why gamers could possibly feel cheated because a boob slider was taken out of a game.

It’s childish.

And so is your disregard of the general problems with how media effects people and their perceptions of reality.

I find it sad that we as a society have accepted violence in a game like Red Dead Redemption 2, where you can pull out a shotgun and blast an NPC's head clean off in an incredibly realistic and gruesome fashion, but the moment some cleavage is implied, all hell breaks loose.

@TempOr

All of you dudes complaining about her chest and pretending you're mad about censorship.

@LUIGITORNADO
A video game woman dressed sexy isn’t real. It’s no different than an artist drawing a sexy woman. Are you going to tell artists they can’t draw sexy women either because it somehow “offends” real women? It’s a nonsensical argument.

And whether or not you understand it is irrelevant. Many would say it’s childish to get an a tiss over what other people like in a fictional digital video game.

And if media “affects reality” then you should be out there protesting violence in video games, not selectively cherry picking what’s ok to affect reality and what’s not. And even if you were going to cherry pick, murder seems far more egregious than enjoying the female form.

This is definitely NOT your father's Nintendo! The company that at one time wouldn't allow games like "Night Trap" and made you enter in a secret code just so you could see blood in the original "Mortal Kombat" has just said NO to censorship. Yes, I know both of those games were before there were ratings systems, but it is interesting to see the company that was once known for censoring games doing a 180.

@JaxonH "enjoy the female form."

Well that was a whole lot of cringe.

Yes. I can see a bunch of neckbeards standing around a HDTV admiring the polygonal curves and irregular physics of bouncing breasts of questionable aged anime girls in pigtails because they admire the "female form." It's high art you know.

There is research of how the media's bombardment of unachievable bodies effect a youth's mind.

And separately, one only has to look at how toxic incels are and their branching sub-faction of gamers obsessed over their waifus to see there are problems with how games portray fictional women as objects.

And still. All this screaming/rallying cries over cleavage.

Nintendo’s censorship policies:

1980’s: Quality Control

1990’s: Censorship

2000-16: in house censorship on published titles, GamerGate triggers, with a Conker’s Bad Fur Day and Bayonetta 2-flavored exception.

Today: let em do their own localization.

Oh, how times changed...

SONY on the otherhand:

1995: grown-up = attitude, violence, a busty british woman.

2000’s: violence.

2010’s Voice Synth personas performing in bikinis singing about suicide and shotguns, violence, dating sim heaven.

Now: NO MORE OF IT, + blood, violence, gore, and “friendship kisses”, acting like rating boards don’t exist anymore.

Good! It's about time. Let those who enjoy these games enjoy them and those who don't can vote with their wallets.

Night Trap and MK are amusing cases because before the ESRB was established, these games were used against Sega to make them look bad, while Nintendo and their censorship policies made them look like little angels. Releasing Night Trap on the Switch almost feels like giving Sega the middle finger. Haha, I love it.

But yeah, censorship is dumb, if people don't like these games they don't have to buy them, it's as simple as that. I took issue with Fire Emblem Fates due to some of their waifu pandering and whatnot and chose not to buy them, it's really not that hard. I didn't cry out that the game should be censored or anything like that. I just didn't feel like it fit the franchise. Looking at how Three Houses is turning out (and how Echoes was before it), I'd say Intelligent Systems agrees with me on that.

Meanwhile a friend of mine is heavily into the Dead or Alive Volleyball games. Not my thing but I certainly don't pass judgment on them for it. Let everyone enjoy what they want to. In this age of PEGI and ESRB, there is absolutely no reason to go around censoring anything. The ratings system was invented for a reason.

@TempOr

My bad, I've just seen people get so overwhelmingly angry over such a minor change that as soon as that subject is brought up I'm just like "this again?"

I mean I'm all for people taking a stand against censorship but from what Sqenix has said about Tifa's change, it sounds justified.

