Sony’s censoring rustling otaku jimmies

Sony is saying no to buxom anime bosoms on the PlayStation, a move which has otaku all hot and bothered. 

Earlier this month, localization studio XSEED announced they were delaying the PS4 version of Senran Kagura Burst: ReNewal due to Sony taking issue with the game’s “Intimacy Mode”. Which presumably allows you to get fresh with only the bustiest of anime girls. It was later announced that the game would release unaltered for PC on Steam. 

Developers of other racy games have also complained about running afoul of Sony’s new guidelines. Unconfirmed reports indicate that Japanese developers will now have to get permission from PlayStation’s American division to even release these games in their home country. 

Needless to say, fans of scantily clad anime women are none too pleased with the move, calling it blatant censorship and a form of cultural imperialism. Others on Reddit mused about whether this is another case of “get woke, go broke.” It’s no secret that American feminists and moral crusaders have been highly critical about sexualized women in video games. Sony though has not commented on their justification for the recent censorship spree, so at best all we have is speculation.

In an ironic twist, Nintendo, of all companies, seems more than happy to get some tiddy games on their hands-on handheld. Warriors Orochi 4 reportedly has its “boob physics” censored on all platforms except the Switch. 

As someone who remembers the original console wars and the whole video game controversy led by Janet Reno and Jack Thompson, the whole thing is a little bizarre to me. Sony always positioned themselves as the edgy company, while Nintendo family friendly almost to a fault.

At the time, Big N famously claimed they’d never have Night Trap on one of their consoles. Skip ahead 25 years later, we have not only Night Trap, but also glorious bouncing jugs. Meanwhile Sony is trying to reinvent themselves as squeaky clean? It’s definitely a complete 180 for the two.