Major video game modding websites Nexus Mods and ModDB have taken a public stance against anti-LGBTQ+ content, after a Spider-Man PC mod sought to remove all Pride flags from the game.
Nexus Mods, a website where users can share their custom content for PC games, started the movement after an established user created a new account (sock puppet) to upload anti LGBTQ+ content, which replaced the Pride rainbow flag for the American Flag. The mod was later removed.
The user, who Nexus Mods called a “coward”, had his new and old account banned, making the sock puppet account “a very easy decision”.
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A blog post on Nexus Mods said: “The fact that the user needed to make a sock puppet like a coward to download the mod showed his intent to troll and he knew it wouldn’t be allowed. If he hadn’t been a coward and had he used their main account instead, we would have just removed the mod and told them we didn’t want to host it, only banning them. only if they upload it again after enough warning.”
The website also clarified that it would take similar action against any similar cases in the future, stating that “we are for inclusiveness, we are for diversity” and, as a private company, “we have the right to choose what content we do and do not want to host on our platform.”
Nexus Mods added: “We do not want to and will not discuss this with you. We have now explained our position and will not provide you with a platform to misrepresent our position to feed an irrational and paranoid. You may do it somewhere else, where we won’t care enough to read it.
“If you mind this policy, if we have violated a moral code of conduct as a business that you cannot accept, then please delete your account and move on, as we will.”
Hi! We have removed the content and banned the users. ModDB is an inclusive environment for all and we do not allow targeting of marginalized groups. Our content moderation is largely automated but where identified we have a zero tolerance policy for this type of content. https://t.co/0leqjUxqJD
— ModDB (@ModDB) August 17, 2022
As reported by PC Gamer, ModDB followed suit and removed the same Spider-Man mod and banned users behind it. “ModDB is an inclusive environment for all and we do not allow targeting of marginalized groups,” the website said on Twitter (above). “Our content moderation is largely automated but where identified, we have a zero tolerance policy for this type of content.”
PlayStation Studios’ Spider-Man port to PC earlier in August saw a number of mods added to the game, including one that turns Spidey into Stan Lee. Users have also been digging through the game’s files, uncovering what appears to be an abandoned multiplayer mode and mentions of a potential PlayStation PC launcher.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He’ll be talking about The Witcher all day.