I thought getting rid of the boob slider and making Lynn "legal" were wise editorial changes for the localization of XB X that improved the experience for those of us who aren't nonces. However, the changes to TMS were not OK because they messed with the story and what they took out they didn't adequately replace. The most important thing is they did at least make Western versions. But, whatever, we're actually having a news item here about Nintendo here reiterate that they still don't mess with other people's games not complaining about what size a characters breasts are. Anyone who uses the term SJW is a cleft.

Hope Nintendo sticks to this policy. For the most part, I prefer games to remain 100% as the developers intended. I get why they censored Lin in Xenoblade Chronicles X. Demanding they allow you to put a 14-year old in a skimpy bikini isn't a position you want to be arguing for...

...the boob slider censorship was moronic though.

Is there any Switch game with nudity?

Yu-No is being censored on Switch but also PS4 so I guess that's the developers and publisher's choice. I'd still rather see an option to remove censorship in a game in the settings either by paying or downloading an update. Give the players the choice to experience the game how they want.
https://www.spike-chunsoft.com/news/yu-no-localized-release-changes/

@dimi not really but there is a lot of sexual content in Bayonetta

Well done Nintendo. Sony take note...

Nintendo takes one step forward as Sony takes two steps back. Not that I care about T&A in games, but I do agree with freedom for the consumers and the vision outlook for developers. You can't please everybody and parents will most likely know about the game content before purchasing a game. Plus with parental settings, parents should be taking the initiative, not companies.

Shame he doesn't necessarily speak for NoA's questionable efforts at localization, but at least the overall idea is solid. Hilarious how times have changed though. Nintendo used to be so much worse with censorship than Sony is now.

@graysoncharles Sony banned several games for release already on PS1 without censoring them.

"Thrill Kill" is perhaps the most famous game Sony banned for release on PS1.
There was no reason to ban it, because the gfx were so terrible that you could barely see what were going on in that game.

@LUIGITORNADO
People are toxic regardless. And if you’re going to ban beautiful Women in video games just because they have good form, going to have to ban men also, then you’re going to have to ban tank tops and swimsuits on the beach. The notion is preposterous. Furthermore, you can’t claim it’s “damaging” when people see a beautiful woman showing cleavage, then say it’s not damaging seeing people murder others, stabbing them through the heart and shooting bullets through their brain.

You’re climbing on your self-righteous high horse, and selectively ostracizing one tiny little aspect of video games (coincidentally siding with Sony, yet where was this same defense for Nintendo last generation? Hmm...) willfully choosing to remain ignorant and impotent toward anything else.

And for the record, people scream and rally over plenty of lesser things. Notwithstanding, the vast majority aren’t screaming, they are simply voicing their discontent and disapproval. And it’s over a lot more than just cleavage, as I explained earlier. Entire plot segments have been removed from games. Sony is now censoring art books and even game titles. But even if it was just cleavage, it’s not up to you to decide what’s worth rallying over or not.

Good.

Now make a DOA Xtreme Nintendo Edition so I care.

Score! Now I can watch hentai in my D5 P-E-T! Thanks to Nintendo!

fine by me ...I dont play games to see some vaginas, penises and tits

Talk about a reversal of the way it used to be.

@BlackenedHalo If they're okay material for movies, books, comics, art, etc, then games should be treated no different imo--so long as they are rated accordingly.

Nintendo: Okay, we tried censoring on our failed console, better not do it with our new popular one....

Sony: We never did it before, but let's cut some of our fan base right out of this console. We have plenty of CoD players to make up for it.

Good. Censorship is evil. The rating will tell you what kind of content is in it - don't like it, don't play it.

Nintendo has change alot since the wii u days allowing lots of uncensored rated m games come to switch while sony is pulling the old nintendo move by censoring their 3rd party games but wat annoys me that sony made a $tupid excuse saying the Metoo movement force them to go the censor route on their games.

