For the 20th anniversary release of the film, Spielberg decided to update/replace things that had bothered him since the 1982 release. This included the spaceship, some geography, and ET himself. But he also took out the guns that the FBI were holding, and replaced them with walkie-talkies. This latter move was done at the behest of parent groups.

Thankfully, he undid that move in time for the 30th anniversary, and told parent to deal with it.