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NEWS: Final Fantasy XVI Game Banned in Saudi Arabia

Can some context be provided here? I haven't the foggiest idea what is being referenced but the idea of a country with an authoritarian regime with a population of 36 million and no influence beyond petrol having any impact in global media seems both strange and fascinating. Yes, they are an investor but not exclusively or even disproportionately in Japanese media and not even to the extent that a lot of other countries are, such as China until very recently.

Other see it as a positive since every example we've seen so far has been a net positive overall like SNK coming back from bankruptcy and putting out more games now than they've done for the past few decades.

Every thread that involves Saudi Arabia on this site seems to get the attention of people who think it's the worst thing in the world and Japanese video games and anime are doomed because of it. Other see it as a positive since every example we've seen so far has been a net positive overall like SNK coming back from bankruptcy and putting out more games now than they've done for the past few decades. I guess they're one of the people who think it's a bad thing and this ban is being used as proof of that claim, although I don't think FFXVI had any investment or input from Saudi Arabia so I don't think it's related in this case.

I want to hear from each and every single one of y'all who was talking like MBS was going to save anime and video games from the woke mob.

funkfoot wrote:

Other see it as a positive since every example we've seen so far has been a net positive overall like SNK coming back from bankruptcy and putting out more games now than they've done for the past few decades.

?

SNK put out more games in the entirety of the 1990’s than they’ve done since Saudi Arabia bought a stake in the company. Hell I would argue after they became SNK Playmore their content output was higher,

TokimekiCrisis wrote:

Part of localization is understanding that sometimes things need to be changed to fit the new target audience or a different country's moral and cultural standards. It's a natural part of the process. At least that's what translators here say when people complain about changes made in English versions, but I'm assuming it applies to other countries as well.

Localisation for me, censorship for thee.

What strikes me as odd is how the article truncates the ESRB summary. All the descriptions of violence are reduced to one word points, whilst the description of sexual content is partially quoted giving it a much larger impact than it has when reading the ESRB summary.
Inserting such a selectively summarised piece of information between two other paragraphs which describe the harsh standards of Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Media seems to me, to be a deliberate attempt to lead readers into associating two seperate pieces of information together and drawing the ‘correct’ conclusions. Or at the very least fuelling the hatred of those who already have strong bias.

Overall I’m pretty disappointed and kind of feel like my (and everybody else’s) intelligence has been insulted, and I hope to see a higher standard in the future.

edit:
Unless I’m completely mistaken and there is some innocent reason for this editing decision, in which case I would really appreciate it if someone should take the time to explain it to me.

and having to sell off its IP to Tencent who would use it to make mobile gacha games" and that is probably true AND represents a better outcome.

As to your point, a huge gap exists between "Saudi Arabian investments in private Japanese media companies will help the anime and video game industry financially" and "the Saudi Arabian dictator will influence Japanese media to make works that appeal to right wing westerners." Because ... MBS doesn't like right wing westerners either. His shaking hands the other day with Iran and China should make that clear. I know, the Tucker Carlson fans on 8-chan may not know this. It is just that I believed that ANN commenters did.

funkfoot wrote:

Every thread that involves Saudi Arabia on this site seems to get the attention of people who think it's the worst thing in the world and Japanese video games and anime are doomed because of it. Other see it as a positive since every example we've seen so far has been a net positive overall like SNK coming back from bankruptcy and putting out more games now than they've done for the past few decades. I guess they're one of the people who think it's a bad thing and this ban is being used as proof of that claim, although I don't think FFXVI had any investment or input from Saudi Arabia so I don't think it's related in this case.

I have seen some chatter on "Saudi Arabia will keep it from going woke" but coming from the usual places where strange ideas are bandied about all the time. So I am not accusing

all-tsun-and-no-dere wrote:

I want to hear from each and every single one of y'all who was talking like MBS was going to save anime and video games from the woke mob.

of making this up from whole cloth. But ANN isn't 8-chan. It is a site whose reviewers and commenters have been overwhelmingly and proudly progressive for years. Pinning your hopes on a petro dictator to save anime and video games is Tucker Carlson fan level stuff, so I can't imagine that any of his fans even participate on ANN for that comment to be directed at. But maybe I am wrong.

As to your point, a huge gap exists between "Saudi Arabian investments in private Japanese media companies will help the anime and video game industry financially" and "the Saudi Arabian dictator will influence Japanese media to make works that appeal to right wing westerners." Because ... MBS doesn't like right wing westerners either. His shaking hands the other day with Iran and China should make that clear. I know, the Tucker Carlson fans on 8-chan may not know this. It is just that I believed that ANN commenters did.