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5th Gen SPOILERS: Ghetsis censorship

What do you think of Ghetsis trying to freeze you alive instead of killing you?

  • Good that they did it, it makes it safer for kids

    Votes: 3 5.5%
  • I like it, it makes the scene a bit scarier (intentionally or unintentionally)

    Votes: 14 25.5%
  • Indifferent

    Votes: 16 29.1%
  • They should have censored it but in a different way, or not to the same extent

    Votes: 1 1.8%
  • They should have just left it the same as in Japanese

    Votes: 21 38.2%

  • Total voters
    55
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DarkWolf13

Battle Subway Editor
258
Posts
12
Years
Eh... don't care of the change. This is like a localization thing. I was expecting something like this from the start. It's obvious the Japanese are more tolerant to violent actions such as Ghetsis trying to actually kill the protagonist. This may seem a little off topic but in the US version of Final Fight 1 & 2 for the SNES, there were NO female enemies because the issue of "domestic violence".
 
2,305
Posts
13
Years
  • Age 25
  • Seen Dec 16, 2022
What's the difference, and why are we making such a deal over it.

In short Death = Frozen Alive. It's just another way of killing someone. No actual censorship here.
 

Yuzuru Otonashi

A new start...
23
Posts
11
Years
  • Age 31
  • Seen Nov 16, 2014
... I don't get it, what's the issue?

Honestly, if Japanese DOES say kill, then the localized version does it better. Freezing to death, especially to watch as they die, is a lot more fitting than just killing them, and I honestly cant see the issue.
 

shengar

♥ Mikan Enthusiast ♥
667
Posts
13
Years
  • Age 30
  • Seen Jun 25, 2013
Well, for now it just a line of dialogue
But if it removal of a certain character or gameplay aspect.....
They gonna have a bad time (though Voltorb flip does fun since you can use calculator from the net)
 

Keiran

[b]Rock Solid[/b]
2,455
Posts
12
Years
The amount of "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!!!" threats in Japanese entertainment (especially when you already know there is no way that character can die) only to be saved a split second before your demise is incredibly overused.

I don't think it was necessarily censorship but rather an improvement in dialogue. I mean, the animation of the icicles were a lot more violent than someone saying they're going to kill you.

I don't understand why this is a huge deal around the internet tbh. :<
 
1,479
Posts
15
Years
....okay now that I've actually seen the scene in question. It's pretty obvious what the intent was there >_> I don't have a problem with the change, but....yeah, what was about to happen there WAS NOT "being frozen".
 
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Triple R

PokéFan Incognito
20
Posts
11
Years
There's no question about it - Ghetsis is trying very desperately to kill the trainer, regardless of whether he actually uses the word "kill" or not.
 

Legendary Silke

[I][B]You like dragons?[/B][/I]
5,925
Posts
13
Years
  • Age 30
  • Seen Dec 23, 2021
As it turns out, the original Japanese dialogue was the exact same thing. This is what happens when let assumptions go. Given a good read at the TV Tropes pages, turns out they translated it faithfully. As is. Nothing to see here.

There's a lesson to be learned here: Get a Japanese speaker to translate first. Literally.
 

dragonnathan025

Pokemon Breeder
45
Posts
11
Years
I would play any M-rated Pokemon game, in an instant, because it shows they're finally overcoming the age barrier and ignoring the ignorant complainers who only think of two people, and not the rest of the world.
 
760
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Dec 16, 2016
doesnt really make any difference really does it. Being frozen = pretty dead
 

Bounsweet

Fruit Pokémon
2,103
Posts
16
Years
  • Seen Sep 17, 2018
I finally got to this part in-game and I can't complain. It seemed natural enough and not like it was censored.

Tbh I'd find it a little odd to have Ghetsis threaten to kill the protagonist since the main chara is just standing there and literally doing nothing when Kyurem's taking its sweet ol' time getting the icicles revved up. No exclamation point? Not even going to turn around and half-ass running away or anything? Lame.
 

Hookersmacker

Super Saiyan
9
Posts
11
Years
We live in a world where everyone has to be babied and thought carefully, or else we'll turn into a crazed gunman or something like that. Thing is they don't realize that there will always be bad people in the world, but they're just trying to hide it. In all honesty, NOA shouldn't be doing this, it's just a word. They're going to learn it later on in life anyways. It's like Nickelodeon with DB Kai. They censored "kill" and "die" to similar words like "destroy." Censorship will always be stupid.
 
2,777
Posts
16
Years
  • Age 31
  • USA
  • Seen Mar 30, 2024
I felt the whole ordeal with Ghetsis felt rather rushed, so his words really had no meaning, but rather the emotion and intent behind them were felt instead. In this scenario I'd have to say I'm indifferent because it did not really alter my enjoyment or understanding of the scene.

In my mind I could picture Ghetsis raging, "I'll freeze you alive!" which, as has been said, is quite a terrifying ordeal. It would kill you. The localization team felt that it would be more appropriate for the wide-ranging American (not sure about other international releases) audience for him to say that, and it's not that bad: children won't think much of it and adults will realize the terror behind it.
 
1
Posts
13
Years
  • Seen Apr 12, 2013
They wanted a G rating (I think it is like the E rating in the US?). Over here, Australia, if you have themes like kill, etc., you will be put under the PG rating. So I guess Nintendo wanted Pokemon to have the G rating to get a wider audience. Which I think is the main reason they modified this section. Also, you know the lady that you ride in the Ferris wheel? I think in the Japanese version, she is actually a trans-sexual/cross dresser. At least so I heard from and seen from the 3rd-party translated BW2.

I think this also happens with censorship for the Pokemon Anime releases, or at least use too.
 
25
Posts
11
Years
  • Seen Apr 4, 2013
I agree with the sentiment that being frozen solid is much worse than a more 'ordinary' death.

Censorship on kids' media can get out of hand at times (hi 4Kids) but I don't think of B/W2 as one of those instances.
 

Ice Car

Banned
515
Posts
14
Years
Look at it this way, phrased by a Youtube comment I particularly liked.

If you're Japanese, you were going to die.

If you're English, you'll be frozen for the eternity, unable to move and see how the cave around you grew old...

One is instant death while the other is prolonged suffering.
 
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