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August 14, 2008 11:21 PM Subscribe
How does a 40-yr-old guy scrub the juvenile racism/sexism off of a used Animal Crossing/ Nintendo DS chip?
I think he means to expunge the data saved, racism/sexism in the form of distastful character names and the like.
posted by paisley henosis at 11:35 PM on August 14, 2008
posted by paisley henosis at 11:35 PM on August 14, 2008
Best answer: Do you mean, erase the data? There's a menu item to do that when you first start the game. In the first menu, select "Other things", then select "Rebuild town", and that will erase everything for a fresh start.
posted by jasminerain at 12:46 AM on August 15, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by jasminerain at 12:46 AM on August 15, 2008 [2 favorites]
Red Cell, could you give us some more information?
There is almost no context or explanation to this question, and without that, it's sort of hard to figure out how to help you out.
So, what are we talkin' here? Is there something written on it? Is there offensive data on the game itself? did you create it? did whoever you got it from used do it? These are the kinds of things we need to know to be helpful.
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew at 1:12 AM on August 15, 2008
There is almost no context or explanation to this question, and without that, it's sort of hard to figure out how to help you out.
So, what are we talkin' here? Is there something written on it? Is there offensive data on the game itself? did you create it? did whoever you got it from used do it? These are the kinds of things we need to know to be helpful.
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew at 1:12 AM on August 15, 2008
DS games are about the size of a postage stamp, so it's pretty unlikely there's anything written on the game itself.
posted by 0xFCAF at 1:28 AM on August 15, 2008
posted by 0xFCAF at 1:28 AM on August 15, 2008
Best answer: Why is everyone being so weird? Are you all high? I think it's pretty obvious that red cell just wants to clear the saved games so the game card is like new since the person who played it before (and it absolutely doesn't matter who that was, for the purpose of his question) gave the characters stupid names and catchphrases. I've been guilty of that myself (not sexist or racist, but definitely juvenile). Jasminerain wins for actually being the first to answer the question correctly.
And, also, have you ever seen a DS game cartridge? Where, exactly, on that inch-and-a-half square piece of plastic would anyone have room to write anything racist and sexist? Maybe you could write something racist OR sexist, if the sharpie was extra-fine, but there's definitely not room for both.
posted by Wroksie at 1:29 AM on August 15, 2008 [15 favorites]
And, also, have you ever seen a DS game cartridge? Where, exactly, on that inch-and-a-half square piece of plastic would anyone have room to write anything racist and sexist? Maybe you could write something racist OR sexist, if the sharpie was extra-fine, but there's definitely not room for both.
posted by Wroksie at 1:29 AM on August 15, 2008 [15 favorites]
[Folks, I've deleted a few comments because things were getting off the rails. Unless red cell disagrees, I think the question is understood]
posted by vacapinta at 5:50 AM on August 15, 2008
posted by vacapinta at 5:50 AM on August 15, 2008
Best answer: I haven't played it, but I've played other games. So I feel like I can give you a valid answer.
On every game that I've seen which has you save on the game itself (as opposed to on a memory card like on PlayStation and GameCube or on a hard drive like on Xbox or PlayStation 2), you can erase the game data in at least 1 of 2 ways.
1 - There's an option to delete a saved game. This is usually on games where you could save multiple times on the game. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is like this. You can have 3 different saved games going at once.
For this one, you'd have to dig through some menus. Like I said, I haven't played so I can't tell you exactly where it is. But most of the time, there's a menu on the page where you load the saves from.
2 - If you don't have an option on where to save the game (the above example), then starting a new game and saving it will most likely do the trick. Sports games tend to be like this, as is Pokémon.
I'm assuming you're wanting to do this for your kid or someone else younger that has the game. If you can take care of the stuff on the game the first way, then just delete it and give it to the kid. If it has to be done the second way, then just start a new game and save it. The kid will never be able to see what was preciously there.
Keep in mind that this advice could all go down the toilet if Animal Crossing has some sort of weird "I'm never going to forget what you've done, ever!" coding built into it.
posted by theichibun at 5:53 AM on August 15, 2008
On every game that I've seen which has you save on the game itself (as opposed to on a memory card like on PlayStation and GameCube or on a hard drive like on Xbox or PlayStation 2), you can erase the game data in at least 1 of 2 ways.
1 - There's an option to delete a saved game. This is usually on games where you could save multiple times on the game. The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is like this. You can have 3 different saved games going at once.
For this one, you'd have to dig through some menus. Like I said, I haven't played so I can't tell you exactly where it is. But most of the time, there's a menu on the page where you load the saves from.
2 - If you don't have an option on where to save the game (the above example), then starting a new game and saving it will most likely do the trick. Sports games tend to be like this, as is Pokémon.
