Gore cut from No More Heroes

By Tom Bramwell Published 10 December, 2007

PAL version same as Japanese.

Rising Star Games has confirmed reports that the European version of No More Heroes will be based on the censored Japanese version.

"We're publishing the same version of No More Heroes that has been successfully received in Japan," Rising Star MD Martin Defries said in a statement issued in response to inquiries.

"Ultimately, it's a fantastic game to play and that's all we care about at Rising Games."

No More Heroes is the latest game from Killer 7 director Goichi Suda, and is typically violent, starring an otaku who becomes an assassin and has to climb a sort of assassin leaderboard.

In the US, that violence is preserved by publisher Ubisoft, but in Japan and Europe that's not going to be the case. Unless we all shout at Rising Star about it, presumably.

Still, if you do want some gore, you could always watch the Machine Girl trailer. TEMPURA!

Check out our No More Heroes gamepage for trailers. The full game is due out on 29th February 2008.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (59) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • aldo_14 #1 4 years ago

    Oh for fu.......

  • Zanuah #2 4 years ago

    What!? Why???

  • Wayne #3 4 years ago

    Why are developers making violent games for the Wii? I'm baffled.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #4 4 years ago

    So is the gore missing completely or is it just another color? I couldn't care less but from the trailers (and having played Killer7) I think that the blood is an integral part to the presentation - removing it completely would be wrong, but if they just changed the color to black or something else I couldn't care less.

  • agparrot #5 4 years ago

    Yeah, collecting up blood in Killer7 probably made it difficult to ignore the gore - but it was hardly brain-meltingly offensive. Not sure why you'd carry on letting the Americans looking at gore and blood, with their propensity for shopping-centre based AK47 massacres, and not allow us civilised tea and wine-supping Europeans to have a look.

    The Machine Girl trailer was ace... I'm just off to B&Q to get something suitably sharp to cut off my arm, before going on a murder-death-kill mission of revenge on Black & Decker Employees with my assortment of slot-in attachments.

    I'm thinking I could have a detachable teasmaid, obviously, for those quiet moments when I'm not putting those thoughtless powertool manufacturers to death using the electric eggwhisk of doom or the patented paint can and cigarette-lighter flamthrower.

  • skillian #6 4 years ago

    The Machine Girl trailer was ace... I'm just off to B&Q to get something suitably sharp to cut off my arm, before going on a murder-death-kill mission of revenge on Black & Decker Employees with my assortment of slot-in attachments.

    Wait for January, you'll be playing inflated Xmas prices if you buy now.

  • Lemming81 #7 4 years ago

    ri chard.barclay@risingstargames.com

    email your displeasure. I did.

  • agparrot #8 4 years ago

    Yeah, cheers skillian.... there is just something about all that red blood and the colour of Santa's suit and the sense of anticipation for shiny gifts that makes it tricky to hold out for the January sales.

  • asphaltcowboy #9 4 years ago

    The guys over at Gamersyde have been creaming themselves over this game and I fail to see why, it really does look pretty poor... they're not going to be happy!

  • charliemouse #10 4 years ago

    Just to cover Lemming81's point again; email this guy:

    ri chard.barclay@risingstargames.com

    and let him be told.

  • cloud_ix #11 4 years ago

    Congrats Rising Star. I can scratch this game of my list now. It's not like it's a niech title that probably wouldn't have sold a lot to begin with, now it's a gimped nieche title that will not sell at all.

  • Kon #12 4 years ago

    Any chance that the aussie release will be handled by another publisher? There's no way Rising Star will get my money with this game as it is. Not that I think the game will be much worse without the blood, but I simply refuse to pay for censored material (that isn't Japanese porn).

    DRILL BRA !!!

  • NOSAVIOUR #13 4 years ago

    Firstly who the f@£k is rising star games?!

    ANd secondly who the f45k do they think they are removing the gore?!

