Developers of upcoming PlayStation 5 gameCode Violetsay they have no plans of releasing a PC version, citing concerns over inappropriate mods.Code Violetis a sort of spiritualsuccessor toDino Crisis, both beingResident Evil-like survival horror games in which players face off against terrifying, bioengineered dinosaurs. It’s expected to be released in July 2025, but few details, other than an announcement trailer and that release window, have been revealed.
But the game received a fair bit of attention on social media yesterday, when development studioTeamKill Mediaposted on its official X (formerly Twitter) account thatCode Violetwould forgo a PC port in order to prevent PC players from “modding vulgar versions"of characters featured in the game. The post goes on to cite respect for the game’s voice actors as its primary concern: to avoid “tarnishing their reputations,” TeamKill is keepingCode Violetoff PC.
The Dino-Horror Shooter Code Violet Will Not Be Coming To PC
Code Violet Skips PC Due To Concerns Over Mods
To be clear,this isn’t a cancelation;Code Violetwas announced three days ago, in a trailer that’s only hosted on the official PlayStation YouTube channel (as well as TeamKill’s own channel). It wasn’t expected to be a huge PC release, it didn’t have a page on Steam, and the announcement doesn’t seem to be a response to a specific event.Code Violethas never claimed to be anything other than a PS5 exclusive, so this wasn’t a surprise.
Civilization 7 Should Make This Civ 6 Mod Official
Civilization 7 is coming out soon, and it will hopefully include a feature that players have been modding into the games since Civ 4 came out in 2005.
Still,it’s a clear line in the sand, and if anything, the lack of a PC port’s announcement or a specific inciting incident made this announcement all the more surprising. Although players concocted all kinds of theories for the sudden reveal, it appears to have come from a good place.
The Developers Hold Their Actors In High Regard, & Won’t Stand For Nonsense
An Unexpected Decision, If Not An Unprecedented One
Considering the recent controversy over the creation and subsequent banning ofmods forMarvel Rivals,and the fact that any game released on PC is subject to similar treatment, it’s an understandable decision.TeamKill is demonstrating an unusual, if not unprecedented, level of ownershipoverCode Violet. This has happened before: CD Projekt Red, developers ofCyberpunk 2077, removed an explicit mod featuring Keanu Reeves' character in 2021, tellingEurogamer:
“Our most important rule regarding user-generated content, game mods in particular, is that it can’t be harmful towards others.In the case of model swaps, especially those that involve explicit situations, it can be perceived as such by the people who lent us their appearance for the purpose of creating characters in Cyberpunk 2077. "
And frankly,many games are better off without mods. I’d be willing to look the other way onMarvel Rivalsmods that don’t affect gameplay, but certainmods for, say, theSilent Hill 2remaketake things a little too far.Silent Hilldeals with some serious subject matter. Releasing mods that replace its protagonist with CJ fromGrand Theft Auto San Andreasare insensitive at best, offensive at worst. And the glut of mods that attempt to make its characters more conventionally attractive are downright disrespectful to its artistry and abuse victims everywhere.
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The developers at NetEase say that mods are against Marvel Rivals' terms of use, meaning that custom fan-made skins will no longer be available.
At this point, we don’t know a whole lot aboutCode Violet. It could be a very serious game, and the developers may not want Thomas the Tank Engine chugging around amid conversations about real-life issues. Or the developers could just be expressing respect for the actors who participated in the project, hoping to protect their reputations by avoiding unsavory mods. And you can’t fault the developers ofCode Violeteither way.
