Nintendo removes creepy petting feature from Fire Emblem Fates

Fire Emblem Fates has already met with some controversy, and it appears that Nintendo has sat up and taken notice – and is altering the English-language localization of the game to avoid more criticism.

Among the recently-revealed changes is the removal of a feature which allowed players to pet, rub, or stroke characters by using their stylus on the 3DS touch screen. When done to characters that the main character has achieved an S-rank relationship with, the dialogue has reportedly turned much more suggestive.

Nintendo reps confirmed with Kotaku that the controversial mechanic will be removed from the localized version, but still defended its existence in the original version of the game:

You might have heard somewhat misinterpreted or exaggerated information about the Japanese original game, but even in the Japanese original version, we have not included any features which are considered inappropriate in Japan.

Another feature which was apparently not considered “inappropriate,” but which will nevertheless be removed from the localized version, is a scene some have criticized as “homophobic.” The scene involved the male player character spiking the drink of a female character (yikes, already in some questionable territory there) – a character who is attracted to other women – with a magic powder which makes her see men as women, allowing her to become attracted to men.

Many saw the idea as being uncomfortably close to “gay conversion therapy,” which attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation so that they’ll be heterosexual. And the scene’s presence is indeed a little odd, considering that the game has been praised for allowing the option of same-sex marriage.

As you can imagine, reactions to the news have been mixed, with some supporting the changes and others calling them “censorship.” But in any case, Nintendo has made their decision, and there’s little chance that they’re going to change their minds on the issue.