‘Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered’ Mod Replacing LGBT Pride Flags With American Flags Banned By Nexus Mods
Ryan Pearson
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A mod removing LGBT Pride flags from Marvel’s Spider-Man on PC has been banned from Nexus Mods in less than 24 hours.
Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment
The now-banned mod was called “Non-Newtonian New York,” created by user “Mike Hawk”— undoubtedly a pseudonym. As stated, the mod removes LGBT pride flags from buildings in Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man, and replaces them with the US flag. “Tired of Sir Isaac shoving his fancy light show in your face everywhere? This removes them and replaces them with the stars and stripes.”
The “Sir Isaac” in question refers to the mod’s header image, showing Sir Isaac Newton experimenting with light and producing a spectrum. An onlooker in the art reads “Dude, stop,” while a large cross is over the spectrum itself. In short, the mod avoids depictions of LGBT or Pride.
Source: Mike Hawk via Nexus Mods (Archive)
The mod generated 168 posts by users at the time it was archived — though the main page archive shows 211 — the same day it was uploaded to Nexus Mods. Most feature scorn and disgust at the mod and those who showed approval for the mod possibly did so in jest; genuine support cannot be ruled out, though.
It had 353 unique downloads as of its last archive and a total of 31 endorsements. In light of the event, users on several subreddits have also claimed to be sharing the mod through other file-hosting websites.
Speaking to We Got This Covered, Nexus Mods stated they had taken down the mod; banning the user and their alternative account for good measure. A spokesperson told the outlet that both the user and their mod are “no longer welcome on Nexus.” The Gamer adds the mod was available on the website for less than 24 hours.
Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment
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In 2020, ahead of the US presidential election, Nexus Mods announced they would “invoke an outright ban on mods relating to sociopolitical issues in the United States,” citing that “a spate of provocative and troll mods being uploaded based around current sociopolitical issues in the United States” featuring low quality mods expressing “polarising views.”
“A small but vocal contingent of our users are seemingly not intelligent or grown up enough to be able to debate the issues without resorting to name calling and baseless accusations without proof (indicative of the wider issues plaguing our world at this time)” resulted in Nexus mods deciding to “wipe our hands clean of this mess.”
Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment
In earlier news, Insomniac Games did not react well to Head of PlayStation Jim Ryan telling staff to “respect differences of opinion,” and that PlayStation and its community are “multi-faceted and diverse, holding many different points of view.”
Along with a a $50,000 donation to the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project (WRRAP), Insomiac Games sent a “near-60 page” document filled with employees’ issues to PlayStation leadership and Ryan.
Source: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (2021), Sony Interactive Entertainment
“There would be material repercussions for us as a wholly owned subsidiary. Among other things, any progress that we might make in helping change [Sony Interactive Entertainment’s] approach would be stopped dead in its tracks,” Insomniac Games CEO Ted Price reportedly stated.
“We’d also probably be severely restricted from doing important public-facing work in the future,” Price decried. It is worth pointing out that Insomniac Games included a Black Lives Matter mural in Spider-Man: Miles Morales as a side-quest reward; one that SIE did not deem necessary to remove at the time.
Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020), Sony Interactive Entertainment
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