Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is branded 'woke' by angry gamers who claim the game 'forces you to play as a transgender character'
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered is an action role-playing game from US firm Bethesda that tasks gamers with stopping a demonic invasion on a faraway planet.
Released on Tuesday, the £50 game is amassing more than 120,000 concurrent players on PC gaming platform Steam alone.
However, many have been left enraged by a controversial change by the game's developers – prompting accusations of wokeness.
When picking their character, gamers are asked to select numbered 'body types' instead of male or female.
One critic said it 'forces you to play as a transgender character' because it removes concepts of male and female.
X user @Grummz posted a screenshot from the game with the caption: 'Why did they do this?
'There was zero need to change this in Oblivion Remastered. Bring back the original Male/Female.'
Another X user said: 'Oblivion Remake is another inflection point that will show who is actually opposed to wokeness and who is fine with it.
'The game forces you to play as a transgender character given it has removed male and female from the game. This should be rejected as the evil that it is.'
Yet another said: 'Looks like Oblivion Remastered is woke. We are male and female. Not body type A and B.
'This effort by Western developers to deny us OUR existence is entirely offensive.'
They continued: 'I will not buy this unless this is patched out. @bethesda No more of this c***.'
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered – available to play on PlayStation 5, Xbox and Windows – is a remake of the original Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion from 2006.
Players must 'master swordcraft and wield powerful magic' as they fight to save a fictional continent called Tamriel from demons known as Daedra.
The original game from nearly 20 years ago let players select either 'male' or female' as their character's gender.
What is Elder Scrolls?
Elder Scrolls is a series of action role-playing video games primarily developed by Bethesda Game Studios.
This new game - 'The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered' - is a remaster of a popular 2006 game.
Players are tasked to 'master swordcraft and wield powerful magic' as they fight to save a fictional continent called Tamriel from demons known as Daedra.
Plans to released the game were leaked in 2023 before a release on Tuesday (April 22).
However, instead of genders, this new version offers two 'body types' – type 1 (which has typically female characteristics) and type 2 (which has male characteristics).
On a community page for gaming platform Steam, one buyer said they had been 'refunded' after noticing the 'woke' change'.
They posted: 'Remove the woke and well talk. Sick of a minority being forced on the majority. Fix it and I will pay for it.'
Another said: 'The woke has been in this series since the series was born. Some characters are both male and female at the same time, the Gods are gender fluid and Argonians can get a sex change at will.'
However, some people argued in favour of the change, with one saying: 'If you're that insecure over "Body Type 1" and "Body Type 2", how do you even function when faced with actual problems?'
In a blog post, YouTuber John F. Trent said Bethesda is pushing 'vile gender ideology' and continues to 'embrace the woke agenda' in the new game.
'Unfortunately, this change is not surprising,' said Trent, a staunch Catholic who is host of the YouTube channel The Trent Report.
'Bethesda and its partners have been pushing woke ideology and specifically gender ideology for quite some time with its games.'
This X user said: 'Looks like Oblivion Remastered is woke. We are male and female... No more of this c***'
As an example, Trent mentions another game in the Elder Scrolls series that introduced a 'gender-confused' character called Tanlorin, who is voiced by drag king Vico Ortiz.
Bethesda Softworks is owned by Microsoft, which released its Gaming For Everyone Product Inclusion Framework to the public last year.
This document, Trent points out, contains an entire guide on representation which includes various 'woke talking points'.
These include ensuring 'characters are represented respectfully and authentically' and validating different groups of people or cultures.
Trent adds: 'It even suggests developers track data view an inclusive content ratio, which measures the 'proportion of content featuring or catering to underrepresented groups."'
Nintendo finally reveals the launch date for the Switch 2 console - and fans don't have long to wait
It's one of the most highly anticipated devices in the gaming industry.
And now the launch date for the Switch 2 has finally been confirmed by Nintendo.
Eager fans will be happy to hear that there's not long to wait - with the device set to be released on June 5.
'All Together, Anytime, Anywhere. #NintendoSwitch2 launches June 5th!' Nintendo tweeted.
The new console will cost $449.99 - significantly more expensive than the original Nintendo Switch, which cost $299.99 when it launched back in 2017.
However, this doesn't appear to have put some fans off, with many flocking to X to discuss their excitement.
'So looks like I'll be getting a Switch 2 on June 5th. Nintendo really knocked it out of the park. It looks great,' one tweeted.
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