May 07, 2014 Nintendo explains why it won't allow same-sex relationships in Tomodachi Life 'The relationship options in the game represent a playful alternate world rather than a real-life simulation. How do I make my tomodachi life couples come more and more closer than they are in order to have a baby because I really. Like this game and want to continue to still be apart of this gaming life also on this game I have never had a child and have been waiting for a while and long time so plz answer my question soon guys and I have tried the traveling ticket but it's still not working and I'm.

1. Tomodachi Life 2 Switch
2. Pro Same Gender Marriage
3. Tomodachi Life 2 Same Gender Marriage Movie
4. Tomodachi Life 2 Same Gender Marriage Games

Tomodachi Life^[a] is a life simulationvideo game developed by Nintendo SPD and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. The game, which is a direct sequel to the Japan-exclusive Nintendo DS title Tomodachi Collection, was released in Japan in April 2013, June 2014 worldwide and July 2014 in South Korea. The game received positive reviews and good sales records. Many reviewers praised the gameplay but criticised the minigames. Its name means Friend Life.

Gameplay[edit]

The game begins with the player naming their island and creating or importing their personal Mii, who is referred to as the player's 'look-alike' and lives in an apartment building. The building holds up to 100 Miis. (or more depending on the date of the release of your copy)

The player can import Miis from the system's Mii Maker, other devices or QR codes or create them from scratch using the 3DS's camera or the in-game Mii Maker. The Miis are voiced by a text-to-speech software and have unique personalities. Miis can then perform various actions, such as eating, trying on different outfits, falling in love with each other, and engaging in many leisure activities. As more Miis are added to the island, many strange and curious interactions can occur between them, such as friendship, romance, rivalry, romantic relationships and families. As the game goes by, the player unlocks more stores, clothes, food, and places for the Miis to play. They can even unlock a port, where they can give and 'trade' goods with other islands.

Development[edit]

In May 2014, a playable demo of the game was distributed to Platinum members of Club Nintendo in North America, the data of which could be transferred to the final version to unlock a bonus in-game item.^[1] The game is bundled with two Nintendo eShop download codes for a 'Welcome version' demo, which can be given to friends.^[2] A slightly different demo version was later publicly released for download via the Nintendo eShop. This version does not unlock any features in the full game.

Following the announcement of a worldwide release, controversy arose concerning the impossibility of same-sex relationships. Nintendo stated, 'The ability for same-sex relationships to occur in the game was not part of the original game that launched in Japan, and that game is made up of the same code that was used to localise it for other regions outside Japan.' ^[3] In May 2013, it was widely reported that a bug in the original Japanese version of the game, which enabled same-sex relationships, was patched by Nintendo.^[4] This was refuted by Nintendo in a statement made April 2014, explaining that same-sex relationships were never possible, and that the patch in fact fixed a different issue.^[5] Despite various campaigns from users, Nintendo stated that it would not be possible to add same-sex relationships to the game, as they 'never intended to make any form of social commentary with the launch of the game',^[6] and because it would require significant development alterations which would not be able to be released as a post-game patch. The company later apologised and stated that if they were to create a third game in the series they would 'strive to design a gameplay experience from the ground up that is more inclusive, and better represents all players.'^[7]

Reception[edit]

Tomodachi Life has received positive reviews. It holds an average of 72% and 71/100 on review aggregate sites GameRankings and Metacritic, respectively.^[8][9][10]IGN gave the game a score of 8.4, calling it 'a surprisingly funny and rewarding experience.'^[11]Polygon gave Tomodachi Life a 7.5 out of 10, praising its likeability despite certain aspects being repetitive.^[12]GamesRadar gave the game 4 out of 5 stars, praising its weird humor and relaxing gameplay, whilst criticising the minigames for being too simple.^[13]GameTrailers gave the game a score of 6.0, stating 'the pervasive sense of quirkiness in Tomodachi Life works, but can’t sustain the entire game.'^[14] The game has received criticism for not enabling relationships between Mii characters of the same sex; Nintendo of America later apologized for failing to include same-sex relationships in Tomodachi Life, stating that it wasn't possible for NoA to change the game's design, or for Nintendo to change this aspect in a post-ship patch. It also noted that 'if we create a next installment in the Tomodachi series, we will strive to design a game-play experience from the ground up that is more inclusive, and better represents all players.'^[15][16]

Tomodachi Life was the best seller in the Japanese video game market during the week of its release, selling about 404,858 units.^[17] By September 2014, its global sales reached 3.12 million units.^[18] As of December 31, 2019, Nintendo has sold 6.55 million units of the game worldwide,^[19] making it one of the top 10 best selling games on the 3DS.

Legacy[edit]

A stage based on Tomodachi Life appears in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.^[20]Miitomo, a social networkingmobile app for iOS and Android devices, was released in March 2016. The app was created by the same core team who developed Tomodachi Life, and features very similar ideas. In 2016, a similar game involving Miis, Miitopia, was released in Japan.^[21] It was released worldwide the following year.

