“Petting” Removed from Fire Emblem Fates in North America

Last week, it was revealed that the North American version of Fire Emblem Fates had undergone revisions regarding a particular scene found in the Japanese version. Nintendo of America recognized that a scene in which your male main character could use a magic potion to make a lesbian character perceive men as women for the purposes of courting her could easily be considered highly offensive among Western audiences. Now we are learning that this isn’t the only change to the games.

One feature of the Japanese version was the opportunity for the player to improve their relationship with party members through a petting minigame. Using the touchscreen, you could literally rub your teammates to get closer to them. Nintendo of America thought this too would not go over as well in North America, because this feature has also been removed from the game.

Considering recent trends, I don’t doubt that this move will prove somewhat controversial. Personally, I think the removal of gay conversion via drugging is without a doubt the right move, but I can see how the petting minigame isn’t so clear cut. That being said, and having seen a few videos of the feature, it certainly was a strange thing to have in the game to begin with. Petting your Pokémon makes sense, but I highly doubt adult warriors would have much appreciation for being rubbed on the cheek or poked in the forehead.

Source: Kotaku