Two of the most popular websites for PC game mods, NexusMods and ModDB, have taken down a project that removed the in-game pride flags from the recently released PC port of Marvel’s “Spider-Man Remastered.”
The game recently transitioned from being a PlayStation exclusive to a Windows PC title. The modding community, which now has the freedom to change Spider-Man into Kingpin and other characters, has naturally taken an interest in the expansive, open-world superhero game.
Some modders, however, took advantage of this newfound freedom and went after the various Pride flags dispersed throughout Marvel’s Spider-Man‘s New York and replaced them with American flags. Thankfully, well-known mod websites ModDB and Nexus Mods have spoken against this behaviour.
Nexus Mods published a blog on its website on Thursday in which it discussed some “silly drama.” In the article, it is described how a user used a sock puppet account to upload an anti-LGBTQ mod that eliminated all Pride flags from in-game graphics. The site administrators banned the user’s main account as well as the sock puppet account after Nexus Mods called the user out for purposefully trolling.
“In regards to the replacement of Pride flags in this game, or any game, our policy is thus: we are for inclusivity, we are for diversity,” wrote user Dark0ne, site owner and author of the Nexus Mods blog post. It further wrote, “If we think someone is uploading a mod on our site with the intent to be against inclusivity and/or diversity then we will take action against it. The same goes for people attempting to troll other users with mods deliberately to cause a rise.”
The post continued by promising that the team would work harder to update the website on their own in the future. Additionally, it was made clear that when removing mods of this nature, Nexus Mods is only able to do so from its website and not completely delete them from the internet. Some mod sites might have this kind of hateful mod available, but Nexus Mods won’t be one of them.
A few hours later, when a supporter tweeted proof of a mod that specifically targeted “stupid Pride flags” and was tagged with “Trump” and “Trump 2024,” another well-known mod website, ModDB, followed in Nexus Mods’ footsteps. The site banned the users who made the mod and took down the content, according to a tweet from the ModDB Twitter account, which added that “ModDB is an inclusive environment for all and we do not permit targeting marginalised groups.” While ModDB’s moderation tools are automated, the site promised users that it will still remove content like this if made aware of it.
Even though site-specific bans like these won’t completely stop hateful mods, Nexus Mods and ModDB’s actions send an important message of inclusivity to players inside and outside the PC gaming community.