Japan's shrine head priests release an official statement condemning Ubisoft's lack of cultural respect and racism in Assassin's Creed Shadows

HerjansEagleFeeder

Gold Member
Intentional disrespect? Mocking Japanese culture? Lol. Please. This is a fantasy video game. Ubisoft are not Intentionally causing disrespect.

Where were the same cries disrespect when a Japanese studio sets a game in different culture?

This situation is so overblown I feel like I'm living in an idiocracy.
Fair enough, we can surely agree to disagree on the evaluation wheather this is an instance of crossing a certain border or not as this is obviously highly subjective and culturally informed. Not every culture on earth has the same sensibilities when it comes to these things, hence me speaking of "moral taste buds". I just think everyone should try not to be an asshole to others, and that implies respecting each others differences? That's not really hard to understand, unless you're an angry young male nerd living in the basement of his parents larping as edgelord on the internet in his free time?
 
Intentional disrespect? Mocking Japanese culture? Lol. Please. This is a fantasy video game. Ubisoft are not Intentionally causing disrespect.

Where were the same cries disrespect when a Japanese studio sets a game in different culture?

This situation is so overblown I feel like I'm living in an idiocracy.
Well said.
 

Danjin44

The nicest person on this forum
I don’t want to see devs become afraid to make what they want to make because someone might get “offended”.

Any person with brain and logic should understand video games are for entertainment only, they are NOT trying be educational and to be “historical accurate”, majority of them fictional purely made for entertainment.

If someone cant tell the difference between fiction and reality then they shouldn’t be playing video games or even watch movies and if you want 100% historical accuracy then watch documentaries or put the time and study about it.
 
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Ubisoft just shot themselves in the foot.
I don't know how much the rest of you know about Japanese culture (I'm an expert), but honor and shame are huge parts of it. I

LOL what a load of old tosh

Japanese Honour Huh? It's a shame we saw none of that during World World 2, Where was the honour when Nintedo did the dirty on SONY a fellow Japanese corp no less
Never mind how corrupt Japan can be with slush funds. or how Fujitsu have the death of UK postmasters on their hands


Japan is like most countries and isn't quite a saint, also Japanese developers have looked to the piss out of Western cultures and countries over the years, not that's a issue since it's a video game
The only issue here is the hate bandwagon on Ubisoft and this ridiculous notion that only Japanese developers can make games that take place in Japan. It's beyond pathetic


I like Japan and love SEGA Japan, but people need to remember that films and video games aren't real.
 
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Dacvak

No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
I’m way out of the loop… what the hell is even in the game? Is there a video or something I can watch to catch up with this to see what’s in the game?
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
If Ubisoft was known for making edgy and politically incorrect games (like Rockstar in their prime), I wouldn't mind it.

The problem is the hypocrisy. "Oh we care so much about the asian POCs, we will really respect your culture and story", then they make a foreign protagonist who can destroy temples and kill religious people.

jFp9xfQ.gif




Literally since the first Assassins Creed and in every subsequent one:
H6S3o48.jpg


We fight the pope in Assassins Creed 2.....wearing shoes in a Temple is tame compared to that.







Get bent.
 
The Japan stans saying how culture rich Japan is and we westerners don't understand or now how to show respect. Many countries are culturally rich..

Take your meds. It's a video game character hitting some chairs and inanimate objects inside some building.
I'm sure if we did deep we can find skw games set in some temples somewhere in Japan and nobody was crying then.
Japan is upset because it's a black dude doing it.

Yasuke should not be in this game though.
 
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Bitmap Frogs

Mr. Community
Yasuke story is not even real, it was fabricated by a fraud.


That is false, there is historical documents.

The concern is not wether if it's false, but wether if Lockley's exaggerated tales are.
 
Nothing I wrote was an opinion; but you seem offended that anyone would even dare challenge your position, so carry on, I guess ...
Offended? yes; stating fact is now somehow being "offended". everything you stated is an opinion. Its not my position; but just simple fact. Christianity originated in the Middle East and not the west. plain and simple fact.
 

Oberstein

Gold Member
O2mQvpb.jpeg


People have forgotten, but Castlevania, for example, was censored in the West at the time. Crosses were removed.

It was still an era when people didn’t joke too much about Christianity. Now, with such secularization, people think they can do anything and just say, 'Dude, it's just a video game.' No, man, it's not that simple. If Westerners had shown more resistance on this issue, we would have never had Ezio kicking the Pope in the balls.

So yes, in this case, there is clearly a double standard. If you find it disrespectful to destroy temples in Japan, then make sure to be outraged the next time it happens in a Christian church.
 

