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A mod that removes LGBT Pride flags from Marvel’s Spider-Man on PC has been banned from Nexus Mods in less than 24 hours.

Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment

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The now banned mod was called “Non-Newtonian New York”, created by user “Mike Hawk” – no doubt a pseudonym. As mentioned, the mod removes LGBT pride flags from buildings in Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man and replaces them with the American flag. Tired of Sir Isaac pushing his beautiful light show all over your face? This removes them and replaces them with the stars and stripes.”

The ‘Sir Isaac’ in question references the mod’s header image, which shows Sir Isaac Newton experimenting with light and producing a spectrum. A spectator in the art reads “Dude, stop” while a large cross is across the spectrum itself. Basically, the mod avoids images of LGBT or Pride.

Source: Mike Hawk via Nexus Mods (archive)

The mod generated 168 posts from users at the time it was archived – although the archive shows 211 on the main page – on the same day it was uploaded to Nexus Mods. Most have disdain and dislike for the mod, and those who showed approval for the mod may have been joking; however, genuine support cannot be ruled out.

It had 353 unique downloads from the latest archive and a total of 31 recommendations. In light of the event, users on various subreddits have also claimed to share the mod via other file-hosting websites.

Speaking to We Got This Covered, Nexus Mods stated that they had removed the mod; banned the user and his alternate account for good measure. A spokesperson told the outlet that both the user and their mod are “no longer welcome on Nexus”. The Gamer adds that the mod was available on the website for less than 24 hours.

Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment

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In 2020, ahead of the US presidential election, Nexus Mods announced that they would “invoke an outright ban on mods related to socio-political issues in the United States”, citing “a spate of provocative and troll mods being uploaded based on current socio-political issues in the United States” with low-quality mods expressing “polarizing views”.

“A small but vociferous contingent of our users is seemingly not intelligent or mature enough to be able to debate the issues without resorting to profanity and baseless accusations with no evidence (indicative of the wider issues plaguing our world at the moment)” resulted in Nexus mods decide to “wipe our hands clean of this mess.”

Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man (2018), Sony Interactive Entertainment

In earlier news, Insomniac Games did not respond well to PlayStation head Jim Ryan telling staff to “respect different opinions” and that PlayStation and its community are “multifaceted and diverse, with many different points of view.”

Along with a $50,000 donation to the Women’s Reproductive Rights Assistance Project (WRRAP), Insomiac Games sent a nearly 60-page document full of employee concerns to PlayStation leadership and Ryan.

Source: Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (2021), Sony Interactive Entertainment

“There would be material consequences for us as a wholly owned subsidiary. Including all the progress we can make in helping change [Sony Interactive Entertainment’s] approach would be stopped dead in its tracks,” Insomniac Games CEO Ted Price reportedly stated.

“We would also likely be severely restricted from doing important public work in the future,” Price criticized. It’s worth pointing out that Insomniac Games included a Black Lives Matter mural in Spider-Man: Miles Morales as a reward for a side mission; one that SIE did not consider necessary to remove at the time.

Source: Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (2020), Sony Interactive Entertainment

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