  • Beano #14 4 years ago

    I'm glad Al Gore has been removed from the game... that guy is disgusting!

  • Der_tolle_Emil #15 4 years ago

    Firstly who the f@£k is rising star games?!

    For some reason I am thinking of Advance Wars when I hear Rising Star games but somehow I think that I am confusing something.

  • Santino #16 4 years ago

    pretty poor, i would have thought it was far too stylized to worry about. i will still get it after reading good impressions about it but would prefer the red stuff over the black stuff.

  • ecureuil #17 4 years ago

    Thanks for this, I can now save myself £30.

  • peteb #18 4 years ago

    Its for our own good! They don't want us going out killing real people with beam katanas.

  • Artemus #19 4 years ago

    It's 1993 again. What next? Enter "a-b-a-c-a-b-b" to enable blood.

  • jellyhead #20 4 years ago

    Daft idea, with the furore this is going to bring i hope the game is really good or people will ignore it out of protest.
    Did anyone request the censorship or is this something they're doing on their own volition?

  • spidermanalf #21 4 years ago

    Actually it was
    Down
    Up
    Left
    Left
    A
    Right
    Down

    I remember as it spelt DULLARD

  • aldo_14 #22 4 years ago

    Did anyone request the censorship or is this something they're doing on their own volition?

    It's been suggested it's being done in light of the Manhunt 2 ban.

  • haubitzer #23 4 years ago

    Hahaha, no sale. Well done, clowns.

  • RexRunti #24 4 years ago

    How do you boycott something you weren't going to buy in the first place?

  • Royal Fool #25 4 years ago

    who the f@£k is rising star games?!

    A new and rather low-key European publisher, they've been importing various Japanese DS and PSP games over here (Much like 505 Games). NMH is their first Wii release.

    I think it's lame that they're caving in to political pressure, they could have at least attempted to submit the blood version of the game to the BBFC (unless they already did, would be nice to get clarification on that then).

  • convercide #26 4 years ago

    @spidermanalf.

    It was abacabb to enable the blood actually. dullard was that cheat to enable all those silly 'flags' that did weird stuff to the game.

  • djed #27 4 years ago

    I sent a mail to ri chard.barclay@risingstargames.com to express my disapproval with their shenanigans

  • Lemming81 #28 4 years ago

    Thinking about it, why is Ubisoft (a French company) publishing the US version with blood, but the European release (which I believe, includes France), is being covered by some frightened little girl publishing company?

    Does anyone remember Mortal Kombat on the SNES with the 'dust for blood'? *shudders*
    Edited by 1 at 10/12/07 @ 15:59

  • UncleLou #29 4 years ago

    Why are developers making violent games for the Wii? I'm baffled

    To sell it? Like, you know, RE4?

  • UncleLou #30 4 years ago

    "Did anyone request the censorship or is this something they're doing on their own volition?"

    It's been suggested it's being done in light of the Manhunt 2 ban.
    ignore poster



    Wouldn't surprise me.

    Rockstar = irresponsible attention whore idiots.

  • Derblington #31 4 years ago

    I'm seriously tempted to sell my UK machine and import a US one. I'm getting fed up of having to wait for games or get cut stuff.

  • peteb #32 4 years ago

    @Derblington

    I have a US machine, and its great for when crap like this happens. But its still a pain in the arse not being able to just buy a game in the shop when you are there and it won't work through SCART on your TV. But, Gamecube games do run in 480p though and VC stuff is better and the games are earlier...

  • thepiedpiper #33 4 years ago

    machine girl looks like a pubescent teenagers wet dream.

  • GordonCaladan #34 4 years ago

    As an obsessive fan of Killer 7, I approach the news that the gore is being cut with

    LOLWUT?! You must be insane. I'M NOT BUYING.

  • Deoden #35 4 years ago

    I remeber reading in an issue of EDGE that the censored version has the enemies explode in a series of abstract shapes - a technique that actually fits in better with the game's unique style than fountains of gore.

