Monster Monpiece Censored for Sexual Imagery of Girl Monsters

[roseofbattle]

Monster Monpiece Censored for Sexual Imagery of Girl Monsters

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Cards in Monster Monpiece level up when players rub the screen, and monster girls remove clothing.

Monster Monpiece, a card battling game with creatures reimagined as girls and women, has received drastically different ratings depending on where it's being released. Receiving the highest rating in North America, Monster Monpiece has been censored for "some intense sexual imagery." Publisher Idea Factory International is aware of concerns from North American fans and explained why certain images have "less exposed" versions for the localization.

"This was a very difficult decision since we work very hard to satisfy our fans and want to bring the same content being offered in Japan," Idea Factory stated on Facebook. "However, Western society is not as lenient as that of Japan when sexual images are involved - especially images of humanoids that appear to be younger than a socially acceptable age."

Players hold the Vita vertically as if it were a card and rub the screen to strip characters of their clothes, powering up the monster girl cards. Stronger cards depict girls wearing less clothing, and judging by the game's trailer, a great deal of attention is paid to the characters' breasts. Players are encouraged to strip the monster girls through this system.

The ESRB gave Monster Monpiece a Mature rating with the censored material submitted. The European version received the PEGI 12 rating due to the minimal amount of violence. The difference comes down to different concerns in each part of the world.

Of the approximately 350 card images in Monster Monpiece, about 40 were censored for the North American version. Each card that had its image changed will have the same number of levels for the player to increase, but "higher level card images will be the same as the lower level." Idea Factory International reiterated that the game's playtime, system, and features are the same as the original Japanese release.

The following cards are limited to their level 1, 2, or 3 evolution form due to "the strong sexual nature of the card images": Vampire, Kraken, Goblin, Cockatrice, Kobold, Skeleton, Titania, Bahamut, Fia, Brownie, Pegasus, Mandragora, Mau Sibau, Rafflesia, Death Scorpion, Phantom, and Tengu.

Monster Monpiece will be available this spring for North America and Europe on the PS Vita through the PlayStation Network.

Source: Idea Factory International [https://www.facebook.com/notes/idea-factory-international-inc/regarding-monster-monpiece-censorship/1512665578958883]


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[Barbas]

..."However, Western society is not as lenient as that of Japan when sexual images are involved - especially images of humanoids that appear to be younger than a socially acceptable age."

If there is any solid, peer-reviewed literature that explains why things like this are seen as acceptable in Japan, please do not hesitate to recommend it. Japan is obscured from my eyes and requires further understanding.

 

[Draconalis]

Don't get me wrong... I'm not a fan of loli content... but it disturbs me how many games are being censored. This is the fourth I know about.

 

[ZippyDSMlee]

Ya...no its Mature material but nothing higher than that...the US is so messed up...

 

[Lvl 64 Klutz]

Don't get me wrong... I'm not a fan of loli content... but it disturbs me how many games are being censored. This is the fourth I know about.

If you look at the bigger picture, you'll notice that it's more the case that a lot more obscure Japanese titles that normally would never find their way out West are getting localized. The games that are getting minor censoring edits are games that wouldn't even hope of getting a NA/EU release for the very reason they're getting those minor edits; most companies wouldn't have even bothered.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

..."However, Western society is not as lenient as that of Japan when sexual images are involved - especially images of humanoids that appear to be younger than a socially acceptable age."

If there is any solid, peer-reviewed literature that explains why things like this are seen as acceptable in Japan, please do not hesitate to recommend it. Japan is obscured from my eyes and requires further understanding.

I'll second this because I've never understood how their culture works. They seem to be oddly prude and lewd at the same time from what I can tell, and very backwards regarding the treatment of women. Granted this is all from an American point of view take it as you will. I may not be your "typical American" though.

 

[omega 616]

..."However, Western society is not as lenient as that of Japan when sexual images are involved - especially images of humanoids that appear to be younger than a socially acceptable age."

If there is any solid, peer-reviewed literature that explains why things like this are seen as acceptable in Japan, please do not hesitate to recommend it. Japan is obscured from my eyes and requires further understanding.

I think the legal age in Japan is like 4 years younger than America, plus (as I found out a couple of weeks ago) a trend that is dying out in Japan is women of about 30+ are considered past there sexual prime, it's all about that mid teen to early twenties.

While I am not a fan of censorship, I approve of this. Not just in a white knight way but I always feel games and such think that unless there is "something for the dads" guys wont be interested in it. Like all guys are "Is it a sport? Ok, does it go fast? Ok, but are there boobs? Not even boobs? Then I don't give a shit!"

 

[JoJo]

..."However, Western society is not as lenient as that of Japan when sexual images are involved - especially images of humanoids that appear to be younger than a socially acceptable age."

If there is any solid, peer-reviewed literature that explains why things like this are seen as acceptable in Japan, please do not hesitate to recommend it. This requires further understanding.

Can't provide any peer-reviewed literature but I wouldn't be surprised if Japan has different sexual norms to Western countries due to the lack of Abrahamic religions whose typically sex-negative attitudes have permeated our culture for well over a thousand years. I think it wouldn't hurt to learn from some of their attitudes, such as openness to non-sexual nudity and embracing some of the weirder sides of sex, though their society isn't perfect either, they can be very prudish and traditional in other ways and have problems with the way women are treated, see the groping in trains situation.

 

[WouldYouKindly]

If it were released on PC I'd expect it to be a matter of hours before someone released an unofficial patch with the original images.

Actually, I'm curious as to what the images were. After all, The Witcher 2 got away with having pretty graphic sex scenes. To Google!

Alright, I'm back, yeah, wow that's about as close as you can possibly get to naked without actually being naked. What might be the nail in the coffin is, like in a lot of anime or anime-esk things, many of them look like 12 year olds.