I'm assuming you're wanting to do this for your kid or someone else younger that has the game. If you can take care of the stuff on the game the first way, then just delete it and give it to the kid. If it has to be done the second way, then just start a new game and save it. The kid will never be able to see what was preciously there.
Keep in mind that this advice could all go down the toilet if Animal Crossing has some sort of weird "I'm never going to forget what you've done, ever!" coding built into it.
posted by theichibun at 5:53 AM on August 15, 2008
A similar question from the GameSpot forums seems to have your answer.
posted by qldaddy at 6:19 AM on August 15, 2008
posted by qldaddy at 6:19 AM on August 15, 2008
Just checked on mine, and jasminerain's answer is what you want.
For future reference, you may want to know that some other games (not this one) pop up an option to erase all previous saved data if you hold down all the buttons at the same time as the game starts (A+B+X+Y+L+R, L and R being the trigger buttons on the top of the case).
posted by dixie flatline at 6:31 AM on August 15, 2008
For future reference, you may want to know that some other games (not this one) pop up an option to erase all previous saved data if you hold down all the buttons at the same time as the game starts (A+B+X+Y+L+R, L and R being the trigger buttons on the top of the case).
posted by dixie flatline at 6:31 AM on August 15, 2008
Response by poster: Thanks for the tips, although I was hoping to get around "rebuild(ing) the town."
I just got the used chip yesterday, intending to start a new town and migrate my characters off a friend's game onto the used chip. Initially starting the game, I found that the previous owner had been rather accomplished at it. "Cameron of Elf Land" had a sizable bank account and a big house...he already had the freakin' palm trees planted!
In meeting fellow Elf Land residents, I was sorta weirded out being referred to as "ho-bag" (!!!)...then completely creeped out when I was referred to as "nigga" by the town's cutest little resident. The cutest, most saccharine game evah was suddenly not-so-cute.
Bonus question: how did that happen? Was that language incorporated through the previous owner's letter-writing/dialogue?
posted by red cell at 8:26 AM on August 15, 2008 [2 favorites]
I just got the used chip yesterday, intending to start a new town and migrate my characters off a friend's game onto the used chip. Initially starting the game, I found that the previous owner had been rather accomplished at it. "Cameron of Elf Land" had a sizable bank account and a big house...he already had the freakin' palm trees planted!
In meeting fellow Elf Land residents, I was sorta weirded out being referred to as "ho-bag" (!!!)...then completely creeped out when I was referred to as "nigga" by the town's cutest little resident. The cutest, most saccharine game evah was suddenly not-so-cute.
Bonus question: how did that happen? Was that language incorporated through the previous owner's letter-writing/dialogue?
posted by red cell at 8:26 AM on August 15, 2008 [2 favorites]
If you talk to the town residents enough, they will sometimes give you the option of changing their catch phrase.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 8:57 AM on August 15, 2008
posted by Solon and Thanks at 8:57 AM on August 15, 2008
Red cell, yes. I am an ex-Animal Crossing DS player. Whoever had the game prior to you either wrote juvenile crap in it by changing the animals' catch-phrases, or got online with the game and inherited a new character whose owner had used the language.
The game has a feature where, when you go online, say the person you're playing with has a character who is moving out that day. If that character has not already come to your town, it is then queued to be the next character you get in your town. Hence, if that internet user used the naughty language, the character will come to your town with said language.
posted by IndigoRain at 6:51 PM on August 16, 2008
The game has a feature where, when you go online, say the person you're playing with has a character who is moving out that day. If that character has not already come to your town, it is then queued to be the next character you get in your town. Hence, if that internet user used the naughty language, the character will come to your town with said language.
posted by IndigoRain at 6:51 PM on August 16, 2008
In case it's not too late:
My kids tell me that you don't have to delete the town, you can change the language, it will just take some time. You have to talk to anyone that has an exclamation point and follows you around. If they ask your opinion on a new catchphrase, you can type in what you want. This is one of the ways the characters got their nasty words.
Also the characters you talk to will ask you about your nickname. That is your chance to change it. Apparently if you change a characters catchphrase, it will often cycle through the town and change for the other characters too. As far as we know this has nothing to do with letter writing.
Good luck.
posted by rintj at 4:43 PM on August 17, 2008
My kids tell me that you don't have to delete the town, you can change the language, it will just take some time. You have to talk to anyone that has an exclamation point and follows you around. If they ask your opinion on a new catchphrase, you can type in what you want. This is one of the ways the characters got their nasty words.
Also the characters you talk to will ask you about your nickname. That is your chance to change it. Apparently if you change a characters catchphrase, it will often cycle through the town and change for the other characters too. As far as we know this has nothing to do with letter writing.
Good luck.
posted by rintj at 4:43 PM on August 17, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by mr.anthony337 at 11:34 PM on August 14, 2008