In a shocking twist that absolutely nobody saw coming, the progressive game mod hosting platform Gamebanana, known for removing comments and mods that go against the current agenda or deviate from LGBT inclusion in video games, has removed a modification that revised the localized translation for the recent release of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.
We’ve previously discussed how Nintendo’s remake of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door falls short in almost every aspect except for its graphical fidelity. The game’s 30 FPS lock and the revised translation, which removes and alters problematic elements to be more inclusive and culturally appropriate, have been particularly criticized.
In a modern-day effort to align with evolving narratives, localizers have made significant alterations to certain aspects of games. Instances of Princess Peach being portrayed as inept or being urged to conform to traditional princess behavior have been removed.
Additionally, dialogue deemed “sexist” from Bowser, such as his remarks about the perks of women being silent, has been modified. The modification also addresses goombas catcalling Goombella, altering their dialogue to remove suggestive remarks because hitting on women is offensive in todays time.
However, the most notable alteration involves the character Vivian. In the original Japanese release, Vivian was depicted as an otokonoko, which translates to “femboy” in other terms. This refers to a male who adopts a feminine appearance, dress, and demeanor, resembling a girl.
In the original English release of the game, any reference to the character crossdressing was omitted, likely due to the cultural norms of the time in 2004. However, other language options managed to maintain faithfulness to the original Japanese dialogue, coincidentally portraying Vivian as a boy who looks or pretends to be a girl.
But in the remake, Vivian’s identity has been altered from male to transgender, causing an uproar amongst players who understand that such changes deviate from the official release and were made purely for representation purposes alongside the deranged trans activists who consider the act of colonizing yet another form of media to be a “win.”
If the game is rife with rogue localization that alters numerous dialogues to avoid causing offense and removing dialogue deemed “sexist” or “discriminatory,” then what credibility is there to the authenticity of Vivian suddenly being labeled “transgender” in the remake? None whatsoever.
This seems to stem from the misguided notion that individuals who do not conform to traditional masculine tropes are automatically considered female or transgender by westerners who don’t understand the cultural differences between Japan and America.
Of course, activists will slander and vilify those who refuse to bow down and conform to their distorted fantasies and delusions. They label us as evil bigots, despite the fact that we’re advocating for accurate translations in defense of a boy who dresses and appears as a girl, which is quite “fruity” if you ask me.
Yet, somehow, we’re the ones seen as offenders in this situation, simply for wanting the character to be accurately portrayed rather than co-opted into a figure that he is not.
It’s rather interesting how Nintendo’s significant change in localization coincides with Nintendo of America’s hiring of a localization specialist with a background in DE&I initiatives. The outcome of their efforts has already rewritten a character as being transgender, mirroring what Arc System Works did previously with the character of Bridgett upon his reintroduction to Guilty Gear Strive.
Then again, accuracy and authenticity mean nothing to such people. They’re insecure about themselves and resent the concept of fun, making it their mission to ruin yours. Ideologically driven propagandists, they infiltrate our communities, screech like banshees, and object to everyone who opposes them.
They demand that everything be tailored to suit their sensibilities as they are the loudest minority. They impose their delusions on others, treating every successful alteration as a trophy to boast about their legitimacy, considering themselves one of the world’s most sacred and protected classes.
Imagine my surprise when someone uploaded a modification for the remastered version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door for the Nintendo Switch that restores the English localization for Vivian and the Shadow Sirens back to the original 2004 version onto Gamebanana, one of the many progressive mod hosting platforms, only for the mod to be subsequently removed by its moderators.
You’re simply not allowed to have your own freedom of expression when it comes to game modifications, especially on platforms that hypocritically target mods that challenge their narrative.
Any game mods that remove LGBTQ+ representation in any form, even if that “representation” is merely belligerent revisionism, such as deliberately rewriting a male character as transgender is strictly prohibited.
Additionally, game modifications that supposedly “sexualize underage characters” are banned, even if these mods are marginal compared to the actual in-game outfits, which are often far more suggestive.
Gamebanana even went so far as to remove a similar mod for Fire Emblem Engage. The English localization completely altered the script, eradicating any notion of romance between the protagonist and the game’s 35 romanceable options, both male and female.
The game was “lovingly altered” to replace the concept of romance with mere friendship, unlike the Japanese release. Since the characters in this game “appear” to be “underage,” many Western players who were not familiar with the series were outraged by the fact that actual fans wanted accurate translations, believing that this somehow “sexualizes minors.”
The mod was later reuploaded to Gamebanana, but ironically in a censored state, given that it was initially an uncensored patch. This decision was driven by Gamebanana and its loyal moderators’ unwillingness to host content that depicts romance between a fictional “minor” and a fictional “adult.”
As a result, the mod remains available on Gamebanana, excluding the uncensored dialogue for the romance options involving Anna and Jean.
And now, the fine folks at Gamebanana are once again repeating history by purging the original English localization mod, deeming it deliberately discriminatory since it only changes the dialogue involving Vivian and the Shadow Sirens, rather than addressing the abundance of other changes made to the remake.
Interestingly, a modification that restores Goombella’s original catcall dialogue remains available on the website. However, because restoring Vivian’s original dialogue would “erase” a co-opted “transgender” character, it must be removed.
This, however, is considered acceptable, but when attempting to revert authentic translations involving Vivian, the moderation team claimed it was uploaded purely to incite controversy and drama.
Ironically, removing the mod in question has only generated actual drama, highlighting who truly controls the narrative within the gaming community.
Progressive localizers can seemingly rewrite entire games, eliminating dialogue and references they perceive as offensive or sexist. They can reimagine entire characters as transgender simply to validate themselves.
This has nothing to do with genuine representation; rather, it involves enforcing their beliefs and ideologies on the character. According to their view, any man who doesn’t adhere to masculine social norms by wearing feminine clothing or appearing feminine must certainly be transgender.
Similarly, these same individuals push for all female characters in video games to look masculine and androgynous, perpetuating the notion that all real women in the real world are fucking ugly, just like themselves.
You’re only allowed to oppose censorship if the altered content doesn’t involve queer themes or the LGBT community. This hypocritical scrutiny only fosters genuine resentment and prejudice against such individuals, deservedly so.
A recent GLAAD study, conducted by an LGBT advocacy organization, invertedly admitted that the percentage of LGBT gamers is actually twice as high as the LGBT population reported in countries like America.
Despite the majority of games released over the past several years being saturated with progressive themes, including queer romance, GLAAD stated that games still weren’t inclusive enough. Mary Kenney from Insomniac Games echoed this sentiment, proclaiming that “every lever must be pulled” to push this agenda upon the video game industry.
We’re already seeing the results of that, with propagandists at the helm of Nintendo of America’s localization unapologetically scrubbing offensive themes and imposing their own fetish upon players, in a game made for children.
Activists are fervently defending Gamebanana, labelling gamers as transphobic bigots and framing the entire concern about authentic translations as if it solely revolves around Vivian.
However, this situation offers actual gamers a new perspective on modern society and just how fragile certain individuals are when it comes to being offended by the old dialogue from the original English version, released two decades ago. Their sensitivity over a crossdressing boy being portrayed as anything but a trans woman is befitting of such nutcases.
For now at least, you can download the mod for yourself via BasedMods.
