Escapist News Now: Bravely Default Censored in Western Market
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Though their kinda getting over it, traditional Japanese values expect a woman to be married young, and to retire after doing so (in some cases they're expected to only take a job to find herself a husband). An unmarried woman over 25 is considered past her peak, and may have trouble finding a husband. Again, they seem to be getting over this, but slow steps.omega 616 said:
Its also a case of who these games are targeted at - teenagers and young adults. Older demographic ahows/games/manga feature older characters (such as the weekly manga Shooting Stars in the Twilight aimed at the over 60's)
In short, as I've said elsewhere, there's a worry these might be used to groom children. Specifically, someone showing sexualised art or hentai anime/manga featuring underage characters to minors and using the fact its a cartoon, game or comic to normalise abuse.MeChaNiZ3D said:
The above reason was used to have the anime Adventure Kid have its name changed to Adventure Duo in the UK (aside from the usual mandated BBFC cuts for content).
Why is everyone here worried about sexualization of fictional characters? They don't exist.
I hate censorship with a passion, and whilst I don't see this case as a particular problem (since it's only a few pixels), it's what it opens the gate for in terms of changing art and videogames. "IT MAKES ME UNCOMFORTABLE" is not grounds for changing things.
I hate censorship with a passion, and whilst I don't see this case as a particular problem (since it's only a few pixels), it's what it opens the gate for in terms of changing art and videogames. "IT MAKES ME UNCOMFORTABLE" is not grounds for changing things.
"Western audiences are uncomfortable sexualising 15 year olds"
LMFAO all the way to Japan!
Has anyone watched a music video lately or an ad for a girls makeup set or dolls like Brats... FFS Western corporations have been sexualising kids from 10 up for as long as product marketing has existed. This is just a product that happens to have been noticed and targeted likely for more to do with the fact that its a videogame. Its just a point in history where games are under the spotlight, if they were little dolls made by Matel no one would have batted an eyelid, but if they are pixel action well hold the phone a minute, this needs to be dealt with!
For better or worse games are the current "Elvis's hips" topic of the moment...
The question everyone should be asking themselves is why do we popularise these products that DO in fact sexualise children to a degree its such a massive market??? I mean parents buy this stuff for their kids.... WTF is up with that ??
Im not in favour of banning much in life or censoring much else, but we need to take a look at ourselves when a woman dresses in a school girl outfit and sings "hit me baby one more time" and we go for it in droves....
The Japs are no weirder than the next nation, they just seem to be less worried about projecting it in public. Maybe one day we will see the British Judiciary show us what they wear under their robes but for now, we can just enjoy being white folks poking fun at the odd little Asian types right?
LMFAO all the way to Japan!
Has anyone watched a music video lately or an ad for a girls makeup set or dolls like Brats... FFS Western corporations have been sexualising kids from 10 up for as long as product marketing has existed. This is just a product that happens to have been noticed and targeted likely for more to do with the fact that its a videogame. Its just a point in history where games are under the spotlight, if they were little dolls made by Matel no one would have batted an eyelid, but if they are pixel action well hold the phone a minute, this needs to be dealt with!
For better or worse games are the current "Elvis's hips" topic of the moment...
The question everyone should be asking themselves is why do we popularise these products that DO in fact sexualise children to a degree its such a massive market??? I mean parents buy this stuff for their kids.... WTF is up with that ??
Im not in favour of banning much in life or censoring much else, but we need to take a look at ourselves when a woman dresses in a school girl outfit and sings "hit me baby one more time" and we go for it in droves....
The Japs are no weirder than the next nation, they just seem to be less worried about projecting it in public. Maybe one day we will see the British Judiciary show us what they wear under their robes but for now, we can just enjoy being white folks poking fun at the odd little Asian types right?
No they tend to just choose their vehicles of child sexualisation differently is all....Jeff Grigsby said:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bratz
"New concerns over the body image and lifestyle the Bratz dolls allegedly promote were raised by the American Psychological Association when they established their "Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls" in February 2007. In their published report, they cited concern over the adult-like sexuality the Bratz dolls allegedly portray.[2]"
am i the only one who prefers everything to remain rather untouched no matter how creepy? hell these conversations are the reason why Yakiza 5 (main heroin becoming a pop singer) and the period Yakuza (in one Kazuma falls in love with a 13 year old Gaisha) games won't ever be localized.
Or you could just do a Google search. Even Wikipedia's bound to be more comprehensive than the Nostalgia Critic's coverage.SpyHunter29 said:
It does, however, put the Barenaked Ladies' "One Week" in perspective.
