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When Nintendo introduced the Miiverse, the company’s online social network that will debut on the Wii U, many onlookers wondered what the catch would be. After all, this is the company that instituted friend codes and that provides a reminder to players not to post anything naughty every time there’s an opportunity to send text to others on-line. We’ve learned what that catch is, thanks to an interview between Nintendo’s President Iwata and the L.A. Times. Miiverse posts will be heavily monitored via a three-pronged approach. First, a software scanner will filter posts for possible profanity. Secondly, human monitors will be sorting through content and approving at least some percentage of it before it goes live on the network. Third, should any possibly offensive content slip past the notice of these two layers of security, community members have the ability to flag posts as containing inappropriate content. 
While this approach will no-doubt help secure Nintendo’s reputation as providing a safe space for kids online, it’s disappointing to adult gamers. Are you over 18 and want to send a salty message to your spouse or a consenting friend or lover via the Miiverse? Too bad. Did you write a message you thought was appropriate, but which tripped the sensitivities of a human monitor or was mistakenly filtered by the automatic software? I have serious doubts that there will be a way to find out what went wrong or to appeal a monitor’s decision. By Becky Cunningham |