In late August, Bandai Namco dropped a bombshell on fans of its floundering MMORPG, Blue Protocol, announcing the game’s termination after a series of financial disasters. Unsurprisingly, many attributed its downfall to the company’s relentless obsession with Western diversity and inclusivity mandates. The shutdown is scheduled to take effect on January 18th, 2025.
Blue Protocol was initially heralded as a potential game-changer. With its eye-catching anime-style visuals and emphasis on cooperative multiplayer gameplay, it was supposed to stand tall as Japan’s answer to miHoYo’s juggernaut, Genshin Impact. Instead, it tripped over its own ambitions, stumbling into irrelevance.
The reasons for its failure are as predictable as they are disappointing. The game lacked engaging, long-term content to keep players invested, and the developers seemed more focused on kowtowing to globalized inclusivity demands than creating a cohesive gaming experience.
This was most apparent in the censorship imposed on its PlayStation port, which was tailored for its global release. These changes included redesigned costumes to be less revealing, modifications to character customization that removed options for more risqué undergarments, and the outright elimination of the jiggle physics toggle.
Now, Blue Protocol serves as yet another cautionary tale of what happens when creativity is sacrificed at the altar of corporate mandates, particularly when working in collaboration with one of the most insidious Western companies thrusting ESG initiatives upon consumers, Amazon.
Instead of fostering innovation and player satisfaction, Bandai Namco’s misguided priorities have left it with another failed project and a tarnished reputation.
Amazon, in its quest for racial inclusivity was to play a major role in the global release of Blue Protocol, leading to noticeable regional differences between its trailers in Japan and the rest of the world.
However, the game was crapped due to poor native performance in Japan, effectively dooming its censored Western release. Now, Tencent, the Chinese conglomerate, has resurrected Blue Protocol under a new name: Star Resonance.
On December 6, a trailer debuted showcasing the upcoming title Star Resonance, highlighting its character creator, world exploration, battles, and social gameplay elements.
However, it’s hard to miss that Star Resonance is little more than a rebranded version of Bandai Namco’s Blue Protocol mobile adaptation, one that will likely turn a profit for its Chinese developers, BOKURA unlike Bandai themselves.
The game’s origins trace back to a previous announcement that BOKURA would collaborate with Project Sky Blue (Blue Protocol’s original development team) to create a mobile spin-off. Yet, following Blue Protocol’s cancellation, the future of this spin-off was thrown into question.
Set in the world of Regnas from Blue Protocol, Star Resonance seems to have salvaged what remained of the failed project. However, details about a full release date or potential global launch are still under wraps, though invited players are already diving into the game.
In a notable pivot, Star Resonance will now be available on PC within China, shedding its mobile designation and somewhat adopting a new identity. The most visible changes? The character designs have been altered to align with local preferences, seemingly moving away from the racially inclusive mandates previously dictated by Bandai Namco and their Western partners, Amazon Games which may likely play into its favor now that the largest prevailer of censorship and forced diversity are out of the picture.
This shift underscores a departure from Bandai’s original vision, as the remnants of Blue Protocol are repackaged for a different audience, signaling a stark contrast to the game’s ill-fated beginnings.
