The release of the highly anticipated, new survival horror game The Callisto Protocol is getting closer and closer. The game is set to launch on December 2, 2022, for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC. The game will launch in most major markets excluding Japan as developer Striking Distance Studios has announced that the Japanese version of the game has been canceled.
“We have decided to discontinue the Japanese version of The Callisto Protocol,” the devs said on the game’s official Japanese Social Media account. “We have determined that the game cannot pass the CERO rating in its current state and that changing the content will not provide the experience that players expect. We would appreciate your understanding in Japan.”
Refunds will be provided to those who pre-ordered the game.
Dr. Serkan Toto, a Tokyo-based analyst explained that Japan’s censorship has gotten worse since CERO, the local rating agency, was established in 2002. He notes that “in the 1990s, Japan was a lot softer when it comes to video game censorship.”
“Games censored for nudity and violence in Japan include Last Of Us, Cyberpunk, Uncharted 1, Witcher 3, GTA V, etc,” he wrote. “Needless to say, censorship also affects home-made games, i.e. Resident Evil – when compared to the Western release.”
Toto also says that games released in Japan may get 2 releases, a cut version, and a gory version, for example. “It is also important to understand that sometimes, Japanese games get 2 releases, one cut and one ‘gory’ version. The gory version typically sells better. The problem is that the gory version, which usually carries CERO’s strictest ‘Z’ rating for ages 18+, is ALSO censored when compared with the Western release.”