Posted October 10, 2022
sanscript
Choose τ over π
Registered: Jul 2011
From Norway
idbeholdME
Doomed Space Marine
Registered: Jun 2016
From Czech Republic
Posted October 10, 2022
GOG not censoring is of course a good thing but as sanscript said:
Self-censoring on the developer/publisher side is a far bigger issue than that on a gaming store. That kind of censorship barely ever surfaces but can still be happening behind the scenes.
Self-censoring on the developer/publisher side is a far bigger issue than that on a gaming store. That kind of censorship barely ever surfaces but can still be happening behind the scenes.
HappyPunkPotato
Trouble with the trolley, eh?
Registered: Sep 2018
From United Kingdom
Posted October 10, 2022
Oh thanks. I remember them being missing in the disk versions that were available in the UK. It must have been before I got my copy on here though because I'm fairly sure the kids are there in the newer Bethesda version.
tx3000
New User
Registered: Jul 2014
From United States
Posted October 10, 2022
Here is my take on the whole censorship issue and it mainly revolves around the NEXUS.
I've gone through and read several topics on this forum regarding, modding, Bethesda, and places like nexus mods. Both the topics and replies around said things always fail to address key things that actually matter.
There was this big thing about the nexus removing a mod and banning the account that uploaded it. There was a reply that said something interesting which was, so the nexus should be forced to host a mod it doesn't like...another reply was outlining where an announcement was written up from the nexus mod owner or someone in poser where they explicitly outlines the word INCLUSIVE
OK so here is the deal the nexus mods 100% should be forced to host a mod because the entire site is basically owned by everyone if people didn't make mods that site wouldn't even exist. The owner of that site doesn't even do anything
[Modded. Treat others with respect.]
There is a policy about no swearing and people have actually gotten banned for that, but yet allows the hosting of x-rated mods,
[Modded. Language.]
I got news for people YOU CANNOT USE THE WORD INCLUSIVE WHEN YOU'RE EXCLUDING ANYTHING FROM IT. Which means THE removal of that flag mod MEANS YOU ARE NOT INCLUSIVE.
People on the net love to look at things backwards, a forum never looks at what causes a problem, they only look at a problem is being caused so the real trouble makers get away with it while the person defending themselves gets punished. and just like that people are trying to defend the nexus by saying it's the nexus exercising their freedom which is false because that's backwards,
The nexus exercising anything, the nexus is actually controlling who gets to use what mods when that isn't their place to be doing so. They host mods they aren't the choice police. All the nexus has done is remove free choice to use a mod. The content of the mod is 100% irrelevant. [Modded. Treat others with respect.]
[Modded. Treat others with respect.] mods are for everyone and as such a site such as nexus mods should not be restricting anyone from being able to get at mods by having them register an account in order to be able to get them.
There are just some things that the nexus have no business doing is selective mod hosting, and restricting access to game mods.
I've gone through and read several topics on this forum regarding, modding, Bethesda, and places like nexus mods. Both the topics and replies around said things always fail to address key things that actually matter.
There was this big thing about the nexus removing a mod and banning the account that uploaded it. There was a reply that said something interesting which was, so the nexus should be forced to host a mod it doesn't like...another reply was outlining where an announcement was written up from the nexus mod owner or someone in poser where they explicitly outlines the word INCLUSIVE
OK so here is the deal the nexus mods 100% should be forced to host a mod because the entire site is basically owned by everyone if people didn't make mods that site wouldn't even exist. The owner of that site doesn't even do anything
[Modded. Treat others with respect.]
There is a policy about no swearing and people have actually gotten banned for that, but yet allows the hosting of x-rated mods,
[Modded. Language.]
I got news for people YOU CANNOT USE THE WORD INCLUSIVE WHEN YOU'RE EXCLUDING ANYTHING FROM IT. Which means THE removal of that flag mod MEANS YOU ARE NOT INCLUSIVE.