  • The_Inquisitor #36 4 years ago

    I'm not buying it, it's a simple as that. I will NOT settle for second best!

  • Jel #37 4 years ago

    This is surprising considering their uber violent past efforts:

    http://www.r isingstargames.com/games.asp

  • Kujata #38 4 years ago

    No idea what 'No More Heroes' is... and its on the Wii, so i won't be getting it anyway...

    But Machine Girl? That's a different matter. I want that on DVD! (So long as its not cut by Rising Star Movie Distribution... the bastards!)

  • Derblington #39 4 years ago

    @ peteb: that's cool, I run my Wii via component and only buy from the net as I live in Sweden (prices here are insane). If I didn't have 10+ games already i'd have sold it all already...

  • fluff_the_tiger #40 4 years ago

    Jel - that made me smile

  • Khab #41 4 years ago

    @ peteb: that's cool, I run my Wii via component and only buy from the net as I live in Sweden (prices here are insane). If I didn't have 10+ games already i'd have sold it all already...

    Derbs, you live here now? Whereabouts??

  • aine #42 4 years ago

    I remeber reading in an issue of EDGE that the censored version has the enemies explode in a series of abstract shapes - a technique that actually fits in better with the game's unique style than fountains of gore.

    yeah, i read that too, and i was thinking it's a shame they're going to replace that with generic blood effects for the euro version. but they arent, so yay for them. i might send richard whatshisname a message of support.

    and i really can't believe people are actually -not- buying it because of this. get some fucking perspective, it's only blood. the gameplay is still the same, the art style is still the same, all the stuff that actually makes the game -interesting- is still the same. in fact, from the situation here it may well be that the blood was added only for the american version (since it isn't in any other) to possibly help it shift a few more copies to violence-loving american teenagers.
    Edited by 1 at 10/12/07 @ 20:10

  • smelly #43 4 years ago

    [sarcasm]
    I'm sure not having blood spurting everywhere will make the game PLAY less well.
    [/sarcasm]

    Honestly, are gamers that immature that they care less for how a game plays and more for the "blood" on the screen

  • Skeletor #44 4 years ago

    That's it, no more No more Heroes for me! Those idiots at Rising Star Games obviously don't want my money. The US version looks like Kill Bill, the videogame! The censored version looks just odd.
    Also kinda surprised that nobody came up with one of those crazy "it's because of ze Germans" conspiracy theories yet. Come on, guys...you know they have something to do with it ;-)

  • smelly #45 4 years ago

    "Come on, guys...you know they have something to do with it ;-)"

    The devs are just scared of wasting money submitting a game which wont pass through bbfc.

    Not everyone has rockstars money. And the bbfc has set a presidence now. If this game is more gory than manhunt 2 - then they have to look at what happened with that and cut it down.

    I doubt they WANT it to go out un-edited, but the reality is with the current state of affairs, trying to get a gory version through the censorship council which is the bbfc would be stupid.

    Then risk by cutting out the gore afterwards the bbfc saying "nope still not enough" and still banning it (ala manhunt 2)

  • hybridial #46 4 years ago

    I find you all who won't play the game just because it lacks blood in our version laughable.

    It sucks, and all, but it's not going to help anybody whatsoever if you don't buy it. whereas, if you do, it may actually encourage the development of more games by the studio. But I guess you idiots could care less that a game doesn't need blood to be good.

  • Skeletor #47 4 years ago

    @smelly
    You gotty be kidding...the gore is over the top but also very cartoon-like. It's MILES AWAY from the torture porn violence of Manhunt 2. Also, this has nothing to do with the devs. It's a classic example of a greedy EU publisher who probably thinks that selling the "family friendly" version means more money. The BBFC comment is just an excuse. Btw, what does the BBFC has to do with the rest of Europe?
    Edited by 1 at 11/12/07 @ 02:15

  • Waldo #48 4 years ago

    Excessive blood and gore is for snickering 12-year-olds.

