Apparently there are some pretty strict guidelines to how you tell a fictional story with real-world relevance and actual living characters in Japan, as our friends over at GameSpot AU just pointed out, given Homefront has apparently had three alterations made to it in order for it to be released in the Land of the Rising Sun.

According to the report, Kim Jong-il's likeness has been removed from the intro movie because of a ratings board clause that requires games have no content "deemed malicious to an existing person" (he's now known only as "Northern Leader") and references to North Korea have also been changed to "A Certain Country in the North" because of a similar clause that requires games have no content "deemed malicious to an existing country".

Barring these changes though, local publisher/distributor Spike are claiming the game is otherwise identical to copies that will be issued worldwide.

Somehow I think this is only the beginning of concerns this little gem is going to raise when it's released next month.