People on the net love to look at things backwards, a forum never looks at what causes a problem, they only look at a problem is being caused so the real trouble makers get away with it while the person defending themselves gets punished. and just like that people are trying to defend the nexus by saying it's the nexus exercising their freedom which is false because that's backwards,
The nexus exercising anything, the nexus is actually controlling who gets to use what mods when that isn't their place to be doing so. They host mods they aren't the choice police. All the nexus has done is remove free choice to use a mod. The content of the mod is 100% irrelevant. [Modded. Treat others with respect.]
[Modded. Treat others with respect.] mods are for everyone and as such a site such as nexus mods should not be restricting anyone from being able to get at mods by having them register an account in order to be able to get them.
There are just some things that the nexus have no business doing is selective mod hosting, and restricting access to game mods.
Post edited October 10, 2022 by Clownski_
Spectrum_Legacy
The baddest of good guys
Registered: Jun 2013
From Slovakia
Posted October 10, 2022
My experience with censorship in games on gog mostly boils down to Baseball Stars 2 and Art of Fighting 2, both SNK titles that had a super-sneaky update a couple of years ago without any kind of patch note. As SNK was owned by Chinese at that time, the directive came to remove the Taiwanese flag from BS2. However in the following update, all national flags and city names were removed too (both visual and audio cuts) and the old Japanese flag from AoF2 was gone as well.
Gog doesn't really seem to care if such an "update" comes from the publisher itself or there is potential profit to be made by such appeasement. At least that's my understanding from the communique I got from the support a while ago.
I used to smirk when seeing some users here religiously backing up every single version of every game they own. I've learned my lesson since then. To all the archivists, I salute you!
Gog doesn't really seem to care if such an "update" comes from the publisher itself or there is potential profit to be made by such appeasement. At least that's my understanding from the communique I got from the support a while ago.
I used to smirk when seeing some users here religiously backing up every single version of every game they own. I've learned my lesson since then. To all the archivists, I salute you!
amok
FREEEEDOOOM!!!!
Registered: Sep 2008
From United Kingdom
idbeholdME
Doomed Space Marine
Registered: Jun 2016
From Czech Republic
fronzelneekburm
I'm back!
Registered: Apr 2012
From China, People's Republic of
Posted October 10, 2022
Recently they added a regionally censored German version of Kane & Lynch 2 to the storefront and - unlike Steam - there's not even a word of warning on the game page about it being a censored version.
Clownski_
New User
GOG.com Team
Registered: Jul 2022
From Poland
Posted October 10, 2022
Post edited October 10, 2022 by Clownski_
dnovraD
2023-08-14: Remember the Spaces!
Registered: Jul 2012
From United States
Posted October 10, 2022
🥫 🪱
neumi5694
Survived the human apocalypse
Registered: May 2011
From Italy
Posted October 10, 2022
When the publishers violate the laws of a country the game is supposed to be sold to - that's where GOG must step in.
I would like to keep all old versions of my games, gut the current versions alone already take almost 7 TB.
In the case you mentioned I would not have noticed the Taiwanese flags and names in the first place, let alone them being removed. No chance I would have seen that.
Wirvington
Mon Oncle
Registered: Dec 2013
From Nauru
Posted October 10, 2022
I know Carradice explicitly alluded to the games 'in' gog, but, I don't know, after the thing with Devotion, to me it still feels a bit off to think of gog as a company which holds or will hold any sort of real moral values which aren't or won't be tied to a business decision. Maybe I'm being too harsh, I understand my argument is basically a fallacy of composition, but I can't help but feel that way and that's on me, but it's also a shame.
armedready
Not so new anymore
Registered: Dec 2013
From United Kingdom
Posted October 10, 2022
I've gone through and read several topics on this forum regarding, modding, Bethesda, and places like nexus mods. Both the topics and replies around said things always fail to address key things that actually matter.