  • Skeletor #49 4 years ago

    @Waldo
    Is that what your Mommy told you? Hope she's not working for the bbfc because according to them this is not really the case;-)

  • mqblank #50 4 years ago

    It's not the fact that we are not getting blood and gore becasuse I like games just because of blood and gore, it's the fact that I cannot stand censorship and that in Europe we are getting a version that is cut from the american release. Give us the ability to choose in the options screen (blood or no blood) then people can make up their minds which they prefer.

  • hybridial #51 4 years ago

    This is a decision made by the publisher, and not any governing body. At the end of the day, it's a knee jerk reaction by them probably because of the atmosphere created by the Manhunt 2 debacle.

    All we can do is appeal and petition them to show it's worthwhile for them to take a chance and release the game uncensored, but even if it isn't, it would be a crying shame for a good game (assuming of course it is good) to not sell simply because some people couldn't get their claret fix.

  • progearspec #52 4 years ago

    I just watched some comparison clips,

    Sorry, gore wins!

  • smelly #53 4 years ago

    "Btw, what does the BBFC has to do with the rest of Europe? "

    Not much, but if they're intending to sell the same version european wide - they'd have to cut the blood anyhows for the german audience.

  • smelly #54 4 years ago

    "e, it's the fact that I cannot stand censorship and that in Europe we are getting a version that is cut from the american release."

    No you're not.

    You're getting the same version as the japanese original. The american version has blood added.

    Think of it that way.


    "All we can do is appeal and petition them to show it's worthwhile for them to take a chance"

    If it's a good game, then whether or not it has gore should make no difference whatsoever. I dont play games to get titulated by red pixels - I play games for fun.

    Whether or not there are red pixels on the screen will not make the game any less or more enjoyable for me.

  • Hamshira #55 4 years ago

    Thanks Rising Star! You've saved me 30 quid!

  • Skeletor #56 4 years ago

    @smelly
    "Not much, but if they're intending to sell the same version european wide - they'd have to cut the blood anyhows for the german audience."

    Hehe, I knew sooner or later someone would say this. How do you know? German version of Killer 7 was uncut, God of War remained intact and even RE 4 passed uncut although they had to remove the mercenaries mode. I'm pretty sure that such cartoon like violence would easily get an 18 rating, even in Germany.
    Greedy publisher trying to maximize profits, that's all. Funny how people believe everything some publisher says without even trying to question it.
    Edited by 1 at 11/12/07 @ 17:22

  • toy_brain #57 4 years ago

    Just had a look at some of the youtube vids from both the Japanese and US versions.
    The US version is a lot more gory than Killer 7 ever was. Not only are the enemies humans (in K7 they were pretty much just zombies), but the blood-splatter was much less styalised, instead going for OTT decapitations and limb-severings.
    The Japanese version looked to be more in-line with what K7 was like, only replacing red with black.

    Personally I'm getting a bit too old to be won over by excessive blood and gore. I did the whole splatter-flick-watching thing back when I was 18 like everybody else, but now I'm more interested in visuals that do something a bit different.

    But whatever, I dont own a Wii and cant buy one anyway.
    HOLLA!

  • Mr_Bogus #58 4 years ago

    Completely agree with smelly.

    +1 point to BBFC. Somebody in a BBFC office is tapping their fingers and saying "eeeeeeeeeeeeeeexcellent."

  • bionutz #59 4 years ago

    With or without blood games retain the violence. The blood counts mostly for those in need of an imagination prosthesis (i.e. can't see the violence without making it graphical). It may fit better the game as an artistic product to have the blood spurting, like in a manga story - but in the end whether it's Mario or No More Heroes you'll be killing other beings - they will just die differently :p. The game is therefore not toned down, but less obvious perhaps. [Wrong word - way too long lived in Germany now]
    Edited by 1 at 13/12/07 @ 17:13