Lmao at the people thinking this is some huge issue. Rabble rabble rabble Sony Censorship they're gonna lose me as a customer and mant more rabble rabble rabble. This is a niche issue that deserves zero coverage by any media outlet end of story

The real issue at hand is Nintendos lack of software quality control allowing any game on the Switch just so they can say hey we have 1500 games. Yeah you have 1500 games and at least half of those games are overpriced shovelware like the Panda game for 40 dollars. Where's the articles covering important stuff like that. Instead we get articles like this and others like it with a bunch of kids worried about the big mean companies taking away their T&A.

@canucksfan989 says the censorship/sony defender this is the reason why we cant have nice things.

@RiasGremory way to ignore my point , I love both Sony and Nintendo but this issue is a niche issue. The bigger issue is software control by Nintendo on the Switch. They've effectively achieved what the Wii did in half the amount of time. Now we have a digital store full of shovelware overpriced garbage.

What makes Sony's censorship so bad is that it's mainly aimed at smaller Japanese 3rd parties. Of course they've gone after Capcom and Tecmo, but yeah, they're mainly hitting the smaller guys.

If/when Cyberpunk 2077 has full nudity like Witcher 3, will they censor that? Probably not, because "muh Western 3rd party bro" or w/e. Sony's censorship is just a mess... At least Nintendo only censored their own stuff.

@canucksfan989 censorship is an issue dude and your blaming nintendo for shovelware on eshop wen most of those games are not made by nintendo come on use some common sense.

Coming from a company known to heavily sensor their games? Just look at Mortal Kombat on SNES versus Genesis to see what I mean! I'll always doubt lying Nintendo, they lie, lie, lie, lie, LIE!

I hate censorship. On the other hand I do think portraying women with only double d breasts is not good for women's body image, mens perception of reality and getting women to play more games. I would be OK if there were a wide variety of women represented in games. But it just seems that the only women are large chested and not wearing much clothes while the men can be represented by fat plumbers at least some of the time. Again I hate censorship but I would like more variety.

...I wonder if this means NOA too, because they still change/remove stuff when localizing games. Xenoblade X and 2 being examples.

@gamefreak77 oh look another troll not surprised.

@shaneoh : I'm aware of that. I haven't played it, so I cannot comment on it though. (Though I did grab two copies when David Jones were clearing out their game section at $5 a pop). Everyone else seems to have given it the equivalent of a G rating. Similarly, Wii Party U was rated PG for "Mild gambling references" (I did not recall any gambling activity though I suspect that one activity may have set off the Classification Board, even though it only very vaguely resembled what could be considered gambling), while everyone else gave it an all ages rating.

"Themes" is treated so vaguely nowadays that I'm more often not unsure what they mean by what constitutes adult themes unless the film/game is rated M or higher.

Gambling is also rated far more strictly than before. Games that contain casino-like activities and card games now get an M rating by default, however, up until about 10 years ago, such games would receive no higher than a PG. Worse, and hypocritically so, games that allow gambling with real-life currency under the guise of microtransactions can be rated G without consequence (frankly, such games should automatically be rated R18+, which may deter the practice).

@EmirParkreiner Actually, yes they did. For example, Nintendo censored Dragon Ball Fusions on 3DS.

@shadowbuster It's a good thing I have no plans to get into next gen consoles for a while. I am waiting for the dust to settle and for some great games to come out that have all the necessary updates, discounts and sales to make a next gen console a worthwhile purchase.

Until then I think I will be satisfied with my Switch and existing consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One X, and my PC should be fine for early next gen needs. I think people get way too hyped about new hardware and where these companies are going, we should just enjoy what we have and let the direction they go in influence what we ultimately think is ideal for ourselves.

@JayJ one things that annoys me is tha microsoft and even sony needs to stop making so many different models of the same system just stick to making a real successor but i have a feeling they l pull the same stunt with ps5 and th new xbox.

Uncensored Xenoblade Chronicles X port when?

Thank you. We really don't need Sony telling us what we're allowed. Games have an ages rating system for that.

Hey Nintendo, do you remember Tokyo Mirage Sessions on Wii U? It would be nice to get this Game on Switch without censorship that makes players constantly want to facepalm.

