Marvel Character Mod Removal from Game

Summary

A Donald Trump character mod for the game Marvel Rivals has been removed from Nexus Mods, reportedly due to its sociopolitical nature, violating the platform's established rules. NetEase Games, the developer of Marvel Rivals, has yet to comment on the use of character mods, including those depicting controversial figures.

Marvel Rivals, a hero shooter game released recently, has quickly gained millions of players. Players are experimenting with various mods, altering hero appearances with skins from Marvel comics and movies, or even replacing characters with models from other games like Fortnite.

A Nexus Mods user created and shared a mod replacing Captain America's model with Donald Trump. This generated significant social media buzz, with some users even seeking out a corresponding Joe Biden mod. However, both the Trump and Biden mods are now inaccessible on Nexus Mods, suggesting removal due to policy violations.

Reasons for Removal:

Nexus Mods' 2020 blog post outlined a policy against mods involving US sociopolitical issues. This policy, enacted around the 2020 presidential election, prohibits content deemed to violate this rule. The removal of the Trump mod aligns with this pre-existing policy.

Social media reactions were mixed. Many players understood the ban, citing the incongruity of Trump's likeness with Captain America's established persona. Others expressed dissatisfaction with Nexus Mods' stance on political content. It's noteworthy that while this specific mod has been removed, Trump mods for other games, such as Skyrim, Fallout 4, and XCOM 2, remain available on the platform.

NetEase Games, the game developer, hasn't directly addressed the use of character mods or the removal of the Trump mod. The company is currently focused on resolving various issues, including gameplay bugs and addressing wrongful player bans.