Following Steam ‘ s claim that it had to take down a large number of adult (NSFW) games on the platform in order to accommodate the review of payment channel providers, the world ‘ s largest independent game platform, Itch.io, also addressed adult content on an urgent basis, which triggered a violent reaction from the player community and industry.
One of the creators complained that his income from the lower shelf was being withheld from the platform because the account was not eligible for payment “in violation of the Itch clause”. The key issue was that the articles had been modified without the creators having been informed in advance, and even some games that had been regularly sold for many years.
This is not the first time that a service provider has been pressured on a payment treatment. Platforms such as OnlyFans and Fansly were forced to update their access guidelines to meet the requirements of payment service providers, and Patreon introduced tools in 2021 to help creators comply with the standards of the MasterCard. Not only Visa and everything, PayPal also has strict rules on “digital goods or content related to sexual orientation” and has the power to freeze irregular accounts.
Steam has now set up a game with sensitive labels such as “Breaking” and the situation is even more extreme in Itch.io, where not only many games are left without warning, but also other media-type content such as novels on the platform, desktop RPGs, etc. The Bluesky platform has been shown by creators who can no longer search for the work marked as “love”. Even more incomprehensible, the award-winning independent game Consume Me, a non-adult content, has also fallen. There are not a few cases of similar injuries, and the fact that the current game is going down makes it hard to see the truth.
Professionals argue that propaganda that encourages or glorifys abuse cannot be tolerated, but no one is much more a saint than a moral model and has no right to decide what should exist and what the public can consume. But “I also do not think that credit card companies can play this role, which is precisely their current ultra vires behaviour.” By controlling payment corridors and by virtue of the natural monopoly of its largest global payment processors, they have been able to review external platforms.
A similar criticism was made last year by a well-known game producer, Taro Niel series creator, when he was crushing Japan’s humanistic and cartoon library in Visa. He pointed out that “a payment processor involved in the whole industry chain of distribution of content can be so reckless that, in my view, this is a new dimension of danger. This means that transnational trials can be carried out by controlling payment companies and even on the freedom of expression in other countries.”
Taro Yoto.
Following pressure from payment partners and credit card networks on the Steam and itch.io platforms to lower multiple adult games, the payment giant Visa responded to several user queries. Some of the players directly contacted the customer service of the credit card network company and asked about the recent events affecting a large number of adult games on the Steam and itch.io platforms. These downsides appear to be influenced by financial institutions, but the responses received by players are vague.
Social media reports indicate that a response was received from Visa. Although the response did not respond directly to the review, the company appeared to have expressed different positions. Visa declared that it prohibited illegal activities and was intended to support legitimate business, but this explanation did not clarify the reasons for the fall of adult games – The sales of these games do not involve known violations.
Visa’s response also contained a clear denial of a content-based review: “Our policy is to deal with the transaction as long as it is legal.” The company added: “We do not make moral judgements about the legitimate purchases of consumers.”
It is worth noting that there is an active Australian feminist organization called “Collective Shot” behind the adult content review. The organization has claimed today’s “winner” precisely because of its ongoing efforts. On the grounds of child abuse and domestic violence, Collective Shut also requested Australia to ban the sale of Detroit: The Transformer. However, the relevant circumstances in the game are essentially the role of the player in fighting the abuser to protect the child.
It is clear that some groups have used or misinterpreted the substance of their objections, both intentionally and inadvertently. Owing to the lack of widely available alternative payment processors in the market, consumers are forced to leave it to businesses to decide what art works a player can consume. Steam is just the beginning — and Itch is just the next stop of the review.