In the last two weeks, thousands of “adult only” and “not safe for work” games have disappeared from Steam and itch.io – two of the most prominent distribution platforms for PC video games – as they scrambled to comply with stricter rules mandated by payment processors such as MasterCard, Visa, and PayPal.
These rules were established after a campaign by the organisation Collective Shout, which urged payment processors to stop facilitating payments to platforms hosting “rape, incest and child sexual abuse-themed games”. But the new rules have affected a far broader range of games – including some award-winning titles.
