The Japanese version of The Evil Within has filtered gore. So while the game is certainly creepy, it's just not as bloody as it is in the West. Good thing there's a download for an uncensored version. Shame this DLC doesn't actually do that, though.
As our colleagues at Kotaku UK previously pointed out, the retail version of the game is censored; however, if players download the Gore Mode DLC, they can play a bloodier version of the game. The DLC is included as a pre-order bonus.
So, for example, here is a scene from the regular Japanese retail version:
And with the Gore Mode DLC:
The regular version doesn't let players shoot the heads off zombie-like enemies:
Gore Mode does allow it:
Enemies are not blown to bits in the regular version:
But can be after downloading the Gore Mode DLC:
It was assumed that the Gore Mode would make the game the same as its Western version. That assumption is incorrect.
As Famitsu points out, even with the Gore Mode DLC, the Japanese version is still different. And by "different," I mean censored.
For example, here is a scene from the Western release.
And the same scene in the Japanese version with the Gore Mode DLC:
I'm not sure what that is. Lunch meat? Pink goo? Some kind of taffy? Scary taffy?
Once again, here is a scene from the game's Western version with protagonist Sebastian Castellanos getting blown to bits.
And here is the same scene in the Japanese version with the Gore Mode DLC:
Notice how he isn't blown into pieces?
So, though this game with the gore pack is rated the Japanese equivalent of Adults Only, dismemberment isn't allowed—even in the "uncensored" Gore Mode—for human characters. Zombie-like enemies, it seems, are okay to blow to smithereens.
The Evil Within was released today in Japan, where it's titled Psycho Break. In case you missed it, here is Kotaku's review of the game—its bloodier, Western version, that is.
『サイコブレイク』 ゴアモードDLC適応後と海外版『The Evil Within』との、グロテスク表現の差異がわかる画面写真が公開 [Famitsu]
To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft.
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