Street Fighter V’s newest stage removed due to “unintentional religious references”
Just a few days after its release, Capcom has decided to remove Street Fighter V’s latest downloadable stage from all digital marketplaces after becoming aware of “unintentional religious references” in its background music. Although Capcom didn’t address this discovery directly, the removal came just after players began posting online about the inclusion of Islamic chants in the song. Capcom has since changed the stage’s soundtrack for players who already bought it and promised to put it back on sale once the level’s music has been rewritten. The stage in question is a remake of the Buddhist-temple-themed Thailand level from Street Fighter II, and its clear Buddhist iconography makes the “unintentional” inclusion of Muslim prayers in its theme song especially troublesome.
Believe it or not, this isn’t the first time video game publishers have had to double back and remove Muslim prayers from a soundtrack. Most famously, the very first wave of The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time cartridges included similar chanting in the background music for the Fire Temple level. According to Nintendo, the developers borrowed the sample from a sound library without realizing what it was and decided to alter the music for all future releases of the game once they were aware of its origins.