This could be a response to Out Making Games’ open letter.
Some transphobic content has been removed from Grand Theft Auto V’s new Xbox and PlayStation remasters.
The first thing that Rockstar altered is the Captain Spacetoy action figure in the arcade. Initially, the action figure was in a hot-pink outfit with text that promoted its “interchangeable genitalia.” Now, it has an alternative outfit with posable vomit, according to Eurogamer.
Another change came in the form of removing the trans-mocking characters outside of the Cockatoos nightclub. Before the fix, these characters were called “drag queens” and served as overly exaggerated world fillers. The characters have been removed from the main game, but they can still be found in Director Mode. That being said, all of the transphobic voice lines have been removed from all characters.
Some have attributed this to Out Making Games’ call to remove the transphobia in Grand Theft Auto V before its re-release. The U.K.-based group of LGBTQ+ gaming professionals posted an open letter asking Rockstar to re-evaluate the transphobic content in the game, according to GameIndustry.biz.
“…Unlike for other random NPCs in GTA 5, the game appears to purposefully play into extremely harmful stereotypes of trans and gender diverse people,” part of the letter reads. Rockstar might agree since it removed the content from the game.
This likely means that Rockstar will keep from mocking similarly marginalized communities in its games in the future. But at this point, it’s up to the trans community to decide how they feel about these changes, whether it eases the sting or is a few steps too short.
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