Stellar Blade studio head says outfit redesigns were intentional, not censorship: "Just because the costumes are vulgar doesn't necessarily mean they're good"

Kim Hyeong-tae, CEO of Stellar Blade developer Shift Up, has dispelled censorship allegations regarding protagonist Eve's clothing.

The costume redesigns that altered a handful of the heroine's original outfits, as seen in promotional materials, are a result of a day-one patch that had always been intended as the "final result", according to Kim (via GameAbout). 

Some Stellar Blade fans had taken these visual changes as evidence of publisher Sony wanting to censor Shift Up's original design by stifling its creativity, sparking online debate surrounding Eve's "stupidly sexy" attire and how it impacts the player's experience of the action game. 

It turns out that, nope: this is the work of the developer itself, and had nothing to do with Sony.

But whether you love or loathe Eve's NSFW skin suit, Kim stresses that Shift Up didn't remove that extra hint of cleavage here or add tights there in an attempt to deprive gamers of anything, but to provide stylish finishing touches to each ensemble. 

"I don't think that just because the costumes are vulgar doesn't necessarily mean they're good, so this is something that was modified for quality," he says. "As a result, there are parts where eroticism is lessened or emphasized. This is the final product that we want to show as the intended result." In short: Eve's outfits are fashion-first, not sexy-first. 

Eve's sartorial choices weren't the only changes that came with the Stellar Blade day-one patch, with the addition of New Game+ giving players an incentive to stick around long after the credits roll. 

Stellar Blade is available now as a PS5 exclusive, but check out the other upcoming PS5 games we have our eye on.