Ever since its first reveal, Stellar Blade has been no stranger to controversy. Shift Up’s upcoming title has received its fair share of criticism for its suggestive and exaggerated character design. While one could explain that as artistic freedom or creative liberty, some things can’t be swept under the rug.
The developers are now catching some heat for a certain graffiti found in the demo version that many are claiming carries racist undertones. Now, we don’t think it’s an intentional inclusion, and Shift Up has acted quickly by already releasing a fix.
Unfortunate Word Choice in Stellar Blade Graffiti Leads to Sony Statement
Given the complex and evolving nature of language, it makes sense that not everyone would understand subtle nuances that could be offensive. Non-native English speakers have it tougher, as there are some aspects of the language that can only be understood through constant engagement and conversation. Such is the case with Stellar Blade’s wall art, which required it to release a hasty patch.
Stellar Blade embargo is up so I can finally show you the "Hard R Shop" graffiti lmao wonder how long this'll take to get patched out. pic.twitter.com/e7xv2aoxGz
— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) April 24, 2024
Twitch streamer Lance McDonald shared an in-game screenshot on X showing the unfortunate graffiti. In the image, we see the word ‘Hard’ written in a classic graffiti style, and right beside it is a glowing neon ‘R’ followed by ‘Shop’ and a red arrow. Without going into controversial details, the phrase ‘Hard R’ is a way to refer to a racist slur commonly used against those of African ancestry.
Even though it is unintentional, it’s something that could bring bad press to Shift Up. The game has faced controversy before, but this might be the most substantial one yet. Lance McDonald stated that the developers have already fixed the issue in the patch that adds New Game+ to the title. The patch replaces the word ‘Hard’ with ‘Crime,” which many feel isn’t all that much better but far less inflammatory.
Hahaha it’s already been patched out as part of the patch that adds New Game+. Super quick. pic.twitter.com/uFcdfMu4U2
— Lance McDonald (@manfightdragon) April 24, 2024
PlayStation has also released a statement on the matter, saying Shift Up had no intention to create “offensive artwork” and it will be “replacing the graffiti for the Day 1 patch.” When asked if the art would be replaced on the disc, Sony simply repeated the fact that it would be changed for all users with the patch.
Shift Up’s Upcoming Title Features Many M-Rated Themes
By no means is racism one of them, but Hyung-Tae Kim has been upfront by stating that it is entertainment for adults. The character design, visceral combat, dark narrative, and more are all geared toward mature audiences. Thankfully, the game is going to be released uncensored globally, a feat not many titles can achieve.
The lack of censorship in Stellar Blade will be greatly appreciated by the community, as combat seems brutal and difficult. The Naytiba’s designs indicate their attack patterns, with body parts that look like buzzsaws and meat grinders.
Stellar Blade is easily one of the biggest PlayStation exclusives of the year, and the title will be competing with Hellblade 2, which releases on Xbox and PC next month.
Do you think studios should pay more attention during development to avoid such mistakes? Let us know in the comments below.
