Nintendo has issued an official statement on their website regarding a controversy in Tomodachi Life concerning it wasn’t possible to be in a same-sex relationship. The statement reads:
”We apologize for disappointing many people by failing to include same-sex relationships in Tomodachi Life. Unfortunately, it is not possible for us to change this game’s design, and such a significant development change can’t be accomplished with a post-ship patch. At Nintendo, dedication has always meant going beyond the games to promote a sense of community, and to share a spirit of fun and joy. We are committed to advancing our longtime company values of fun and entertainment for everyone. We pledge that if we create a next installment in the Tomodachi series, we will strive to design a game-play experience from the ground up that is more inclusive, and better represents all players.”
Japanese players last year were able to have same-sex relationships through a bug they exploit to create male Miis and assign their genders to be a female, tricking the game to allowing same-sex relationship in the Japanese version Tomodachi Collection: New Life. This was later patch by Nintendo within a month of the game’s release. The company recently was under fire for stating that it would not be able to add in same-sex relationships to the game, as it would require alterations that would need significant development time which means it would not be release as a post-game patch. They did however state that, if another Tomodachi game was in development, they would ”strive to design a game-play experience from the ground up that is more inclusive, and better represents all players.”