It's still censorship. The problem here appears to be that people dislike admitting censorship can be something other than evil. And while I'm reticent to support censorship, this is censorship, and that's okay.omega 616 said:
Something very unlikely to change about underage girls. About underage anyone, really.Smilomaniac said:
Forget Bratz, did you ever see a Kidz Bop ad? I haven't had cable in a while, but early on they had little girls grinding to "Genie in a Bottle" (singing "gotta rub me the right way") and much later, they had them doing it to hip-hop and "This Love" (hopefully leaving out the fingers bit).Razorback0z said:
I would personally be more worried about child pageants and music videos with tween strip shows than either Bratz or Bravely Default. Thankfully, it's not either/or.
First of all minors are sexual beings, both boys and girls. I know I had sexual experiences before I was 18. At 15 most people have gone through puberty and had some sort of sexual experience, whether masturbation, kissing, hugging or heavy petting, or in some cases more.SpyHunter29 said:
I don't see anything wrong with the original ages or original outfits. Really the first outfit is revealing and sexually suggestive in both versions.
I don't like this kind of stuff because it implies that the original version was morally deficient, that it was bad, perverted and needed to be changed. I don't believe that is true, I don't believe there was anything morally repugnant about the original Japanese game and Nintendo is underestimating its audience in the west.
My question is whats with JRPG's having the dumbest, most nonsensical titles ever? And no, I'm not talking about Final Fantasy, there was a logical reason for that it just became ironic when it turned out to be successful.
No I mean games like this: Bravely Default...Infinite Undiscovery...Ys....Ar Tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel...ok seriously wtf? Hard to imagine they sound any less ridiculous in Japanese either.
No I mean games like this: Bravely Default...Infinite Undiscovery...Ys....Ar Tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel...ok seriously wtf? Hard to imagine they sound any less ridiculous in Japanese either.
![[REDACTED]](https://eg-forums-escapist-data.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/data/avatars/l/129/129871.jpg?1621054700){kind=avatar}
It isn't censorship if the creator's do it of their own volition. That's just localization. This is really no different than Nier being released in the west with an older, burlier protagonist.
I'm afraid to say that regardless of the apparent censorship there is something distinctly wrong with JRPG art styles and art direction when it comes to female representation.
Don't get me wrong I'm hardly Anita Sarkeesian here but....seriously. Eastern depictions of females are distinctly wrong in any responsible adult's understanding of visual imagery.
Bravely Default is likely rather inoffensive but its the overarching unacceptability of eastern depictions of young girls that simply goes one step to far at all times. You can see the insidious influence it has even in western emulations...the Skyrim modding community is simply overwhelmed with pedophiles that are all rooted in this cultural acceptance of extremely sexualized children that comes directly out of JRPG art styles.
Now I'm not saying this stuff should be censored or banned, but I think its cultural and societal impacts should be considered and perhaps restricted to an adults only rating...cause to be frank, some of this stuff could get you put in jail, with cause, simply by possessing it on your computer, by a jury of your peers in America (Not referring to Bravely Default here...just in general).
And as sweet and innocent as you may believe your anime waifu to be, no matter how much respect you show for that depiction of innocence and beauty and strength and whatever other glowing positive word you want to associate with a non-existent female that embodies your ideals of what the perfect girl should be....somewhere on the internet, someone is having sex with it...and its their sister, or worse, their daughter. I apologize for the bluntness of that statement but it is a fact...not a supposition or an assumption. Feel free to look for your waifu on any japanese related Skyrim screenshot repository, or for the true art connoisseur, DeviantArt..she'll be there, usually stuffed with penises.
Now this isn't to say that all fans of this genre fall into this disgusting and horrifically imbalanced behavior...because they don't. But its the slow but sure creep of a cultural acceptance of "accepting the differences of another culture" that gives reinforcement to what is, in some people, truly an expression of mental illness. They think its okay because its not a real girl or a real person.....and its not okay. Fantasizing about murder is not okay...its not "okay" just because you didn't really do it.
Now you can't equate playing a shooter game to fantasizing about murder the same way you can't equate playing a JRPG to fantasizing about molesting underage girls. But the issue as it stands is we don't have an obvious issue of people directly fantasizing about murder due to shooter games(this isn't to say its not happening its just got a lot less direct visual evidence that you can find on Google)..whereas there is extreme and direct evidence all over the internet of people fantasizing about molesting underage girls and a good amount of this vicarious fantasy is based on JRPG and anime style characters...cause as compared to fantasizing about actual real underage females, people think that this is acceptable because it has no true intent of harm because you cannot harm something that doesn't exist...but that doesn't make it right. Its still a seriously imbalanced form of sexual expression....regardless.
