Nintendo has rescinded the title of 'Splatoon 3' world champions after racist remarks appeared online, but its response shows the difficulty of moderating online gaming communities.
Inb4 captial-G Gamers screaming “sweet baby told them to!!1!!1!1 Nintendo is being captured by the WoKe mob!1!1!”
I doubt Nintendo uses their services because I doubt Nintendo really needs them. For all their bullshit, Nintendo has actually had a surprisingly progressive history with their characters.
Birdo was probably one of the first genderqueer characters in video games, and while Birdo was originally described as being odd, their (no idea what their “official” pronouns are anymore, so I’m using they/them) strangeness wasn’t really portrayed as a bad thing, so much as a flavor-text, “haha how strange” kinda thing (this was in the 90s, which is why I’m willing to give them credit).
Then you have Vivian, who had some vague hints at being trans (or at least a crossdresser) in the original Japanese TTYD but was removed for the English translation, before having those lines re-added and translated for the HD remake, seemingly confirming that she’s trans.
They’ve had numerous instances where characters have joked or hinted at being gay or bisexual, or have been body positive. One recent example was the Super Mario Wonder commercial where Bowser is trying to woo Peach (Daisy? Can’t remember which edit: it was indeed Peach) with a flower, but then she eats an elephant fruit, turns into an elephant and gets… well… hefty. The commercial then shows a stunned Bowser, leading you to believe that he’s going to be turned off by her sudden weight gain and transformation, but instead he drops his single flower and pulls out a whole bouquet to show he’s actually into it. Like, damn, what a statement for commercial for a “kids” game.
Inb4 captial-G Gamers screaming “sweet baby told them to!!1!!1!1 Nintendo is being captured by the WoKe mob!1!1!”
I doubt Nintendo uses their services because I doubt Nintendo really needs them. For all their bullshit, Nintendo has actually had a surprisingly progressive history with their characters.
Birdo was probably one of the first genderqueer characters in video games, and while Birdo was originally described as being odd, their (no idea what their “official” pronouns are anymore, so I’m using they/them) strangeness wasn’t really portrayed as a bad thing, so much as a flavor-text, “haha how strange” kinda thing (this was in the 90s, which is why I’m willing to give them credit).
Then you have Vivian, who had some vague hints at being trans (or at least a crossdresser) in the original Japanese TTYD but was removed for the English translation, before having those lines re-added and translated for the HD remake, seemingly confirming that she’s trans.
They’ve had numerous instances where characters have joked or hinted at being gay or bisexual, or have been body positive. One recent example was the Super Mario Wonder commercial where Bowser is trying to woo Peach (
Daisy? Can’t remember whichedit: it was indeed Peach) with a flower, but then she eats an elephant fruit, turns into an elephant and gets… well… hefty. The commercial then shows a stunned Bowser, leading you to believe that he’s going to be turned off by her sudden weight gain and transformation, but instead he drops his single flower and pulls out a whole bouquet to show he’s actually into it. Like, damn, what a statement for commercial for a “kids” game.Edit: the commercial in particular, for those who haven’t seen it: https://youtu.be/ggddehjvt-E