DaciaJC

Gold Member
Offended? yes; stating fact is now somehow being "offended". everything you stated is an opinion. Its not my position; but just simple fact. Christianity originated in the Middle East and not the west. plain and simple fact.

Work on your reading comprehension. I never claimed otherwise and that wasn't the point of contention in my first reply.
 

ManaByte

Banned
People have forgotten, but Castlevania, for example, was censored in the West at the time. Crosses were removed.

It was still an era when people didn’t joke too much about Christianity. Now, with such secularization, people think they can do anything and just say, 'Dude, it's just a video game.' No, man, it's not that simple. If Westerners had shown more resistance on this issue, we would have never had Ezio kicking the Pope in the balls.

You're talking about Nintendo of America's censorship in the 80s and early 90s. The Genesis Bloodlines is completely uncensored. Nintendo didn't allow ANYTHING religious in games then, no blood, and Wolfenstein 3D is hilariously censored. This was NOA censorship in a nutshell:

 

adamsapple

Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Ubisoft just shot themselves in the foot.
I don't know how much the rest of you know about Japanese culture (I'm an expert), but honor and shame are huge parts of it. It's not like it is in America where you can become successful by being an asshole. If you screw someone over in Japan, you bring shame to yourself, and the only way to get rid of that shame is repentance.
What this means is the japanese public, after hearing about this, is not going to want to purchase Assassin's Creed: Shadows for either system, nor will they purchase any of Ubisoft's games. This is HUGE. You can laugh all you want, but Ubisoft has alienated an entire market with this move.
Ubisoft, publicly apologize and cancel Assassin's Creed: Shadows or you can kiss your business goodbye.


what year is it GIF
 

WoJ

Member
I am really enjoying the crap Ubisoft is getting for this game even though some of it is over the top and absurd. I have zero intention of playing it, but it's going to be fun to see what happens with this game.
 

ManaByte

Banned
jFp9xfQ.gif




Literally since the first Assassins Creed and in every subsequent one:
H6S3o48.jpg


We fight the pope in Assassins Creed 2.....wearing shoes in a Temple is tame compared to that.







Get bent.

Most of the people mad about this have never touched an AC game.
 
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rofif

Can’t Git Gud
jFp9xfQ.gif




Literally since the first Assassins Creed and in every subsequent one:
H6S3o48.jpg


We fight the pope in Assassins Creed 2.....wearing shoes in a Temple is tame compared to that.







Get bent.
And Aliens and scifi tech and aliens again.
yet people get bent over some stupid shit like if AC is real history
 

Killer8

Member
LOL what a load of old tosh

Japanese Honour Huh? It's a shame we saw none of that during World World 2, Where was the honour when Nintedo did the dirty on SONY a fellow Japanese corp no less
Never mind how corrupt Japan can be with slush funds. or how Fujitsu have the death of UK postmasters on their hands


Japan is like most countries and isn't quite a saint, also Japanese developers have looked to the piss out of Western cultures and countries over the years, not that's a issue since it's a video game
The only issue here is the hate bandwagon on Ubisoft and this ridiculous notion that only Japanese developers can make games that take place in Japan. It's beyond pathetic


I like Japan and love SEGA Japan, but people need to remember that films and video games aren't real.

You're responding to a copypasta, but what you say is correct.

Japan is put on a pedestal and idolized by weebs online who don't know any better. The reality is that just like any other country, Japan has its own share of internal problems. You'll see these socially awkward types obsessed with the idea of moving to Japan, thinking they are going to be treated as a god, when in reality the waifus stick to their own kind and people are worked to death with long hours and daily commutes. It's little wonder the salarymen drink themselves into a stupor during happy hour after work.

The whole idea of the Japanese being 'more cultured' is bullshit. I visited Japan for two weeks last year and while I was overwhelmingly treated very well, the Japanese are also prone to autistic, emotionally charged outbursts. There are deep lows as well as the highs.

At Tenryu-ji temple in Kyoto for example, I was accused of stealing tickets by one of those supposedly honourable shrine workers, all because I found one on the ground that someone probably dropped and I tried to hand it in. At the same temple, I saw Japanese girls dressed up in weird anime clothing doing poses with a plush toy in front of the supposed sacred objects. So much for respect. Imagine doing that in the Sistine Chapel.

