Adult Games Swept from Steam and Itch.io: IGDA Exposes Quiet Censorship
Carlos Mendoza 
Key Takeaways
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- Digital platforms like Steam and Itch.io have been criticized for removing adult games without clear reasoning, causing concern among the International Game Developers Association (IGDA).
- The IGDA asserts that the opaque enforcement of content guidelines is a core issue, with creators reporting games were taken down without explanation, even if they featured consensual, inclusive narratives or LGBTQ themes.
- Pressure from organizations like the Australian Collective Shout has led payment processors to demand stricter rules, potentially leading digital stores to implement broader and less nuanced moderation.
- The IGDA has proposed recommendations for greater clarity and accountability in moderation decisions, including clear guidelines, transparent communication with creators, accessible avenues for appeals, inclusion of external experts in content reviews, and regular publication of reports on adopted measures. This issue has sparked significant debate within the independent game development community, with concerns over financial censorship and creative freedom.
Quiet Censorship of Adult Games on Steam and Itch.io Sparks IGDA Concerns Over Opaque Enforcement
The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) has expressed concerns regarding the removal of adult games from digital platforms such as Steam and Itch.io. According to the IGDA, these decisions were made without prior notice or clear reasoning, affecting legal and consenting games. By late July 2025, Itch.io began hiding or removing NSFW (Not Safe For Work) tagged games from search results. The platform stated this was due to an internal audit to comply with payment processor requirements from companies like Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal. Concurrently, Valve revised Steam’s rules, leading to the deletion of several titles under new internal criteria. The IGDA asserts that the core issue is not with content guidelines themselves, but with their opaque enforcement. Many creators reported their games were taken down without explanation, despite featuring consensual, inclusive narratives or LGBTQ themes. The association emphasizes that most of this content adheres to legal standards and the platforms’ own rules.
Controversial Moderation of Adult Themed Games Sparks Debate Over Financial Censorship and Creative Freedom
Pressure from organizations like the Australian Collective Shout has prompted payment processors to demand stricter rules from platforms, which could potentially lead digital stores to implement broader, less nuanced moderation. Games such as Consume Me and Last Call illustrate these new restrictions. Though they lack explicit sexual content, they were hidden from Itch.io’s search results for addressing themes like eating disorders and domestic violence, raising questions about what triggers moderation. In response, the IGDA advocates for greater clarity and accountability in moderation decisions. The association has proposed several recommendations: clear guidelines, transparent communication with creators, accessible avenues for appeals, inclusion of external experts in content reviews, and regular publication of reports on adopted measures. Within the independent game development community, these actions have sparked significant discussion. Many developers accuse payment processors of interfering with creative freedom, a practice some term “financial censorship.” An online petition has already garnered over 150,000 signatures, urging for increased transparency in moderation practices and the reversal of recent decisions.
| Specification | |
|---|---|
| Official Name | Consume Me |
| Brief Summary | Consume Me is a darkly humorous personal game about my relationship with food. The project started out as a collection of prototypes which drew from my past experiences with dieting and disordered eating. |
| Platforms | PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac |
| Released | September 25, 2025 |
| Genre | Puzzle, Role-playing (RPG), Strategy, Indie |
| Play Modes | Single player |
| Languages | English |
| Genre | Hexecutable |
About the Author
Ahmed Hassan 
Sophie Laurent 
Marcus Thompson 