Tomodachi Life 2 Switch

Notes[edit]

1. ^Known in Japan as Tomodachi Collection: New Life (Japanese: トモダチコレクション 新生活, Hepburn: Tomodachi Korekushon: Shin Seikatsu)

References[edit]

1. ^'Club Nintendo Distributing Tomodachi Life Demo Codes to Select Platinum Members - 3DS News @ Nintendo Life'. Nintendolife.com. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
2. ^MacDonald, Keza (May 21, 2014). 'Tomodachi Life Comes With 2 Free Demos to Give to Friends'. Kotaku UK. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
3. ^'Nintendo resists #Miiquality campaign to let Tomodachi Life gamers play gayk=Guardian News'. Associated Press. May 7, 2014.
4. ^Ashcraft, Brian (May 8, 2013). 'Rumor: Bug Makes Gay Marriage Possible in Nintendo Game [Update]'. Kotaku.com. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
5. ^Parfitt, Ben (April 10, 2014). 'VIDEO: Nintendo to give Tomodachi Life a shot in the West | Games industry news | MCV'. MCV. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
6. ^lang, Derrik (May 7, 2014). 'Nintendo Says No to Virtual Equality in Life Game'. Associated Press. Abcnews.go.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2014. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
7. ^'We are committed to fun and entertainment for everyone - Nintendo Official Site'. Nintendo.com. May 9, 2014. Retrieved May 10, 2014.
8. ^'Tomodachi Life for 3DS'. GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
9. ^'Tomodachi Life for 3DS Reviews'. Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
10. ^'Nintendo Apologizes For Not Putting Gay Marriage In Tomodachi Life'. Kotaku. Kotaku. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
11. ^Otero, Jose (June 6, 2014). 'Tomodachi Life Review'. IGN. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
12. ^McElroy, Griffin (June 6, 2014). 'Tomodachi Life review: semi charmed'. Polygon. Retrieved June 6, 2014.
13. ^Gilbert, Herbert (June 6, 2014). 'Tomodachi Life review'. GamesRadar. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
14. ^Moore, ben (June 6, 2014). 'Tomodachi Life - Review'. GameTrailers. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
15. ^'Nintendo Apologizes For Omitting Gay Marriage From 'Tomodachi Life''. NBC News.
16. ^Jason Schreier. 'Nintendo Apologizes For Not Putting Gay Marriage In Tomodachi Life'. Kotaku. Gawker Media.
17. ^'This Week in Sales: Tomodachi Collection Sees Big Launch Sales'. Siliconera. April 24, 2013. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
18. ^'Supplementary Information about Earnings Release'(PDF). Nintendo. October 30, 2014. Retrieved November 29, 2014.
19. ^'Top Selling Title Sales Units - Nintendo 3DS Software'. Nintendo. December 31, 2019. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
20. ^'Tomodachi Collection: New Life stage'. IGN. March 14, 2014. Retrieved March 30, 2014.
21. ^Otero, Jose. '5 Things We Learned About Miitomo and Nintendo's Digital Future'. IGN. Retrieved 1 April 2016.

External links[edit]

As many of you are likely aware, Nintendo recently released a statement responding to a 'Miiquality' campaign seeking the inclusion of same-sex marriages in Tomodachi Life. You can read it in full in our article on the subject, in which Nintendo states that it will not be including the option. The purpose of this article is to address the issues raised and to explain, from an editorial perspective, our approach to topics such as these and the decision to close comments when appropriate.

We'll begin with an assessment of the topic at hand, in an attempt to balance the Miiquality campaign with the factors that have likely driven Nintendo's decision making. In terms of the Japanese version of the game not including gay marriage, it's important to acknowledge cultural differences and the fact that it's not a recognised institution in the eyes of the Japanese government. Tentative steps towards legislation appear to be in prospect, but as it stands same-sex marriage is not legal in Japan; Nintendo will have produced this aspect of the game, in all likelihood, with that social context in mind.

This is the first Tomodachi game to be released outside of Japan, and as a result we suspect Nintendo has been caught out by this controversy. Attitudes towards same-sex marriage or 'civil partnerships' — a legalese term for initial legislation in the UK — are at a different stage in many countries around the world. These marriages are legal now in multiple countries, including some states in the US. Part of what's driven this issue is the simple fact that, in multiple countries and currently grabbing headlines in the US, this is a live issue, with states in the US currently involved in legal battles over whether they'll allow same-sex marriages. There's a civil rights struggle taking place and it's high profile, and Nintendo has become involved as it's releasing a game that only allows heterosexual marriages.

That's some brief context, and from Nintendo's perspective the rational, fair approach is to accept that — whatever your political or moral stance — the company is in a particularly awkward situation. A game made very much in the sense of a Japanese market would need to be changed to accommodate the increasing moves towards legalised gay marriage in the West. Gay relationships have been optional and portrayed in a number of games, including the Mass Effect series and, more relevantly, The Sims, though Tomodachi Life does come in at a lower age rating than those games. This is also the first time that a Nintendo release has been confronted with the issue — its blend of fantastical whimsy in 99% of its games is anything but politicised, yet the world of Tomodachi Life touches upon this subject. Considering Nintendo's image and family focus, meanwhile, a comparison could be to imagine the potential uproar if Disney released an animated film with an openly gay couple. Films such as Frozen arguably allude to these relationships, with that recent release interpreted as supportive of gay rights in some corners. That's thematic interpretation, however, not overt referencing.

