A modder for Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered got attention for his mod that replaces LGBT flags in the game with American Flags.
Not long after the “Non-Newtonian New York” mod was published, it started getting noticed and soon after got pulled from Nexus Mods.
The maker of the Spider-Man Remastered mod was also banned from Nexus Mods, with a rep from the mod portal confirming the user and mod have been removed and banned as they are “no longer welcome on Nexus.”
As with anything of this nature, once the mod was published and users had it – it has since been rehosted numerous times just not on a massive modding community like Nexus Mods.
User responses to the mod itself and its prompt removal varied from “based” to some being upset the mod existed in the first place – and naturally some were upset the mod was pulled as well.
Regardless, the entire debacle once again brings up the debate over not only an owner’s right to a product they own, let alone free speech. Does such a mod that swaps one flag for another fall under protected speech?
Some will likely say that Nexus Mods is a private entity and thus can do whatever they want with the content and users on their website. This same logic can be applied to game publishers and developers – who can now legally revoke your access to a digital game you legally own, for a variety of reasons.
Spider-Man Remastered was just released PC (via Steam and Epic Game Store) and PS5 – expect our thorough review shortly.