Apple Rejects Hot Mess For 8Bit Nudity

A strange turn of events in the App Store.

A couple days ago, a independent game called Hot Mess was rejected for the second time during Apple’s review process. 

Recommended Videos

In Hot Mess, players step into the shoes of a firefighting robot who goes haywire, and mistakes the burning passion of romance as the flame that burns down houses. He thinks couples kissing is dangerous, and therefore tries to hose them down to avoid fires.

The reason for this rejection was because there were 8-bit animated people kissing, and these said people were naked. So, after the first rejection, Atlanta-based indie game developer Secret Library fixed the problem (sort of) by putting underwear on the happy couples.

Sadly, Apple rejected Hot Mess once again due to this rule stated by Apple: 

“App Store rule 16.1, states that apps must not feature “highly objectionable” or “crude” content, which of course is at the discretion of Apple. Despite adding the underwear, Apple still ruled that the game contained crude content.”

After the second rejection, Secret Library tweeted: 

Then, early this moring, around 4:00 a.m., Hot Mess was released. 

I’m not sure why Apple suddenly decided to release it–some say because of publicity, which could very well be true.

Anyway, I went ahead and bought myself a copy last night and I fell in love with the premise. The controls could use some tweaking, though. The people are hard to notice during gameplay, making Apple’s rant a little excessive. All that I know is that if you want to play Hot Mess, pick it up today because it could very easily be pulled.


GameSkinny is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more
related content
Read Article New Dragon’s Dogma 2 Title Update Adds Multiple Saves, More Appearance Changes, Performance Tweaks, and More
the player charging a dragon in dragon's dogma 2
Read Article Predator: Hunting Grounds Will Get New Content With IllFonic Takeover
Predator watching prey from the treetops.
Read Article Overwatch 2 Introduces Its First Free Hero in Season 10
Venture holding her drill and Baptise, Zarya, Pharah, and Lifeweaver standing behind her
Read Article Horror Becomes Educational by Teaching Morse Code in SOS: Forgotten Planet
A monster behind a door marked M
Read Article Pocketpair Announced the 10 Most Popular Pals in Palworld
Player looks up to Quivern in Palworld
Related Content
Read Article New Dragon’s Dogma 2 Title Update Adds Multiple Saves, More Appearance Changes, Performance Tweaks, and More
the player charging a dragon in dragon's dogma 2
Read Article Predator: Hunting Grounds Will Get New Content With IllFonic Takeover
Predator watching prey from the treetops.
Read Article Overwatch 2 Introduces Its First Free Hero in Season 10
Venture holding her drill and Baptise, Zarya, Pharah, and Lifeweaver standing behind her
Read Article Horror Becomes Educational by Teaching Morse Code in SOS: Forgotten Planet
A monster behind a door marked M
Read Article Pocketpair Announced the 10 Most Popular Pals in Palworld
Player looks up to Quivern in Palworld
Author