But the thing that will bury any idea of Japanese honor is a ride on their public transport during rush hour. It's so cramped that I had some dude texting someone from inside my jacket hood. I thought I was being molested before my travel buddy pointed out what he was actually doing. Later in the trip my partner ended up being used as a sort of bowling ball for one Japanese to shove another Japanese by proxy. When it comes to trains the Japanese will simply abandon all pretence of manners. Of course you can say "this stuff happens all over the world", and yeah, that's the point. They are not these mythically polite people who must be protected at all costs.
 
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RafterXL

Member
Forget the shrines, forget the politicians and priests, the fact that Ubisoft themselves claimed to do a huge amount of research and claim to take care with the source material is laughable when they literally have fucked up every piece of media about this game, most of the times including Chinese architecture or design in with the Japanese. How fuckin Xenophobic do you have to be to constantly confuse Chinese and Japanese culture. And you actually researched this shit like you claim, at a certain point, when you keep doing it over and over again, it's either intentional or incompetent. So which is it, is Ubisoft just filled to the brim with retards, or did they actually do no research and just make this shit up as they went along?
 
You're responding to a copypasta, but what you say is correct.

Japan is put on a pedestal and idolized by weebs online who don't know any better. The reality is that just like any other country, Japan has its own share of internal problems. You'll see these socially awkward types obsessed with the idea of moving to Japan, thinking they are going to be treated as a god, when in reality the waifus stick to their own kind and people are worked to death with long hours and daily commutes. It's little wonder the salarymen drink themselves into a stupor during happy hour after work.

The whole idea of the Japanese being 'more cultured' is bullshit. I visited Japan for two weeks last year and while I was overwhelmingly treated very well, the Japanese are also prone to autistic, emotionally charged outbursts. There are deep lows as well as the highs.

At Tenryu-ji temple in Kyoto for example, I was accused of stealing tickets by one of those supposedly honourable shrine workers, all because I found one on the ground that someone probably dropped and I tried to hand it in. At the same temple, I saw Japanese girls dressed up in weird anime clothing doing poses with a plush toy in front of the supposed sacred objects. So much for respect. Imagine doing that in the Sistine Chapel.

But the thing that will bury any idea of Japanese honor is a ride on their public transport during rush hour. It's so cramped that I had some dude texting someone from inside my jacket hood. I thought I was being molested before my travel buddy pointed out what he was actually doing. Later in the trip my partner ended up being used as a sort of bowling ball for one Japanese to shove another Japanese by proxy. When it comes to trains the Japanese will simply abandon all pretence of manners. Of course you can say "this stuff happens all over the world", and yeah, that's the point. They are not these mythically polite people who must be protected at all costs.
Every country has its issues and don't get me wrong I love how the Japanese fans conduct themself's at football events, the low-ish crime rate in Japan Ect ect. It wasn't so long ago in the UK we had that until the left nutjobs gave criminals human rights and stopped parents being able to discipline their own children

But Japan is far from perfect like all countries. I really hate this notion that only Japanese developers can make a game about Japanese history. It's funny how we can have Godillza totally level and destroy most of Japan.. shrines and all in the films and games, but GOD forbid should Ubisoft look to have a fight in a Japanese shrine

Like for Godilla, Assassin's Creed is make believe, its not real
 

Hookshot

Member
So yes, in this case, there is clearly a double standard. If you find it disrespectful to destroy temples in Japan, then make sure to be outraged the next time it happens in a Christian church.
Has that ever happened? Have Japanese people come over to a Christian country, took photos and videos of the exterior and interior an actual real existing Church with the intention of destroying parts of it and murdering Christians inside it?

There is a big difference with mocking or deriding religions and recreating real world locations with the intention of pissing people off for free marketing. Ubisoft wouldn't dare make a Sandy Hook elementary school level for Rainbow 6 because Americans would cry about it, yet because Shintoism isn't a thing in the west it's okay to shit on it in Assassins creed..
 
Crying about virtual shrines is really stupid... even more stupid is making your lead game character a huge black samurai in feudal japan for wokie media points and internal high fives ...
This narrative is so exhausting because you can’t back up anything with facts. So every time a “DEI” character is a lead character in a game it’s because of “wokie media points?

Did you just start playing video games recently?

If you don’t like games with “DEI” characters just don’t buy/play the games its that simple. I will never understand constantly bashing something that you don’t like. It makes no sense, just move on.
 
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ManaByte

Banned
Has that ever happened? Have Japanese people come over to a Christian country, took photos and videos of the exterior and interior an actual real existing Church with the intention of destroying parts of it and murdering Christians inside it?

UbiSoft did it with FarCry 4.

And if the rumors about the plot of FarCry 7 are true, it'll kill the company. You'll have Elon Musk leading a crusade against the game on X.
 