So, no offense to fans of the genre and art style...you didn't make it wrong by liking it...someone else did by...well the obvious reasons they made it wrong.
Don't get me wrong I'm hardly Anita Sarkeesian here but....seriously. Eastern depictions of females are distinctly wrong in any responsible adult's understanding of visual imagery.
Bravely Default is likely rather inoffensive but its the overarching unacceptability of eastern depictions of young girls that simply goes one step to far at all times. You can see the insidious influence it has even in western emulations...the Skyrim modding community is simply overwhelmed with pedophiles that are all rooted in this cultural acceptance of extremely sexualized children that comes directly out of JRPG art styles.
Now I'm not saying this stuff should be censored or banned, but I think its cultural and societal impacts should be considered and perhaps restricted to an adults only rating...cause to be frank, some of this stuff could get you put in jail, with cause, simply by possessing it on your computer, by a jury of your peers in America (Not referring to Bravely Default here...just in general).
And as sweet and innocent as you may believe your anime waifu to be, no matter how much respect you show for that depiction of innocence and beauty and strength and whatever other glowing positive word you want to associate with a non-existent female that embodies your ideals of what the perfect girl should be....somewhere on the internet, someone is having sex with it...and its their sister, or worse, their daughter. I apologize for the bluntness of that statement but it is a fact...not a supposition or an assumption. Feel free to look for your waifu on any japanese related Skyrim screenshot repository, or for the true art connoisseur, DeviantArt..she'll be there, usually stuffed with penises.
Now this isn't to say that all fans of this genre fall into this disgusting and horrifically imbalanced behavior...because they don't. But its the slow but sure creep of a cultural acceptance of "accepting the differences of another culture" that gives reinforcement to what is, in some people, truly an expression of mental illness. They think its okay because its not a real girl or a real person.....and its not okay. Fantasizing about murder is not okay...its not "okay" just because you didn't really do it.
Now you can't equate playing a shooter game to fantasizing about murder the same way you can't equate playing a JRPG to fantasizing about molesting underage girls. But the issue as it stands is we don't have an obvious issue of people directly fantasizing about murder due to shooter games(this isn't to say its not happening its just got a lot less direct visual evidence that you can find on Google)..whereas there is extreme and direct evidence all over the internet of people fantasizing about molesting underage girls and a good amount of this vicarious fantasy is based on JRPG and anime style characters...cause as compared to fantasizing about actual real underage females, people think that this is acceptable because it has no true intent of harm because you cannot harm something that doesn't exist...but that doesn't make it right. Its still a seriously imbalanced form of sexual expression....regardless.
So, no offense to fans of the genre and art style...you didn't make it wrong by liking it...someone else did by...well the obvious reasons they made it wrong.
Part of me says who cares, and the other part of me says... Who the fuck cares? I guess I see the logic just fine, but I mean, really? As if the rest of the western gaming world doesn't sexualize people. It's just the age part I guess? Fair enough, sorta. If this is the case though, how the hell did the Dancers and Nightseekers in Etrian Odyssey 4 make it past this "censorship" (Not really censorship)? THAT is a curious question. I'm sporting a super tight bikini clad loli girl kicking ass in my party in that game. Why? The game had her and was pretty much begging for it :3
Only if by "Western" you mean "North American".IKWerewolf said:
A lot of people think the age of consent as being 18, because that's what it is in California (i.e. Hollywood). In fact, in the U.S. the age of consent is 16-18. It's 16 in Canada.Neronium said:
In most European countries, it's 14-16.
Just say that they're 16-18 and keep the models the same, doesn't make a shred of difference.
It all ends up looking the same anyway in this kind of game.
Who even asks for this kind of censorship in Europe?
I see 13 year olds sexualizing themselves non-stop here, especially at the pool or the beach.
On the flip side, I don't like bikini outfits in games. Not because of sexualization, but because they're often examples of lazy design.
It all ends up looking the same anyway in this kind of game.
Who even asks for this kind of censorship in Europe?
I see 13 year olds sexualizing themselves non-stop here, especially at the pool or the beach.
On the flip side, I don't like bikini outfits in games. Not because of sexualization, but because they're often examples of lazy design.
