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Balan Wonderworld patched due to seizure risk

Players must install the day-one patch to fix the scene

Balan, of Balan Wonderworld, dances in a still from the game’s opening movie Image: Balan Company/Square Enix
Nicole Carpenter is a senior reporter specializing in investigative features about labor issues in the game industry, as well as the business and culture of games.

Square Enix has patched a scene in Balan Wonderworld, which was released Friday, that included flashing lights that posed a “photo-sensitive epilepsy risk.” To ensure the scene is fixed, players must install the game’s day-one patch, according to a tweet from the official Balan Wonderworld account.

“Please ensure that you install the Day 1 Patch before playing,” the company tweeted. “We have received reports of a photo-sensitive epilepsy risk from a potential flashing bug if playing the game is un-patched. The Day 1 Patch prevents this issue as well as enhances the overall play experience.”

Game Informer writer Liana Ruppert, who reported a similar seizure risk present in Cyberpunk 2077 earlier this year, published a story about Balan Wonderworld’s own risk on Thursday. The scene in question is Balan Wonderworld’s last boss fight; there are two instances where the entire screen flashes in and out, with black and white strobes, rapidly.

Like the Cyberpunk 2077 scene, which was patched out following Ruppert’s report, the Balan Wonderworld flashing poses a risk to players with photo-sensitivity. And while accessibility options in video games have improved in recent years, seizure triggers still remain in games, sometimes accompanied by in-game warnings.

Balan Wonderworld was released March 26 on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC via Steam, Xbox One, and Xbox Series.

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