RafterXL

Member
Every country has its issues and don't get me wrong I love how the Japanese fans conduct themself's at football events, the low-ish crime rate in Japan Ect ect. It wasn't so long ago in the UK we had that until the left nutjobs gave criminals human rights and stopped parents being able to discipline their own children

But Japan is far from perfect like all countries. I really hate this notion that only Japanese developers can make a game about Japanese history. It's funny how we can have Godillza totally level and destroy most of Japan.. shrines and all in the films and games, but GOD forbid should Ubisoft look to have a fight in a Japanese shrine

Like for Godilla, Assassin's Creed is make believe, its not real
You know Ghost of Tsushima exists and that the Japanese consider it an amazing game that is highly respectful of their culture, right? It's not that hard not to fuck things up and disrespect a culture. The shrine controversy wouldn't even exist if Ubisoft didn't screw this up in a thousand different ways BEFORE that. It started with Yasuke, but then they had unforced error after unforced error and the shrines are just the latest thing. At a certain point you stop giving people the benefit of the doubt.
 

Jinxed

Member
Love to witness the downfall of this stupid lazy ass developer. You can only copy and paste a game for so long and now they're just doing absolutely bunker shit thinking they can get bonus social points for it 😅
 

ManaByte

Banned
The shrine controversy wouldn't even exist if Ubisoft didn't screw this up in a thousand different ways BEFORE that.

The shine controversy exists because certain people on social media MADE it a controversy while ignoring other similar games, such as Rise of Ronin, where you can do the same thing.
 
You know Ghost of Tsushima exists and that the Japanese consider it an amazing game that is highly respectful of their culture, right? It's not that hard not to fuck things up and disrespect a culture. The shrine controversy wouldn't even exist if Ubisoft didn't screw this up in a thousand different ways BEFORE that. It started with Yasuke, but then they had unforced error after unforced error and the shrines are just the latest thing. At a certain point you stop giving people the benefit of the doubt.
You're just jumping on the Ubi hate bandwagon

Ghost Of Tsushima is full of inaccuracies, but then it was a SONY exclusive so the Japanese fanboys gave it a pass
 

RafterXL

Member
The shine controversy exists because certain people on social media MADE it a controversy while ignoring other similar games, such as Rise of Ronin, where you can do the same thing.
Which only happened because Ubisoft gave people ammunition by screwing up repeatedly before that.
You're just jumping on the Ubi hate bandwagon

Ghost Of Tsushima is full of inaccuracies, but then it was a SONY exclusive so the Japanese fanboys gave it a pass
Fuck Ubisoft, but this has nothing to do with my hate for them. And I don't give a damn about fanboys, I'm talking about Japanese critics, I'm talking about Sucker Punch being given Ambassador status by the mayor of Tsushima after the game released. And funny enough, all the people bitching about GoT before release were woke assholes like Austin Walker crying about cultural appropriation. Isn't it interesting how silent that crowd is about Shadows?
 

CGNoire

Member
Ugghh....why cant people tell the difference between Fantasy and Reality anymore?


You all where supposed to learn this shit as Children?
 

ManaByte

Banned
Which only happened because Ubisoft gave people ammunition by screwing up repeatedly before that.

No it happened because people need high engagement to get a payout from their X premium sub.

Isn't it interesting how silent that crowd is about Shadows?

Because "that crowd" aren't tourists who are actually familiar with the AC franchise and have known for 18 years what type of games they are.
 
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Oberstein

Gold Member
You're talking about Nintendo of America's censorship in the 80s and early 90s. The Genesis Bloodlines is completely uncensored. Nintendo didn't allow ANYTHING religious in games then, no blood, and Wolfenstein 3D is hilariously censored. This was NOA censorship in a nutshell:

That doesn't change the fact. We can take specific cases and compare them, but there are examples that show a tendency to avoid a head-on clash with religion, at least in the 80s and 90s. Well, especially with the Christian religion. That said, there will never be the slightest attempt to deal with the Muslim religion or any other. At least until now...

Has that ever happened? Have Japanese people come over to a Christian country, took photos and videos of the exterior and interior an actual real existing Church with the intention of destroying parts of it and murdering Christians inside it?

There is a big difference with mocking or deriding religions and recreating real world locations with the intention of pissing people off for free marketing. Ubisoft wouldn't dare make a Sandy Hook elementary school level for Rainbow 6 because Americans would cry about it, yet because Shintoism isn't a thing in the west it's okay to shit on it in Assassins creed..

I wasn't talking specifically about Japanese games that represent Christian references. But you're right, these are above all Western productions that don't pull any punches. Again, that doesn't change the point.
 
