LogInThe creators had to make another version to get rated in Japan.
Unfortunately, it's not always enough just to develop a game and publish it, creators also have to think about organizations that rate games and have their own vision of what's acceptable.
Suda51 and Shinji Mikami, the developers of the "action-adventure road trip through hell," Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered, know it too well. In a recent interview with GameSpark (via VGC), Suda confirmed that the console version of the game in Japan had to be censored to pass through the CERO rating board. Thankfully, PC players can enjoy the shooter as it's supposed to be.
"We had to prepare two versions of the game, which is a real challenge," Suda said. "In remastering the game, we had to develop two versions at the same time, which had a tremendous impact on our workload and extended the development period."
GRASSHOPPER MANUFACTURE
Mikami added that he finds it strange that "there are people who want to play edgy games, and there are those who don’t play games who try to prevent their enjoyment by restricting those works with regulations." Alas, this is the case in many areas, not only gaming.
The developers have to adhere to regional restrictions, but Suda wonders about players' reactions. If people buy the PC version to avoid censorship, "it would be a bit sad, considering it’s available on a variety of platforms."
"It makes me wonder who the restrictions are aimed at – at the very least, I don’t think they’re aimed at the customers who play the game."
Unfortunately, companies can't just disregard CERO. The original version of Dead Space, Mikami recalled, was banned in Japan because the organization refused to rate it.
"At the time I had the opportunity to talk to people at the development studio in the US,” he said. “What I still remember vividly is that some of them were in tears, saying: ‘We worked so hard on this game, but we couldn’t get it released in Japan.'"
If you wish to know how the rating process goes, see how PEGI does it in this article.
Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered, following Garcia Hotspur and his boney buddy trying to save Garcia's kidnapped lover from the Lord of the Underworld, is going to be released on October 31.
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