@Nagi_Nagisa i expect they port that over with all the content and by the way there was one outfit they forgot to censor it was the white dress that one main girl can wear.

I love gaming, really do, but the gaming world is insanely, laughably prude.

By Odin's beard, Nintendo you have earned my respect!

I’m not for censorship, but the Switch’s parental controls are simply not good enough. It blocks out games with certain ratings for ALL users. You can punch in a code to disable it temporarily. That’s workable, if not ideal.

Worse, for Mario Maker it blocks out all online functionality. There is no granularity allowing me to say my kids can download levels, but not turn on comments. If Nintendo wants to stake out this position they need to do better. Parental controls should also hide game icons that are outside the age range set.

@Andigaming What games did they censor?

@DDFawfulGuy What games did they censor?

@RiasGremory you also don't want there to be two switch models. I don't get what's so confusing. If you don't care about frame rates and lower resolution you buy the Xbox one or s. If you want better Frame rates and higher resolutions you buy the x. It isn't complicated. People just don't want to buy the more expensive model but also don't want others to have better running software then them.

@JR150 That would make me so happy.

@RainbowGazelle
Did Nintendo insist on whatever was changed in DB Fusions, or did Bandai Namco do that in their own to get a T Rating from the ESRB?

@Silly_G Adults Only(AO) is usually just porn though. I can understand why platform holders would restrict their sale.

@Joekun : I don't understand why they have made it so inefficient and convoluted. On Wii, 3DS, and Wii U, we had the option to choose from the highest allowable rating in accordance with local legislation/regulation.

While the Parental Controls give you the option to choose which jurisdiction to adhere to, it only gives you the option to block software in accordance with an age number. Now, this is a problem in Australia for multiple reasons...

While the G, PG, and M ratings are unrestricted in Australia (meaning that anybody can buy/view content with these classifications unsupervised), Nintendo has applied the PG and M ratings very stupidly, that is, in accordance with how the PG and M classifications were officially worded prior to May 2005, being that the PG classification indicates that "Parental guidance recommended for persons under 15 years" and the M rating (previously known as M15+) as "Recommended for mature audiences 15 years and over". Now, we also have a legally restricted MA15+ category (worded as "Not suitable for under 15s; under 15s must be accompanied by a parent or adult guardian), however, the PG, M, and MA15+ categories are all locked to "Content suitable for ages 15+" option under the Switch's Parental Controls. To add further confusion, up until May 2005, the PG rating was previously known as G8+, indicating that the content was suitable for persons aged 8 years and over (no legal restriction applied), and so perhaps the PG rating should have been suitable for persons aged 8+ and over as opposed to 15+. I would consider M-rated content generally to be suitable for persons aged 12/13 and over, however, due to our M rating being generally more permissive than the MPAA's PG-13 and BBFC's 12 ratings (particularly concerning coarse language, sexual content, and nudity), I would advise parents to exercise discretion.

The fact that we had both M15+ (unrestricted) and MA15+ (legally restricted) ratings had caused a lot of confusion among consumers/audiences prior to 2005, hence why the government dropped the "15+" from the M15+ rating upon the refreshing of the guidelines and labeling standards post May 2005.

@penamiguel92 : I understand that, but it's stupid that the U.S. has adult ratings for both games (AO) and film (NC-17) that almost never get used, and are not even sold in stores.

It's also ridiculous that Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies has the same rating as horror games with explicit violence and overt sexual content in games such as Mortal Kombat and GTA V. The latter games ideally should receive AO ratings, but perhaps the MPAA and ESRB can introduce X ratings for pornographic material so that the adult ratings don't go unused for more extreme violent/sexual content that keep getting a free pass at the M/R ratings. Incidentally, Australia has an X18+ rating for pornographic films, as well as the BBFC (called R18), however, this does not necessarily preclude unsimulated sexual activity from the standard adult ratings.

