Nintendo isn’t allowing gamers to play as gay in an upcoming life simulator game.
The publisher said it wouldn’t bow to pressure to allow players to engage in romantic activities with characters of the same sex in English editions of Tomodachi Life. This follows a social media campaign launched by fans last month seeking virtual equality for the game’s characters.
“Nintendo never intended to make any form of social commentary with the launch of Tomodachi Life, Nintendo of America Inc. said in a statement. “The relationship options in the game represent a playful alternative world rather than a real-life simulation. We hope that all of our fans will see that Tomodachi Life was intended to be a whimsical and quirky game.”
Tye Marini, a gay 23-year-old Nintendo fan from Mesa, Arizona, launched the campaign last month, urging Japan-based Nintendo Co. and its subsidiary Nintendo of America Inc. to add same-sex relationship options to English versions of the Nintendo 3DS game.
The game was originally released in Japan in 2013 and features a cast of Mii characters – Nintendo’s personalised avatars of real players – living on a virtual island. Gamers can do things like shop, visit an amusement park, play games, go on dates, and encounter celebrities like Christina Aguilera and Shaquille O’Neal.
“I want to be able to marry my real-life fiancé’s Mii, but I can’t do that,” Marini said in a video posted online. “My only options are to marry some female Mii, to change the gender of either my Mii or my fiancé’s Mii, or to completely avoid marriage altogether and miss out on the exclusive content that comes with it.”
“Tomodachi Life” has been a hit in a Japan, where Nintendo said in December 2013 it had sold 1.83 million copies of the game.
Several role-playing series produced by English-speaking developers, such as The Sims, Fable, and The Elder Scrolls have allowed players to create characters that can woo characters of the same sex, as well as marry and have children. Other more narrative-driven games, like Grand Theft Auto 4, The Last of Us, and Gone Home have included specific gay, lesbian, and bisexual characters.
Tomodachi Life is set for release on 6 June 2014 in North America and Europe.
What do you make of Nintendo’s move? Let us know in the comments and forum.
Article courtesy of MyBroadband
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