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Like Censored Gaming has previously reported, the Japanese version of the Resident Evil
2 remake has been released in 2 versions in Japan - one rated CERO D, meaning 17 years
and over and another CERO Z, meaning 18+ and also having a few other restrictions on purchasing,
such as being unable to buy Z rated games from the PlayStation Store without a credit
card.
As should be expected, the D rated version is quite toned down in its depiction of violence
compared to the English release.
However, it's been discovered that even the Z rated version is toned down in places compared
to the version released in the West.
You may recall how this was also the case with Resident Evil 7, which was also released
in 2 versions and was also toned down in places, even for the max rated version.
This is due to the rules of the Japanese rating system and there being certain levels of expression
that are not allowed to be shown in games even with the highest rating.
For games containing content that exceeds the limits, the Japanese rating system would
refuse to rate the game and so this is of course something that publishers want to avoid
doing when releasing games in the Japanese market.
Most cutscenes were able to be depicted unscathed in the Z version, however, one very notable
exception is to a scene seen early on in the game which shows Elliot the police officer
having his lower body tore off when he's pulled from under the doors.
As shown, in both the D and Z rated versions, the cop no longer loses his lower body.
This likely pushed the limits of Japan's rating system due to it both involving a human character
which makes the depiction more extreme, as well as just its overall graphic depiction.
Some scenes that were censored in the D version but uncensored in the Z release include another
scene from early on where you examine a cop corpse's face.
In the D version, the damage to his face is much less and the camera angle is also changed
to hide things even more.
Other scenes with graphic wounds are dealt with similarly, such as the Tyrant's torso
being ripped apart later on in the game, which remains completely intact in the D rated version.
That's not all for the changes made to the Z rated version though.
Changes have also been made across all versions to the visual damage that monsters take during
gameplay.
In the D rated version, body parts will no longer detach from zombies, blood is reduced
and the textures are heavily toned down.
In the Z version, however, limbs will detach aside from the zombies' heads.
Textures are still toned down compared to the English release though, with the areas
of damage being very darkened and missing certain graphic details.
The English release in comparison is much more detailed, as shown on screen now.
When using weapons that can remove zombies' heads, such as the shotgun - you'll notice
further changes to the Japanese version.
In both the Japanese D and Z version, zombies' heads will no longer explode when using weapons
like these and will simply remain in place.
Similar to what we saw earlier with the death of Elliot however, even the Z version shieds
away from showing the crawling zombies with intestines sticking out of their lower half.
In the Japanese Z version, as well as the D release, the zombies now have their body
completely intact.
For players in Japan who would like to avoid these changes then the good news is that the
English release contains full language options to change both the text and voice to Japanese.
And so importing an English copy or using a VPN when purchasing to change your country's
location is possible.
However, if using the VPN route, of course be careful that you aren't breaking any site's
terms of service first.
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What do you think the differences between the D and Z rated versions?
And what do you think about the Z version still being toned down compared to the West?
Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and consider subscribing to see more
videos on how media is changed around the world.
Until next time, thank you for watching!