What is also hypocritical about the MPAA is that home video releases don't get rated at all, so you never know what you're buying for your family unless it has already been released in theatres or broadcast on television, but that doesn't factor the presence of "unrated" cuts and special features, which often contain stronger material than what was originally broadcast, and is not assessed for content at all. "Unrated" films can very well contain explicit sexual intercourse, but as long as an NC-17 rating is not displayed on the packaging, it's fine to sell in stores. So much for integrity. If "unrated" content is okay to sell, then so should NC-17 content. At least with NC-17 content, you know what you're buying into. With unrated content, consumers have absolutely no idea.

The fact that home video classifications are nonexistent in the U.S. is also particularly problematic because children's films can contain adult material that parents may not expect to be present. For example, the Blu-ray version of Cars 3 was originally rated M in Australia for "Coarse language". That means that there were F-bombs in the original submission! Australia's M rating is comparable to the MPAA's PG-13 or a low-end R rating (there is no set limit on the use of the F-word under the Australian M rating). Fortunately our Classification Board called out the coarse language on the Cars 3 Blu-ray, and I can only assume that Disney had removed it across all markets as a later submission was classified G (the M rated version has never been released, and would have undoubtedly attracted undesirable media attention). Had this gone unnoticed, you can bet that the content would have been present on the U.S. disc and unsuspecting parents would have bought it for their children assuming that the content would have been appropriate for family-viewing (I assume that the M rating applied only to special features, such as an interview or audio commentary). Apart from cinema releases, the MPAA is redundant considering that there are virtually no restrictions on the purchasing of home video, and "unrated" videos can contain content that would ordinarily necessitate an NC-17 rating, which I consider to be very problematic, as this undermines any credibility and relevance of the U.S.'s classification bodies.

@RiasGremory Yeah it's part of the reason why I plan to hold off on new consoles for a few years. I learned from my mistake with buying the PS4 early only for it to not have any games I wanted for years and getting a launch Xbox One only for it to become outdated after the S and X came out.

Nintendo Has No Plans To Censor Video Games Like Sony

Until they do. This industry seems to be all over the place . Sometimes Nintendo censors, sometimes Sony censors & sometimes Microsoft censors. Sometimes Microsoft supports cross play.....

These companies change positions from time to time so it really doesn't matter what they say now.

@sixrings dude the switch mini is still just a rumor and dont even compare xbox and sony obsession with making different models of the current systems with the switch since theres only one model.

Says the company that censored every single video game released in the 8 and 16 bit eras.

Well... Nintendo of America has censored a lot of LGBT content and that's not cool (I know that's not Nintendo of Japan, but they're connected!). I have no idea what exactly Sony is censoring, but just read in a topic on these forums where the only example given was "shrinking of breasts" and honestly, if that's the kind of censorship Sony games have, I'll take that any day over the censorship of characters being LGBT.

@Harmonie https://www.neogaf.com/threads/why-gamers-complain-about-their-games-being-taken-away-ot-censorship-controversy-central.1467221/

I think this is a good thread that shows all censorship that all companies did. (Also Sony also kinda uh... agreed to let Omega Labyrinth Z to release on the Western countries, then rescind that agreement when it was about time to release. That's kinda... really bad)

@Andigaming Tru Dat! True Dat! They xensored the US verxion of Xenoblade Chronicles X but nut the Japanese version of dee game!

@Fragarach Well said! Well said!

I’m fine with it but I would appreciate the ability to turn on filters if desired. A Language filter would be nice to enable if the kids are in the room. For call of duty I just swapped it to Spanish.

@Claytonbob Agree. I love the option to beep out language in Brutal Legend, and then the game proceeds to be all "okay, we warned you" if you choose to hear the uncensored track.

That's great news, now please don't judge me if I download adult mods for Skyrim and Fallout on my PC. I can't stand that hypocrisy.

The standards that are present or not present in Japanese gaming culture are out of step with current western ideals. It will be a PR disaster for Nintendo if the outrage brigade gets a hold of it.

