Skullgirls update changes content developer felt was in "poor taste"
A recent update to 2D fighting game Skullgirls has removed allusions to real-world hate groups, made its content less sexually «exploitative» and added some adjustments to content the developer believed to be in «poor taste».
The result? An influx of negative Steam reviews blasting the team for its decision.
As spotted by PC Gamer, while Skullgirls' overall Steam rating remains «Very Positive,» its recent review average is now noted as being «Mostly Negative».
This is all in reaction to Skullgirls most recent update that makes several adjustments to the game's content. In an accompanying post about the changes, game director Charley Price noted three points the team specifically wanted to focus on: Allusions to real-world hate groups, character sexualisation and agency, and racial sensitivity.
«While the Renoir family and the Black Egrets were always intended to evoke imagery from an oppressive militant regime, we felt that the way that manifested (most notably via red armbands, flags, and symbolism) was too close for comfort — especially given the unfortunate reality that some of these hate groups are still active in various respects to this day,» Price explained, stating that the game's red armbands have now been removed (see image below).
Meanwhile, when discussing the game's sexualisation, Price noted that while «Skullgirls is no stranger to characters that confidently express their sexuality, there are instances in the game where characters are fetishised and/or have sexualisation imposed upon them.» Price stated that this included unwanted predatory behaviour towards «younger characters».
«While alluding to some of this can be narratively meaningful, we have made a number of small adjustments throughout the game
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