Skellingtons in Heavensward

Hi,

since this game is out in China now, does that mean we don't get any more skeleton monsters? Have we gotten any since the game has come out in China? Skeletons are the greatest enemy of mankind, and it would be a shame if we couldn't do battle against them because China's government is too spooked by them.

The game in China is separated from our version, so it won't affect our game, the skeletons will be censored in the China version only, replaced with zombie I guess.

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Originally Posted by lololink

The game in China is separated from our version, so it won't affect our game, the skeletons will be censored in the China version only, replaced with zombie I guess.

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But like let's say the devs wanted to make a unique skeletal enemy with a new model, but then they remembered that the Chinese government has shivers sent up their spines by bony fiends. That might make them change the design into something fleshier.

The game regional patches are staggered to account for things such as thing I believe. They're just getting 2.45 on the 21st so the team should have enough time to make changes when necessary.

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Originally Posted by Omegakiyohime

The game regional patches are staggered to account for things such as thing I believe. They're just getting 2.45 on the 21st so the team should have enough time to make changes when necessary.

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You guys aren't really getting it. They already know that they're out in China, so it's easier for them to just not make skeletons ever again. That way, they don't have to go back and fleshify their bare bones. I'm hoping that doesn't happen, because I like to fight skeletons and skeleton-related things.

They get it.

They are just telling you it isn't an issue. And it isn't.

The Game isn't published by Square in China. The company publishing the game in China would handle the graphical changes. That means.... The Japanese Dev team doesn't have to worry about anything regarding Chinese law. That's why China isn't getting a Gold Saucer due to Gambling laws. The other company gets the Japanese patches, translates them, and then makes any other changes they deem necessary. Also, did you know the Chinese pay by the minute due to Chinese law?

wait im confused why dont china like skeleton mobs exactly?? O.O

It's hard to explain without really in depth discussions about Modern Chinese Censorship and beliefs, but this article will explain what's being discussed.

https://www.techinasia.com/china-doe...iddle-kingdom/

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Originally Posted by Spawnie

wait im confused why dont china like skeleton mobs exactly?? O.O

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Its not about they don't like it, but "death" and any representation of it are much more taboo subjects in Chinese culture than in the West.
Sounds abit stupid to us at west. So its just a simpel respect of the chinese culture.
Then again i doubt they watching every singel person i china what they doing, I mean they can play this game from west still have same opportunity as we do.
But they will have english instead of chinese translation.

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Originally Posted by Spawnie

wait im confused why dont china like skeleton mobs exactly?? O.O

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Because they're 2spooky

You should have seen WOW when Wrath of the Lich King came out... seeing an almost entirely skeleton-themed expansion de-skellified for the Chinese market was "interesting". Really, it's more about preemptive over-caution, because the only thing worse than having to censor the hell out of your game before release is releasing it, then having to pull it and make changes post-launch because you didn't censor it enough.

In some more amusing statements, there are parts of China there it is illegal to die due to premium grave space, or local officials fearing higher ups if they exceed their yearly death quota. You'll also find Chinese laws are intentionally vague so that officials can make a law that sounds like its for the good of the people, but often there's something more sinister involved. The best example is the 2013 500 rule. If you post something on Weibo (Chinese Twitter) that they deem to be a "Malicious rumor" and it receives either 500 shares or 5000 views, you are subject to a prison sentence. And if you think they're not watching everyone.... There are a LOT of recent college graduates who can't find jobs in China due to a low job market, and the only job they can find is as a low paid internet censor in which they're expected to process about... If I recall correctly... 600 posts an hour? An automated system flags stuff, and then a censor reviews it and takes an action... They're usually allotted 10 seconds per post.

Jimbo has the right of it. There's a lot of pre-emptive censoring for the market (they essentially have a different game). Movies are changed for Chinese markets all the time. World War Z is a prime example of this between the movie and the book.

ooo honestly never even knew things like that were even happening in games :P learn somethin new everyday lol thnks everybody xD

http://www.troll.me/images/ancient-aliens-guy/china.jpg

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Originally Posted by lololink

The game in China is separated from our version, so it won't affect our game, the skeletons will be censored in the China version only, replaced with zombie I guess.