Sony: Nintendo is for kids
Also Sony: censor games to “protect young children” while Nintendo doesn’t do it

We have ratings that already inform consumers. Not sure why SJWs and others feel the need to force their world views across media and into law. Choice is a good thing. If you don't like something, you should vote with your wallet. Way to go, Nintendo.

@EmirParkreiner Turns out it was a joint decision for some reason.
http://operationrainfall.com/2016/12/08/dragon-ball-fusions-censorship/

Well this all sounds great, but it really doesn't seem to apply to us living in Sweden. Here Nintenso is represented by a company called Bergsala and it seems that they decide which titles can launch on the eShop here.

Games like Kotodama, Senran Kagura and NekoPara are simply not available on the swedish eShop, even if they might receive a physical release. I feel that this is censorship on the eShop and I suspect Bergsala to be behind it, one way or another. So sad

So can we get Mother 3 then? Also uncensored Switch ports of Xenoblade X, Tokyo Mirage Sessions and Fatal Frame 5 would be good too.

Good. Nintendo you are this time mature and you can have it. Sony is somehow butthurt. It's just a game people. If people wanted porn they can still get it online. Means also the youngers people. By putting censor in a game like this you can't stop it. It's part of life. So don't try to keep people away. Nuff said

Nintendo had a similar stance on BMX XXX on the Gamecube. They don't censor a game frontal nudity and stripper videos. Playstation censored it on the PS2

Now stop censoring your own games dear Nintendo. Either visually or dialogue. It would be nice if you started to translate instead doing complete rewrites too. Or at least include dual script, one for dub brainlets and one for people with properly functioning brains.

@JR150 but translation is completely made up and full of censorship (heavy culturalization IS literal censorship) which is way worse.

@Araragi Depends on the developers. Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no.

@JR150 I'm sorry that I didn't mention the game, I was talking about Xenoblade 2.

@Araragi Oh. Eh, nothing major was changed. None of the female designs. Just one or two unimportant dialogue bits during side quests. Cultural stuff is expected, but if censorship impacts the game directly, then I take issue.

Hence why I want Tokyo Mirage Sessions on Switch. Hopefully Atlus won't ruin it again.

@JR150 "Just one or two unimportant dialogue bits during side quests"
Believe me, I was playing Japanese version, my friend was playing western version with original voices. I was able to compare it. They changed everything. Starting from whole world basics, character personalities, lore. All Christian references were removed (it's like foundation of most Xeno games), everything about Japanese culture, pop culture and beliefs was removed.
And to be honest these 2 things made this game really special for me.
All character names were altered (and I'm not buying that t about "they kept the meaning" - all blade names are common Japanese names for PEOPLE - if they wanted to deliver it's meaning - which wasn't really important - they could always write it in the character profile in game menu). Almost all land names were completely altered - they weren't written in Japanese in the first place anyway.
Most dialogue lines were completely altered to the point where they didn't even kept the general idea of original.
Please don't tell me that nothing major was changed, because this game is like completely different product in the west.

@Araragi I see...well due to cultural differences, there is precisely nothing we can do about that stuff in particular. I enjoyed Xenoblade 2 for what it was, and that's all that matters to me. I'm more focused on preventable censorship issues such as clothes and character models that we can push back against.

Perhaps those calling for the removal of censorship of video games (video games) should remember what year we live in.

It’s 2019 and the cultural objectification of female characters in games is old hat used by bad marketing types from the 1990’s.

Down with censorship. Let the market decide what's good, not a vocal minority of arrogant taste police trying to dictate what everyone else should or shouldn't like.

I hope developers decide to explore their creative freedom on Nintendo platforms hereafter. There's nothing wrong with making attractive women in video games. Beauty isn't bad, real women with naturally large breasts exist in the real world (and many are actually athletic) and there's nothing wrong with being attracted to them. There's nothing wrong with enjoying a visual representation of the female form either, be it in a game, a painting, a sculpture or whatever else. It hurts no one and developers and artists should be free to do as they please without worrying about bothering some puritanical whiners.