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Killer8

Member
Has that ever happened? Have Japanese people come over to a Christian country, took photos and videos of the exterior and interior an actual real existing Church with the intention of destroying parts of it and murdering Christians inside it?

There is a big difference with mocking or deriding religions and recreating real world locations with the intention of pissing people off for free marketing. Ubisoft wouldn't dare make a Sandy Hook elementary school level for Rainbow 6 because Americans would cry about it, yet because Shintoism isn't a thing in the west it's okay to shit on it in Assassins creed..

That isn't the 'intention' in Assassins Creed Shadows at all. It's completely at the player's discretion and these Japanese temple boomers don't have a clue about how it works in a game. It's like Anita Sarkeesian moaning about how you have to kill strippers in Hitman when it's up to the player (and in fact impacts their score if they do).

It doesn't even matter if it's Westerners doing it because the Japanese also treat their own culture like this. Rise of the Ronin has dozens of real temples, too. This is Senso-Ji Temple and you can murder everyone in this screenshot:

Rise_of_the_Ronin_20240316203503.png


Kiyomizudera Temple, same:

Rise_of_the_Ronin_20240325192739.png


Zozoji Temple:

Rise_of_the_Ronin_20240317214125.png


The list goes on. Where was the moral outrage here?
 

Hookshot

Member
Where was the moral outrage here?
If those are the same shrines then these priests can't really complain, if they are different places than what are in Assassins creed then it's not really relevant to these complaints by these people.

Even if you don't believe in religion I wouldn't want my place of business depicted in a way where people can wander in to murder me. All it takes is one deranged streamer to do it for real :messenger_tears_of_joy:
 

RafterXL

Member
Because "that crowd" aren't tourists who are actually familiar with the AC franchise and have known for 18 years what type of games they are.
Nah, it's because George Yasuke. The Austin Walkers and Alyssa Mercantes of the world would be spewing their cultural appropriation bullshit and they'd absolutely be calling them out of the constant fuck ups, but they can't do that because the wokies wouldn't like it.

And, who is the tourist here? Assassin's Creed hasn't been this style of game for 18 years. This is literally the 4th game in this style of game. Coincidentally, the last three all have educational discovery modes that have been used to teach people about the cultures they represent. You think that's going to happen with Shadows, and do you think it will go over well that Ubisoft uses Chinese art and architecture in a Japanese game?
 

IDKFA

I am Become Bilbo Baggins
Fair enough, we can surely agree to disagree on the evaluation wheather this is an instance of crossing a certain border or not as this is obviously highly subjective and culturally informed. Not every culture on earth has the same sensibilities when it comes to these things, hence me speaking of "moral taste buds". I just think everyone should try not to be an asshole to others, and that implies respecting each others differences?

Who is being an "asshole"?

I'm just giving my opinion, which is Ubisoft haven't done anything to be considered disrespectful.

That's not really hard to understand, unless you're an angry young male nerd living in the basement of his parents larping as edgelord on the internet in his free time?

Lol.

Surly trying not to be an asshole means not using childish insults like above, no?
 
What is FarCry 7 about?
KekanKok’s leak details both the main antagonists, a wealth, upper class family, and the game’s setting of New England.

“The plot seems to revolve around a wealthy family called the Bennets: Layla, Dax, Brie, Christian, Henry, and Krista. The family members engage in a power struggle similar to the series Succession,” KekanKok revealed in his leak.

“One of the villains is named Ian Duncan, described as a “conspiracy theorist with an army of believers” and an “envy of the wealthy elite and the power they wield.” Alongside these characters are two others who appear to be secondary: John Mackay and a doctor named Safna Kazan. Another detail is that New England is mentioned several times in the descriptions, suggesting this could be the setting.”

As a few commenters in the thread note, this does sound a little similar to the events on Far Cry 5, but personally I like the Succession-style spin it sounds like they’re planning to put on things.

This is basically the perfect time in history to make a game that targets the wealthy elite as the antagonists, so I think it could be pretty cathartic running across a big open map and hunting down billionaires.
 

Northeastmonk

Gold Member
It comes from people who never played or will ever play video games. It reminds me of Mass Effect and Fox News treating it like it had explicit sex scenes. What’s the solution? Invisible walls? Items in the environment that don’t react to being hit?
 

Jinxed

Member
all the people bitching about GoT before release were woke assholes like Austin Walker crying about cultural appropriation. Isn't it interesting how silent that crowd is about Shadows?
Because for that crowd it's alright to be racist towards a certain race, we all know it.
 
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