In completely missing the ‘over-the-top and goofy’ contrast of the game’s mechanics against its overwhelmingly depressing setting, Capcom has defended their censorship of the ‘Erotica’ photo mechanic from their upcoming Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster on the grounds that, in their opinion, it was “not an appropriate reward for survival”.
As previously reported, in the original Dead Rising, one of the many ways in which the player could acquire ‘Prestige Points’ (essentially the game’s version of EXP) was by using protagonist Frank West’s trusty camera to capture images of the chaos unfolding within the Willamette Mall.
Following the snapping of any given photo, the shot will then be rated by how well the subjects in the photo represents a certain theme – Brutality, Drama, Outtake, and Erotica – with more points being awarded for each additional item in the photo that reinforces said theme.
For example, a photo of a large group of zombies would be assigned as ‘Horror’, and the player would receive more Prestige Points based on how many other zombies shambled into frame.
In the case of the Erotica category, originally, players would be rewarded for taking ‘risque’ photos of their fellow female survivors, with points for these shots being awarded based on the presence of such elements as cleavage and bare legs.
But unfortunately, as discovered by Japanese news outlet Famitsu, the Erotica category will no longer be present in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster.
As to why this decision was made, while Capcom was initially mum on the entire subject, the developer has now provided an explanation to VG24/7.
In a statement provided to the outlet, Capcom defended their censorship on the grounds that “When developing Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, we tried our best to create a game that would please returning core fans and appeal to new players alike. As development progressed, we inevitably discovered that we couldn’t include everything from the original game. In the case of the Erotica points system, this was something we discussed at length and decided to remove; not so much as a response to a changing cultural climate, but because we felt there is no need to have a reward points system on this basis.”
“Additionally, when considering Frank’s situation, it is not an appropriate reward for survival and not a skill required of a journalist trying to stay alive for the next 72 hours during a zombie apocalypse,” the dev concluded. “However, players will still have the right to choose their picture subjects freely, and even though they won’t receive points, it is up to them to decide what photos they will take to represent their journey.”
Given that the removal of the Erotica category is far from the only instance of censorship to be discovered in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster – not only has Psychopath Cliff Chiang been race-swapped from Asian to white in an onstensible attempt to avoid accusations of racism, but his fellow Psychopath Cliff Hudson no longer holds anti-communist sentiments – its likely even more will be brought to light by the time the game finally releases.
On that note, players can start covering wars in Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster on September 19th.