It doesn't matter what year it is. Beauty is fine and will continue to be a subject in all art forms, including the character designs for video games. I personally consider it a plus if a game features attractive female characters, and I'm less interested in games that don't have them.

I don't understand how it can be a problem.
It's not a problem to me.
It's not a problem.
The depth of debate on here is so stimulating.

@Araragi wen it comes to first party games its fine but 3rd party games they wont censor them.

No region lock
No censorship
Now all we need is no stupid friend codes
C'mon Nintendo you're almost there!

Sony: "Nintendo isn't real competition, because they mostly have an audience of children."

Also Sony: "We censor our content to G ratings to protect our younger players."

Nintendo: "T&A Here! Get your T&A here!!"

Take my money Nintendo. Take it!

Nintendo became the saviors of gaming for both indie and mature content. I hope Ps5 sells so bad that they put the headquaters back to Japan, where it belongs, so Sony can get away from this censorship policy. They will make changes IF they lose enough money. Money makes companies listen to consumers more than anything else.

@8bitforever The content isn't actually the problem though. The problem is CERO, ESRB & PEGI exist as non-profit industry cooperative organizations to make judgement calls on content rating. Sony decided, as they often to, to take their ball and go home and become their own private ratings board at their own private party, to make fiat dictates as whim suits them. Nobody would be complaining if the actual accepted ratings boards said the content was unacceptable. The problem is the ratings board approves the content and applies an age rating, and Sony wants their own walled garden of (legal department, Hollywood lobby approved) sanitation. It's not about suggestive themes of children - the actual ratings board made their call about what was acceptable.

I'm not really a fan of the content myself, but when one company wants to play gatekeeper of other company's products....that should raise eyebrows. The fact that the same content can exist on other platforms, bearing a real rating's boards age rating shows that the content itself is not the issue. Stranger is Playstation's US headquarters applying American "values" (which actually means vocal interest group values) to foreign content - in the land of the parent company no less!)

"I don't approve the content so I'm glad it's banned!" isn't a good trend to follow. It only works so long as you agree with the dictator's whims. if you want the content banned placing one company as arbitrary gatekeeper isn't a good solution, getting the ratings boards, the real ones, not Sony's own, to set that as part of rating policy is the way to do that.

Either way, Sony's acting very very badly.

@8bitforever pixels. If you cant distinguish real life from fiction, you should contact specialist to be honest.

@JR150 I wish they would make it retroactive and let me update it on Wii U. and you just reminded me I need to finish that game. That was the game I was playing when I got my switch. I probably have about 5 hours left to finish. Thanks for the reminder!

@SoIDecidedTo Have fun! Kiria is is best girl btw lol

@Morrow It's funny how Sony is a Japanese company but has become corporatized and "suit-y" like Microsoft, Google, and Apple, but worse.

@8bitforever It's not about if you like the content or not. As I said, defending a dictator, be it corporate/industrial or actual only works as long as your whims align with the dictators. Today you are aligned. Tomorrow you may not be. If you want that content removed, fine, promote the ratings boards not passing it. That's a valid and universal solution that involves many invested parties.

Allowing a content dictator isn't an answer.

@JR150 Nothing's more "suit-y" than a Japanese company....

But Sony behaving in accordance with American political interests is because they actually moved Playstation headquarters to the US...it's not in Japan anymore any more than Columbia/Tristar/Sony Pictures is.

Quite the turn around. Nintendo used to be the king of cleaning up games.

If you want my opinion about censorship, just ask SUDA 51.

@JR150 Thank the move to California for that. SJWs are very common in that area and honestly are probably in Sony of California. However, they censored a few games on Ps4 under the radar before the move, so I had a feeling a policy like this was going to come eventually. They are just too anti-consumer now and have become a fraction of what they once were. (Ps1-Ps2 era) Now only the extreme die hard fans are staying, because I have seen many Sony fans, myself included, get ride of their Ps4 after all this policy bs.