There was this big thing about the nexus removing a mod and banning the account that uploaded it. There was a reply that said something interesting which was, so the nexus should be forced to host a mod it doesn't like...another reply was outlining where an announcement was written up from the nexus mod owner or someone in poser where they explicitly outlines the word INCLUSIVE
OK so here is the deal the nexus mods 100% should be forced to host a mod because the entire site is basically owned by everyone if people didn't make mods that site wouldn't even exist. The owner of that site doesn't even do anything
[Modded. Treat others with respect.]
There is a policy about no swearing and people have actually gotten banned for that, but yet allows the hosting of x-rated mods,
[Modded. Language.]
I got news for people YOU CANNOT USE THE WORD INCLUSIVE WHEN YOU'RE EXCLUDING ANYTHING FROM IT. Which means THE removal of that flag mod MEANS YOU ARE NOT INCLUSIVE.
People on the net love to look at things backwards, a forum never looks at what causes a problem, they only look at a problem is being caused so the real trouble makers get away with it while the person defending themselves gets punished. and just like that people are trying to defend the nexus by saying it's the nexus exercising their freedom which is false because that's backwards,
The nexus exercising anything, the nexus is actually controlling who gets to use what mods when that isn't their place to be doing so. They host mods they aren't the choice police. All the nexus has done is remove free choice to use a mod. The content of the mod is 100% irrelevant. [Modded. Treat others with respect.]
[Modded. Treat others with respect.] mods are for everyone and as such a site such as nexus mods should not be restricting anyone from being able to get at mods by having them register an account in order to be able to get them.
There are just some things that the nexus have no business doing is selective mod hosting, and restricting access to game mods.
tx3000
New User
Registered: Jul 2014
From United States
Posted October 10, 2022
For the record:
I don't have Steam on my computer, I also do not use reddit, the nexus, gamefaqs, Facebook, tiktok, twitter, I also do not use Google unless I absolutely have to.
Every AAA game I have, already has it's own launcher so there is zero reason to get that same game on Steam and now require it to depend on 2 Launchers instead of it's own.
What i find really amusing is how people trash services such as UPLAY, EA, and even Rockstar, but mysteriously praise Steam, it's funny because Steam is the 3rd party, not EA or UPLAY, and yet they still require the uplay launcher in order to launch it through steam. Steam has the privilege of selling those games, but people who believe the game uses the steam launcher instead of it's own launcher just make me laugh. people don't seem to understand that The steam launcher is ADDED to the game in order to launch it AFTER, the games original launchers are there first then it's given to Valve and then the Steam launcher is ADDED.
No reason to cause a game that already has a launcher, to now require another one. All steam does is launch the launcher of the game then it sits in the background doing nothing.
it's really hilarious to read and listen to people actually try justifying causing a game to require a second launcher (WHICH IS STEAM) for no reason.
Post edited October 10, 2022 by tx3000
BlueMooner
Blue User
Registered: Jun 2012
From United States
Posted October 11, 2022
Though I've yet to play them, there was a ton of outrage from gamers about a trans character having a single line of dialog in baldur's gate siege of dragonspear. When it was announced vampire the masquerade was going to get a bloodlines 2 game, there was tons more outrage at "wokism" ruining the game with just the rumor of the possibility of gay vampires. Every single time any game has even one sexual minority, threads get pages and pages and pages of people complaining of things being "forced on them" and "shoved in their face" and even that it's somehow "political", that even talking about gays is political(!).
I assume in your OP you're thinking of things like Devotion, maybe the kids from fallout, or even possibly the "hide the porn" thread currently being discussed. I remember Gothic 1 had an all male game world with like four females, and two of them were topless, which some countries protested and the devs were forced to add a bra patch to cover the women. No real change from censorship.
But when TONS of gamers CONSTANTLY complain about even the tiniest presence of sexual minorities... what do you think game sellers like gog, and game devs as well, should do? Do you still support a no-censorship approach? If censorship manifests on the dev end, and not the store end, is that okay?
Sexual minorities are incredibly underrepresented in all forms of media, but if they don't appear in something, is it censorship, a response to "whiners", something else...?