by Nolan Leahy Within the past month, the video game 1-2-Switch released alongside the Nintendo Switch. The game features 28 simple mini games. Among these mini games is a cow milking game, where players cartoonishly simulate milking a cow. The President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), Ingrid E. Newkirk, wrote a letter of complaint in saying that Nintendo has “taken all of the cruelty out of milking” and how the milking process is “NEVER that pleasant for these animals.” What’s even more interesting about this letter is that it doesn’t end there. The letter includes suggestions “to simulate cow milking accurately,…” President Newkirk writes, “1-2-Switch would need to show all aspects of dairy farming, including the violent insemination of female cows on what the dairy industry itself refers to as a ‘rape rack.’ Cows produce milk to feed their babies, but their young are torn away from them soon after birth so that human beings can use their milk instead…” “We’d be happy to provide you with video footage of the filthy conditions that cows endure on farms for you to include in your game,” President Newkirk states. It may be possible that she is taking it slightly too seriously for a party game that’s rated E10+ with less than favorable review scores. It’s also a consideration that Nintendo has included actions in their previous games that portray harm to common farm animals. For instance, in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time as well as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, has moments where players can strike chickens with a weapon This causes a swarming frenzy attack or allow you to temporarily control a chicken. These actions are typically not taken seriously to any extent by the player base and is more of a joke than any other possibility, so why would 1-2-Switch be any different if the sole purpose is to entertain? It only takes a Google search or a questioning of a local farmer to find the real facts of how the cow milking process truly works and its issues. When bearing in mind that 1-2-Switch is a party game that’s intended for a large audience range both young and old, it is doubtful that Nintendo will update the game to include cruel changes due to the marketing of the game. You can see the full letter here.
Sources: Nintendo Everything, Polygon Image: Polygon
