Stellar Blade Review: Sony’s Newest Exclusive Game Stirs Controversy
The STELLAR Blade is Sony’s latest exclusive for PlayStation players, and reviews have recently gone live. The game seems poised for success with an impressive 82 rating on the review aggregate site Metacritic.
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Credit: Shift Up
Controversial Graffiti in Stellar Blade
Players have praised the fast-paced and fluid combat in this PlayStation exclusive, but criticism arises from the unexciting characters and storyline. However, some reviewers who got early access noticed questionable graffiti within the game world.
Unintentional Racial Connotations
Screenshots started circulating showing a graffiti sign saying ‘hard’ placed near a sign for the ‘R Shop.’ When read together, it can be interpreted as ‘hard r,’ which could allude to a racial slur. Sony addressed this issue, stating that it was unintentional. In response to IGN, Sony mentioned, “The placement of two graphics near each other in Stellar Blade resulted in an unintentional objectionable phrase. Shift Up had no intention of creating offensive artwork and will be replacing the graffiti in the Day 1 patch.”
Swift Remediation
Sony acted promptly, and players who already own the game observed the alteration. The ‘hard’ graffiti has been substituted with a different design, completely unrelated to the ‘R’ in ‘R Shop.’ By the official release date on Friday, April 26, 2024, this phrase will no longer be present. The incident appears to be accidental, and it’s worth noting that Shift Up, the studio behind Stellar Blade, is South Korean and might be unaware of the phrase’s implications.
If you want to delve deeper into the game, read our Stellar Blade review.
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