UPDATE: It’s confirmed, you can bypass the outfit and model changes by tweaking the game’s localization.txt file. Interactive scenes play perfectly, like the update never even happened.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: If you were among the few people considering quitting Snowbreak: Containment Zone due to the recent claims of censorship, you might want to rethink that decision, as a solution has now been found.
The Chinese gacha game Snowbreak: Containment Zone has experienced notable success in 2024, thanks to a radical redesign that replaced male NPC characters with female ones and introduced more detailed, revealing, and attractive female character designs and outfits.
The announcement caused some panic among Snowbreak: Containment Zone’s devoted Western players, as it mentioned changes to character outfit designs to bring the game’s Chinese version in line with its Global version.
However, these changes only applied to specific characters that existed before the game’s version 1.8 update, as Snowbreak: Containment Zone had already received a more Mature age rating in China by that time.
It seemed that certain designs and costumes purchased by players before version 1.8 would remain unchanged. The developers’ message was somewhat unclear and complicated, making it difficult to understand.
Various designs that were introduced or modified to be more appealing before version 1.8 were scheduled to be adjusted on August 30th, as they had been altered when Snowbreak had a lower age rating.
Despite the clear statement that the changes wouldn’t affect designs released after the game’s age rating was increased, some players were understandably upset.
The update has now gone live, and dedicated players of Snowbreak: Containment Zone have already found a way to bypass the censorship by simply modifying a text document that was recently added to the game files by the developers.
At some unknown point recently, Snowbreak introduced a file called “localization.txt” which initially only changed the color of one character’s outfit from green to purple. However, it seems the developers anticipated needing to make alterations at some point, so at least on the surface, they appear to be complying with the CCP’s demands.
The latest update reverted or modified several designs, including Katya’s base outfit. However, players have discovered that these changes can be completely bypassed by using the newly added localization.txt file in the game’s files.
If you’re playing the game through its own PC client, the solution is straightforward. First, launch the game’s launcher and click the settings icon in the top right corner. Under “Game Contents,” click the “View” button to open the game’s installation folder. Once there, you’ll find the text document—open it and change the value from zero to one, and you’re all set.
For those who prefer playing on Steam and want to show off to their friends, you’ll need to take a slightly different approach to access the file. Right-click on SNOWBREAK in your game library, then go to the “Manage” submenu and click on the “Browse local files” button.
From there, you’ll find the “localization.txt” file in your Steam’s COMMON folder. It’s not directly within Snowbreak’s files; you’ll need to go back one level and scroll to the bottom of your Steam’s common folder. Once you locate the file, make the same changes to the text document.
Honestly, this was a clever move by Snowbreak’s developers, who likely anticipated that something like this might happen. The studio has reassured fans about its direction by stating they understand who their audience actually is.
This focus on fanservice has ultimately been a key to the game’s success, and any disruptions could jeopardize its comeback and potentially lead to its downfall.
While the changes were relatively minor, censorship is still censorship, and fortunately, it only affected a few designs that were introduced before the version 1.8 update.
Some other designs have been removed from the store, but players who already own them can still access them. Snowbreak plans to continue focusing on interactive fanservice elements with appealing characters.
For Western audiences, the minor changes can easily be bypassed by simply altering a number, so if you were considering dropping the game due to its recent changes you may very well stick around and watch Snowbreak: Containment Zone grow, at least for a little while longer.