On that note, can we get a re-release of Fatal Frame: Maiden Of Black Water on Switch then?

Comments on these stories are always good for a laugh I have to admit.

@BacklogBlues *Censor

What’s the point of censorship if the games are about NSFW stuff?

@8bitforever still fiction and pixels. Open your mind dude. They aren't real. And still, you have no idea what are you actually talking about. Especially with "porn" part. Let me paraphrase your sentence "go being paranoic SJW elsewhere".

Sony does what Nintendont

@8bitforever then don't buy games like this. Simple. Demanding censorship because you don't want to see something is dumb

As long as Nintendo and Sony stick to their positions then Nintendo will continue to get my business and Sony WON'T. Nintendo=👍 Sony=🚫

@8bitforever yup, wanting and agreeing with fiction and general art censorship is 100% SJW.

@8bitforever art is anything made to entertain and embed an emotion inherent to the human experience. (Especially if it's all made with ink or clay.) And yes, that also includes arousal should it be intended.

Look, you don't get these games so I'll spell it out as kindly as I can: People like these games usually because they are campy, silly, humorous, cute and all sorts of other reasons. They never take themselves too seriously and are always a relaxing, fun time. And in my case, I like them for all those same reasons along with it being nostalgic to me, bringing me back to my teenage years of getting into hentai as a 14yo. I keep those moments very fond with me despite all the crap that happened at the time.

My nostalgia is clearly not yours. I liked ecchi and hentai and you liked Mario and (presumably) Zelda. So it's fine if you don't like these games.

But C'mon, calling for this kinda content to be rid of because you find it distasteful, even though nobody got hurt? Don't. Just don't. That's beyond unfair to people like me who enjoys this stuff.
I find Mortal Kombat distasteful for obvious reasons but I'd never call for that to be taken away from the people who like it. Let them do whatever. Gore "porn" ain't for me. Why is it difficult for you to take the same stance?

@8bitforever ... Sigh just because it's cute doesn't mean it's for children. You really need to look into Japan's Kawaii obsession.

This stuff ain't aimed at children. Not even in Japan. It's aimed at nostalgic ridden folks like me who long to feel young again, made by nostalgia ridden folks themselves. You're not allowed to sell the stuff to minors even in Japan. Only adults. It's even plastered on the packaging. Hell there's even warnings inside these books and games to not replicate the art irl.

"Children in sexual situations are not art, period."
Lolita, a controversial classic romance novel about a doctor and his adopted 12yo daughter getting with eachother. Released in the early 1900s. To say this isn't art, despite its prestigious status in the novel world, is absurd.
Again, art enlists emotions. and people took a lot of things away after reading that novel. The lolicon content from Japan is no different. That novel has inspired an entire genre of storytelling and characters that is still refining itself after all these years. So how can you say that it is not art if it's done that much?

You're over reacting like the politicians in the 90s with Doom and MK when they fearfully tried linking these to violence. Remember that? And look at us now, nothing has changed except people now have a stress reliever to cope with their anger. This is no different. So comparing this to loot boxes is absurd.

Let me explain: yeah, there's a rare minority of sick people that are using this to get off. But here's the catch, they aren't feeding a problem, but using it to cope with their problem. I can speak for most of everyone who enjoys these games when I say "thank f*** I was a man of many tastes." But some people are born with a short end of the genetic stick. Rigid to only prepubescents. So they've only got two options for the rest of their life in a society that understandable damns them: Pick up a hentai or pick up a kid. Most in that minority pick up the hentai. But the ones who don't make news headlines. It's the Mortal Kombat effect all over again. Not gambling addictions.

Hold something in and it gets uglier until it explodes.
Let it out in a reasonable, safe manner and it causes no harm to yourself or anybody else.

Your concerns for child safety are well meaning. But pointing at fiction to be censored because you find it distasteful is misguided and doesn't help the problem. It makes it worse and punishes people who did no tangible harm. It's fine not to like something but this goes overboard.

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