Samurai Shodown Official Twitter Deletes And Apologizes for ‘Horny on Main’ Tweets Promoting Iroha DLC
The official Twitter account for SNK’s Samurai Shodown franchise has issued an apology after a female member of the fighting game community took offense to tweets jokingly referring to the ‘sexy’ appearance of the soon-to-be-released DLC fighter Iroha.
The episode of outrage began on May 7th, when the Samurai Shodown Twitter account retweeted a release date announcement and character trailer for Iroha from the official SNK account, hyping up fans for the character’s Samurai Showdown (2019) debut with the rallying cry “CRANE GANG RISE UP”:
CRANE GANG RISE UP! https://t.co/G9RlQtAt0s
— Samurai Shodown – Available Now! #EmbraceDeath (@samuraishodown) May 7, 2020
Debuting in 2005 with the release of Samurai Shodown VI, Iroha’s character is based on the Japanese folklore of The Crane Wife. After marrying a crane disguised as a woman, a man discovers that his bride has been removing her own feathers to sell for money, an act which causes her to fall gravely ill.
When the man demands she stop, the crane reveals that she was selling her feathers out of love for the man, imparting the lesson of the story: one cannot be worthy of being with a ‘crane’ if they are not willing to make sacrifices for others.
In a very anime-inspired spin on the tale, Iroha is a crane who turns herself into a Japanese maid to serve and please her ‘master.’ Though the ‘master’ is never named, it has since been confirmed by members of the Samurai Showdown VI development team that the ‘master’ is the player, specifically male players.
Unsurprisingly, as players began to turn the discussion towards their enjoyment of her design, the Samurai Shodown account continued to engage and playfully support players in their ‘thirst’ over the character’s appearance.
everyone say thank you SNK pic.twitter.com/PoQaPPRMEv
— JTEIO ⭐ (@jamteio) May 7, 2020
Thicker than a bowl of cheese grits.
— Larski (@LarSki89) May 8, 2020
However, on May 8th, professional fighting game player Miranda “Super Yan” Pakozdi, voiced her discomfort towards the lighthearted engagements, claiming that “nobody has ever made me uncomfortable or feel like I don’t belong except the official samsho twitter” due to “nonstop sophomoric 4chan jokes and comments since the game came out.”
Even tho the ratio of male to female players in the samsho community is like 20:1 nobody has ever made me uncomfortable or feel like I don’t belong except the official samsho twitter. Which is wild because I’m pretty sure their job is to do the opposite.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 8, 2020
Ah I was in the middle of typing, but yeah. I feel it’s just been nonstop sophomoric 4chan jokes and comments since the game came out. Fine from fans, but from a company account it’s unprofessional and sets up a ‘boys club’ culture.
And from a year ago: https://t.co/kdmuVP1fb2
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 8, 2020
Pakozdi also accused the official account, and by general association men in the fighting game community, of actively discriminating against female players and not viewing them as “equals in the community.”
I’d ask how they thought this would make female Samsho players feel but I’m pretty sure they haven’t thought about how we feel ever.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 8, 2020
I apologize if I’m overexplaining, but a “boys club” is basically a place where women’s comfort level and inclusion isn’t considered and in some cases discouraged.
Communities can get that way when they’re led by men who don’t think of us as equals in the community.— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 8, 2020
A long-time fighting game competitor, Pakozdi previously brought widespread attention to gender dynamics within the community after forfeiting her Street Fighter x Tekken matches during the Cross Assault tournament after claiming to receive verbal sexual harassment from fellow FGC player and commentator Aris Bakhtanians.
Following Pakozdi’s public disapproval of the Samurai Shodown accounts content, an apology was issued from the official account, with the account noting that the tweets were deleted after being “deemed inappropriate and offensive to members of our community.”
A number of posts made by this account have been deemed inappropriate and offensive to members of our community.
The admin in charge has been given a strict warning to be more considerate. The offending posts have now been deleted.
Please accept our sincerest apologies.— Samurai Shodown – Available Now! #EmbraceDeath (@samuraishodown) May 11, 2020
As fans began to complain about their removal, Pakozdi took credit for leading the account to take action against Iroha-centric tweets, crediting the deletions to her status as a “person of influence” in the fighting game community.
Yes, unfortunately I’m a person of influence who “attends tournaments and stuff”. Maybe if you attend tournaments, support the game, co-host community side events, organize/run side tourneys, stream, create art, and sponsor players to compete you will have influence too. pic.twitter.com/WUBBeLsxXx
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 11, 2020
Arguing that she was “not trying to imply my opinion is worth more than other people’s in the community,” Padzoki reasoned that what she has “done for the community” and the benefits of “why [female players] should stay” were worth more than “obnoxious hornyposts from a company account.”
Not trying to imply my opinion is worth more than other people’s in the community but please see how much I (and most of the few women in this community) have done for the community, why we should stay, and why obnoxious hornyposts from a company account are worth less than that.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 11, 2020
Despite the character’s focus at the center of the discourse, Padzoki has stated that “Iroha and people being horny on their own time isn’t the complaint here,” but rather that such content “shouldn’t be coming from a company account people follow for community/game news.”
Not implying everyone agrees with me, but I’m pretty sure I’m not the only person who is bothered by how unprofessional the account conducts itself. Iroha and people being horny on their own time isn’t the complaint here.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 11, 2020
I don’t mind it coming from the fanbase (I have my own share of thirsty game-related shit I’ve said too) as long as it’s not excessive, but it shouldn’t be coming from a company account people follow for community/game news.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 11, 2020
Can you understand why as a woman in the community going to the *official* page and seeing it be a fapfest of posts about a character’s ass is really uncomfortable though? Fans/players–fine–but this is totally wrong coming from an official account.
— Super_Yan 🤺🌹🥁 (@Super__Yan) May 11, 2020
Iroha is set for release on the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Google Stadia versions of Samurai Shodown on May 13th.
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