Nintendo's Maniac Mansion Censorship Explored

Thanks to Video-Fenky for a new feature illustrating the Nintendo censorship affecting the NES version of Maniac Mansion. These comments were originally written up in a 1993 issue of Wired, and an unedited prototype NES cart of the classic point n' click adventure has been found to show the changes - though "Nintendo didn't catch the old 'blow up the hamster in the microwave' trick (it was removed in the European version)", changes include editing Nurse Edna's suggestive speeches ("I should have tied you to my bed, cutie!"), and switching graffiti in the bathroom from "For a good time EDNA 3444" to "Call EDNA 3444".

Comments

Re:On ./ Games Why?

[simoniker]

It's news, imho, because it's a newly posted article (as of last night), which, I believe, is the first time someone has taken screenshots from a prototype ROM to illustrate the changes originally discussed in the Wired article. I certainly haven't seen it before.

But we'd love people to submit as many games-specific posts as possible, yes. Please do!

Re:How do you.....

[cordsie]

I don't remember the exact details, but it's something like this (I'm basing it on my memory of the C64 version):

Have Bernard fix the radio in the cabinet in the same room. You use a radio tube or something on it (I don't remember from where exactly).

In the green tentacle's room, there's a record, that plays a high-pitched tone. (It's a recording of the tentacle mating call!) If you play it in the green tentacle's room, you'll end up with a dead kid, (one of the few ways to truly die in the game, but it's funny). However, you can safely play it in the victorola in the TV room. As you're playing the record, record the sound onto a tape (from where I don't remember) using the recording deck. Then take the tape and play it in the chandelier room. The high-pitched noise will shatter the chandelier and drop the key onto the floor.

And it is indeed for the dungeon, as far as I can recall.

Maybe I should have gotten out more as a kid. Sigh.

You live in the bush for 15 years?

[Inoshiro]

Nintendo stopped censoring after the Mortal Kombat 1 debacle. Sega created the Video Game Rating Comission and marked Mortal Kombat as adult, while Nintendo censored it. MK on the SNES sold very poorly compared to the Genesis version.

When MK 2 was ported, Nintendo didn't censor it in the slightest. They let the ESRB ratings (the renamed VRC that would rate all games on all platforms) Ever since then, Nintendo's policy has been to let things through unaltered, and let the ESRB ratings tell the tale.

I'm surprised you're so ignorant of it. Or maybe I'm not, if you think Nintendo only makes "kids" games.

Re:How do you.....

[BobTheJanitor]

Yeah, it's for the dungeon, but there's another way to get a kid out of the dungeon (but it takes both free kids). Have one of them pull the gargoyle at the base of the first flight of stairs. That opens the door at the bottom of the stairs. Have your other kid go in there. There's a lightswitch somewhere in there somewhere. The door to the dungeon is on the far left of the room.