"Resident Evil Director Slams Game Censorship"

As the much-anticipated release of Shadows of the Damned: Hella Remastered approaches in October, the ongoing criticism of Japan's CERO age rating board intensifies. The game's creators, Suda51 and Shinji Mikami, have publicly voiced their frustrations over the censorship imposed on the remastered version in Japan.

Suda51 and Shinji Mikami Criticize Shadows of the Damned's Censorship

The producer and writer duo behind Shadows of the Damned, Suda51 and Shinji Mikami, have openly criticized Japan's CERO age rating board for the censorship required for the game's console release in Japan. In a recent interview with the Japanese gaming news site GameSpark, they expressed their discontent with CERO's regulatory decisions.

Suda51, renowned for his work on Killer7 and the No More Heroes series, shared with GameSpark that the remastering process for Shadows of the Damned was significantly impacted by the need for censorship. "We had to create two versions of the game, which posed a real challenge," he stated. "Developing two versions simultaneously not only increased our workload but also extended the development timeline."

Shinji Mikami, celebrated for his contributions to mature-rated titles like Resident Evil, Dino Crisis, and God Hand, expressed his disappointment with CERO's methods, suggesting that the board is disconnected from the contemporary gaming audience. "It's perplexing that individuals who do not engage with video games are making decisions that limit the full experience of these games," Mikami remarked. "There is a demand for games with more mature themes, and it's frustrating to see that demand not being met."

CERO's rating system categorizes games into various age groups, with CERO D being suitable for those 17 and older, and CERO Z for those 18 and above. Mikami's groundbreaking work on the original Resident Evil set a standard for horror games with its graphic content, a tradition that the 2015 remake upheld, earning a CERO Z rating due to its intense horror elements.

Suda51 raised concerns about the rationale behind these restrictions. "While we must adhere to regional censorship as part of our profession, I often question the purpose behind these restrictions and who they truly serve," he noted. "It seems they are not designed with the interests of the game's players in mind."

This is not the first instance of CERO facing backlash for its rating decisions. Earlier this year, in April, EA Japan General Manager Shaun Noguchi criticized CERO's inconsistent ratings, highlighting the approval of Stellar Blade with a CERO D rating while rejecting EA's Dead Space.