The More Recent the Era, the Stronger the Censorship in Super Real Mahjong Venus Returns
Super Real Mahjong Venus Returns has caught attention thanks to a rather curious option created for people who want to stream the game. Released on Steam on August 27, the new entry in the classic mahjong series, featuring more revealing scenes, now lets players choose the intensity of the so-called “mysterious light” used to cover the characters.
And the most curious part is that the censorship levels are divided according to different eras of Japanese history.
The More Recent the Era, the Stronger the Censorship in Super Real Mahjong Venus Returns
Japan divides its history into eras that correspond to certain periods of time. The 3 most recent eras are:
- Showa Era: 1926–1989 — a period that covers much of the 20th century, including World War II and the post-war era.
- Heisei Era: 1989–2019 — a period marked by technological expansion and the growing popularity of modern video games and anime.
- Reiwa Era: 2019–present — the current era of Japan, which began with the ascension of Emperor Naruhito.
In the settings, players can find three censorship strength options: Showa (Weak), Heisei (Medium), and Reiwa (Strong).
In practice, the further we move through the eras, the larger the light used to hide the scenes becomes (which shows that the more modern we become, the more censored we are. Isn’t that sad? Don’t you think it’s sad?):
The Showa option uses a relatively small bar, while Heisei increases the coverage and Reiwa makes the censorship even stronger.
The choice seems to have been made mainly with streamers in mind, since the game’s reward scenes could be quite difficult to broadcast on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.
But the developers went even further.
There is also a fourth option called “Peace of Mind,” which increases the thickness of the light to its maximum for anyone still worried about possible problems while streaming.
The developers themselves make it clear, however, that none of these options guarantees that a streamer won’t be banned.
You CAN Completely Turn Off the Censorship
For those who aren’t planning to livestream, Super Real Mahjong Venus Returns simply allows players to turn the censorship feature off.
The game is the return of the classic Japanese mahjong franchise, now featuring fully 3D graphics, optional VR support, and full voice acting.
Players can face four female characters and, during matches and reward scenes, they also have the freedom to move the camera and view the characters from different angles (you can find several videos on Twitter of people absolutely loving the game).
It’s a pretty curious way to bring a classic franchise into the modern era: even the censorship has its own kind of “timeline.”
Super Real Mahjong Venus Returns is now available for PC via Steam.