Stellar Blade Character Design Dispute Impacts Sony

Naughty Dog's concept artist sparked a heated online debate after sharing artwork of Stellar Blade's protagonist, Eva, on X. The reaction was overwhelmingly negative, with numerous fans criticizing the design as unattractive and masculine, using terms like "ugly" and "terrible." Many comments deemed the artwork repulsive and accused the designer of portraying Eva in an "awakened" state.

This incident follows recent controversy surrounding Naughty Dog's inclusion of explicit DEI content in Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, a game that set a new record for most dislikes on a video game trailer. This negative reception contrasts sharply with the overwhelmingly positive response to Stellar Blade's original Eva design, created by Shift Up. Eva's beauty was a significant factor in the game's success, making the new, drastically different design all the more jarring to fans. It appears Naughty Dog is continuing a trend of controversial design choices.