For Nintendo, if it amends the game it will face backlash from those against gay marriage, and it's not hard to envisage headlines of 'Parent's Shock as Nintendo Game Promotes Homosexuality'. What's happening now is the inevitable other side of the coin, in that gay gamers are protesting the decision to exclude the option for same-sex marriages and couples in the game. It's important to understand that, for Gaymers, a term often used, it can feel like an offensive exclusion for a game like this — no matter how light-hearted the apparent approach of the title — to not have an optional setting to support gay marriage.

Whatever Nintendo does, it will face a backlash. Whichever side of the argument you support, that's undeniable.

Now I'm going to break into first person a little, and explain our current stance and approach to this topic. It's been a particularly tough issue for us as a team, and the decision to publish this week's article without comments enabled was one that I found extremely difficult to make. We've had a number of messages and emails supporting the decision on the grounds that it avoids the ugly confrontations of previous threads on the topic, and a few that were disappointed. Ultimately, I'm happy that we, as an editorial team, got the decision and tone of the article right, but I wasn't content for that to be our last word on the matter. I wanted to outline some basic context and facts, as above, but then provide a more personal perspective and outline how we'll deal with topics like this in the future.

The issue of homosexuality in games is one of the rawest and most challenging we face, for the simple reason that it's a civil rights debate that is still raging. Games do suffer from examples of racism, and there are most definitely problems with sexism, yet the same-sex marriage issue is still an ongoing legal battle. While equality laws and general consensus in society identify racism and sexism as illegal or immoral, even if they do still occur, that legal unity is yet to happen for gay marriage. It's a politicised issue here in the UK, for example, but appears to be an even fiercer debate in the United States, as another example.

It's an emotive but, most importantly, personal topic. The problem we've faced is that the issue is so sensitive, and the nature of online debate so combustible, that debates quickly become personal and hurtful, and that is not something we want for anyone in the Nintendo Life community. The past comment threads on this topic fail, in our opinion, to provide a constructive discussion.

I will make one thing clear, and that is my support for all writers in our team; their sexual orientation is and remains irrelevant in their role with the site. I also want to emphasize that it can be easy for those uninvolved to dismiss the furore over Tomodachi Life as an exaggerated fuss, but that is not the reality — for the gamers affected by this, a Nintendo game that won't support same-sex marriages is a very real, difficult issue. When passionate about Nintendo and video games in general, to be excluded from relationships in a sim title can feel unacceptable, especially in light of progress made in other franchises. Likewise, I understand that it's equally important to acknowledge that there will be those on the other side of the debate, and it's a person's right to hold views against same-sex marriages in a game like Tomodachi Life if they're expressed fairly and without malice. For my part I've been relatively clear with my views on social networks, but respecting other's opinions is an important part of tolerance.

As for our editorial policy, we'll continue to cover developments — if there are any — around Tomodachi Life and similar topics of this kind. We will always shoot for an impartial tone, simply due to journalistic standards, but we also will not hide from highlighting these issues when they negatively affect Nintendo. It is my intention, however, that comments will continue to be disabled when I and the site Directors deem the topic beyond a rational, cool-headed debate.

I understand some, on both sides of this debate, may feel gagged and censored, and may not agree that comments should be locked down. It's actually our attempt to ensure positive, constructive discussions, because we ultimately determine what passes as acceptable communication here at Nintendo Life. I've noticed that comments sections on multiple sites regarding this issue are weighed down with negativity, with angry and bigoted views being shared across the board from multiple sides. In past examples here on Nintendo Life our moderators have struggled to maintain the debate — no matter what the intentions of the community, issues like this quickly lose rationality; the resulting arguments can be upsetting and discriminatory for all involved.

Pro Same Gender Marriage

If you want to debate these issues in a running comments thread, the internet is there for you. What I think you'll find, however, is that there is a lot of inappropriate language used in these arguments — if legislative bodies and courts struggle to tackle this civil rights issue, there is little hope for coherent discussion online. There's too much scope for mis-interpretation and, yes, trolling, and the anonymity of the internet exaggerates these problems.

Tomodachi Life 2 Same Gender Marriage Movie

Our goal at Nintendo Life has always been, and will continue to be, to provide a friendly, welcoming environment for gamers and Nintendo fans. This matters a lot, and I think we have a wonderful community capable of spirited debate on topics such as Nintendo's game lineup, the future of its hardware, and just games in general. This is a gaming community that is fully inclusive and unites people through that common love for the same hobby; there's no room for ugliness here, and we want all to feel safe and secure when joining in conversations. To that end, and with topics deemed too difficult for debate on this platform, such as same-sex marriage in Tomodachi Life, we'll draw the line and close comments.

As stated above we will cover these issues, however; that will not change. Yet what will also not change is that Nintendo Life is for absolutely everyone. We're here because we love video games and Nintendo, and those are things we can all share.

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