This isn't a new issue. After the game launched in Japan last year, there was a bug that allowed male Miis to marry one another and have children (but not two females). Nintendo addressed this by telling players to download a title update if they noticed "human relations that become strange." In regards to that, the outfit recently told the AP via email that "the ability for same-sex relationships to occur in the game was not part of the original game that launched in Japan, and that game is made up of the same code that was used to localize it for other regions outside of Japan."

Changing the game this close to release isn't feasible, but a patch could be issued after the game releases. To that, Nintendo told the AP that it's "carefully and thoughtfully" considered the responses it'd received via Twitter and the like, and it will continue considering the feedback. "We're using this as an opportunity to better understand our consumers and their expectations of us at all levels of the organization."

It's worth noting that gay marriage isn't legal in Japan, and this could be seen as a reflection of the country's values. In contrast, Western-developed games like the Dragon Age, Elder Scrolls, Fable, Mass Effect and The Sims series have taken steps to be more inclusive, allowing same-sex marriage and relationships.