The page “NexusMods” is the largest source for game modifications on the internet: Especially the games from Bethesda, like Skyrim, are known for their numerous mods that allow players and creators to change the game. Now NexusMod has banned a type of mod for Starfield : The choice of pronouns in character creation must not be removed. A corresponding mod has been removed.
This is the situation:
- In Starfield, one can choose the preferred pronouns of their created character during character creation: This allows for example to create a male-identified character that is referred to with the female pronouns “she/her”.
- A few weeks ago, a British YouTuber reacted to this, saying: This tiny detail ruins his whole immersion in the game. These are “current topics” that have no place in the science fiction world. The streamer DrDisrespect also sees the indication of preferred pronouns as a political statement.
- Now someone created a mod and uploaded it to NexusMods that removes this “pronoun” feature from character creation. This mod has been deleted from the site.
NexusMods does not want the removal to be understood as a political statement
This is what NexusMods says: In a statement to 404media.co on Friday, September 15, Nexus-Mods says: Actually, it is not the site’s policy to dictate what people take out or put into a game.
But there are mods with content that we do not want to host:
We did not want to host this mod, and it is certainly within our rights not to provide a home for such content on our platform. This is not a political statement or a commitment to one side or the other in the culture war.
We stand for diversity and inclusion in our community, and removing diversity, even if many like it, does not promote a positive modding community.
In August 2022, the site made a similar decision in the case of Spider-Man Remastered and rejected mods on their site that removed pride flags from the game via mod.
Negative reactions from a small part of the community – “Not sad to see them go”
What is the reaction? Some users of the site announced their withdrawal and said, “this is the death of NexusMods”.
In the forum for Starfield on Steam, there are comments from some angry users cursing NexusMods, calling them “censoring cowards.”
Many Steam users, however, do not understand the outrage: It’s a tiny detail that can simply be ignored or lived with.
The site commented on the negative criticism by saying they feel confirmed in their decision. There is a lot of hate and malice coming from a very, very small part of the community. They are not sad to see these people go.
Especially in the USA, the choice of pronouns is part of a culture war in a politically deeply divided country.