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I suggest you look at Amon. In the art book they even basically comment that they had to use cloth for his mask rather than bone because of the Chinese version. Just because there are two separate clients doesn't mean they're going to double their workload. Kind of irritating really, considering the China client gets some nice unique things...

Communism.

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Originally Posted by Voltron_HD

Communism.

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Awww throwing out the commy card in 21st century.. Because it can all be explained with just one word.

I'm pretty sure I understand what Brannigan is worried about, and it IS a valid concern. Creating a model takes time and effort. Now that the game is out in China, you know that any creepy dead model you make, you WILL have to put in the extra work to make a second model for the Chinese version. If you want to save time and money, then, the obvious solution is to NEVER make a creepy dead model ever again. Always stick to creatures that would be acceptable both in China and elsewhere, and you'll no longer have to worry about duplicated work.

By the same token, suppose SE's coming up with ideas for a new expansion. Let's assume they have this great idea for an expansion focusing on Undead in the same way that Heavensward focuses on Dragons - but, whuh-oh, CHINA! An expansion like that would likely be banned outright there! How about we focus on this other expansion idea instead...

Truthfully, I think this is making mountains out of molehills. It probably isn't that difficult or expensive to slap some bandages on a product to make it acceptable in the Chinese market. I can understand the OP's concern, though. It does seem logical to assume that now that China is a customer, SE might take steps in the future to ensure that products they create would be acceptable both there and elsewhere!

Just replace every skeleton with Edda's Ghost.

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Originally Posted by Brannigan

greatest enemy of mankind.

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Originally Posted by Brannigan

too spooked

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Originally Posted by Brannigan

shivers sent up their spines

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I like the cut of your jib, son.

Doesn't China usually get a separate client when it comes to MMOs. I know they did for WoW, and the regular version of WoW had skeletons, while the chinese version did not.

For example, these two are the same boss.

http://i.imgur.com/Sl7d41Q.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/ghxvnQW.jpg

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Originally Posted by Averax

Doesn't China usually get a separate client when it comes to MMOs. I know they did for WoW, and the regular version of WoW had skeletons, while the chinese version did not.

For example, these two are the same boss.

http://i.imgur.com/Sl7d41Q.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/ghxvnQW.jpg

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BONESTORM!!!!!!!!!!

I came into this thread expecting some sort of FFXIV/Nightmare Before Christmas meme. :confused:

Cant find no Skellingtons

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Originally Posted by Spawnie

wait im confused why dont china like skeleton mobs exactly?? O.O

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Cultural reasons. The same reason why american (news) go nuts when a celeb shows a nipple.

http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/...20140216142214
I for one welcome our Skellington overlords.

Well I'm glad to see new dragon skeletons in the live letter. Hopefully we'll get to fight some of those rattling reptiles.

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Originally Posted by Saccharin

Cultural reasons. The same reason why american (news) go nuts when a celeb shows a nipple.

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What about undead celebrity nipples?

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Originally Posted by Tagihi

Its not about they don't like it, but "death" and any representation of it are much more taboo subjects in Chinese culture than in the West.
Sounds abit stupid to us at west. So its just a simpel respect of the chinese culture.

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Not at all. Death is part of Chinese folklore like any other culture. Zombies, or the Chinese variant, is a popular subject for movies and stories. Skeletons are less frequent but can be seen in contemporary works, although it mostly is seen only in western fantasy works. Chinese folklore, for instance, says that when we die, we are escorted by hellish pawns to the king of hell, who will then judge us for our sins, then either send us to heaven or sentence us to suffer in hell.

The modern Chinese censorship in China is just due to the country being basically a dictatorship with old, old, old people having the say in absolutely everything. It has nothing to do with Chinese culture. Even Chinese gamers find the censorship full of bullshit and those that can, use VPNs to play the real versions overseas.