Well, it's not actually censoring the gameplay and if you want to see those images you can definitely find them online.

 

[Dr.Awkward]

I'm starting to wonder if Japan's suffering from a epidemic of sexual frustration due to its own social structure, especially on the male side, but nobody's willing to admit it...

 

[Lieju]

Ya...no its Mature material but nothing higher than that...the US is so messed up...

At least one of those girls was certainly underage, or rather has the body of a young girl.

I'm thinking it's the loli content that's the issue here.

If it's just sexual imagery, it's silly, because if you buy this game, you are buying it for that sort of stuff.

 

[2xDouble]

You know... I love me some pornographic Flash non-games like these, but I think I'm actually offended by this one.

Dammit, Japan! how do you manage to ruin "a bunch of women 'building relationships' by rubbing each other's bodies until their clothes come off and then forcing them to fight"?

Captcha: pump less with cruze. Nice double entendre, Captcha.

 

[ZippyDSMlee]

Ya...no its Mature material but nothing higher than that...the US is so messed up...

At least one of those girls was certainly underage, or rather has the body of a young girl.

I'm thinking it's the loli content that's the issue here.

If it's just sexual imagery, it's silly, because if you buy this game, you are buying it for that sort of stuff.

Which is stupid whats next banning content that disrespects gays or blacks?

Banning(even fou banning) things never works and works against society in general over time as more things need to be banned.

Unless you can find direct constant harm things do not need to be banned....


/pissed off

 

[Draconalis]

If you look at the bigger picture, you'll notice that it's more the case that a lot more obscure Japanese titles that normally would never find their way out West are getting localized. The games that are getting minor censoring edits are games that wouldn't even hope of getting a NA/EU release for the very reason they're getting those minor edits; most companies wouldn't have even bothered.

That actually did catch my attention, but I also wonder how many of their niche fan-base they are losing with the censorship.

I remembered not buying one of the Yakuza games, because the American version removes the feature were you could woo a Gesha.

I think the legal age in Japan is like 4 years younger than America

The age of Majority in Japan is 20. You're look upon as a child till you're 20, and I don't mean, Teen > kid. You're treated as a kid till you're 20. For kids to have sex is looked down upon.

The Age of Consent is 13, but only on the national level. Similarly to how the age of consent varies from state to state (16-18, also worth noting that till recently, it was 14 in Hawaii) each Provence in Japan has it's own age of consent, generally being 17 on average.

To put this in context, it would be as if the AoC in the US were 13, but you'll still get in trouble, because each state's AoC is actually 16-18

As a nice little factoid, I'd like to note that sex isn't all fun in games in Japan. It's a very stressful process, given their culture. I'd wager, in all honesty, that's part of the reason their birth rates are so down.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

Jiggly boobs? That's why it's being censored?

Correct me if I'm wrong here.

Don't get me wrong, it's blatant pandering and as such I find it despicable, but banning it for having jiggly fucking boobs? Surely I'm missing something.

 

[Draconalis]

I'm starting to wonder if Japan's suffering from a epidemic of sexual frustration due to its own social structure, especially on the male side, but nobody's willing to admit it...

Hell yeah it is. I was going to say the same thing.

 

[Candidus]

"Localization" like this just promotes the import market. I'm not interested in any digital card game, but if I were going to buy this, it'd be a JP copy on a JP psVita.

I went to some pains to get the JP Vanguard Princess working on my PC after learning that it was censored in the US and Europe. Who in their right mind buys a censored product? I've got too much self-respect to tacitly consent (via purchase) to an industry (the censorship industry) that consists of adults telling other adults what they ought and ought not to see.

I don't care what you've studied, who you've joined or what authority you represent; there is nobody anywhere who can ever know better than myself what I should and should not be exposed to.

 

[CriticalMiss]

The following cards are limited to their level 1, 2, or 3 evolution form due to "the strong sexual nature of the card images": Vampire, Kraken, Goblin, Cockatrice, Kobold, Skeleton, Titania, Bahamut, Fia, Brownie, Pegasus, Mandragora, Mau Sibau, Rafflesia, Death Scorpion, Phantom, and Tengu.

Skeleton? Skeleton? How do you make an image of a skeleton strongly sexual? *googles* Ok, she's not a skeleton...

Having seen the images I can understand why some were censored out. They are either borderline porn or they look like 8 year-olds (sometimes both). The Bahamut one has a pretty cool artstyle though.

 

[Lieju]

Ya...no its Mature material but nothing higher than that...the US is so messed up...

At least one of those girls was certainly underage, or rather has the body of a young girl.

I'm thinking it's the loli content that's the issue here.

If it's just sexual imagery, it's silly, because if you buy this game, you are buying it for that sort of stuff.

Which is stupid whats next banning content that disrespects gays or blacks?

Banning(even fou banning) things never works and works against society in general over time as more things need to be banned.

Unless you can find direct constant harm things do not need to be banned....


/pissed off

It depends on the content.
If something is directly encouraging violence against some group of people, I can see why that would be problematic, especially if that group faces persecution to begin with.
(And there is a difference in critiquing something and wanting it banned.)

Child porn is child porn, though.

It's a different discussion on how wrong cartoon depictions of underage kids in sexual positions are, though.
But I can see why that would be treated differently than adult cartoon women in same situations.

 

[Draconalis]

How do you make an image of a skeleton strongly sexual? *googles* Ok, she's not a skeleton...

Having seen the images I can understand why some were censored out. They are either borderline porn or they look like 8 year-olds (sometimes both). The Bahamut one has a pretty cool artstyle though.

You made me curious, so I tried to find Bahamut, (not as easy as I would have expected)

I DID however, find this

Shit... I'd be a master at this game, I'm so used to that "control scheme"