Why Thousands of Adult Games Vanished from Steam and itch.io

Background

In late July 2025, both Steam and itch.io removed—or made harder to discover—a large number of games labeled as “adult only” or “NSFW.” These actions stemmed from new mandates imposed by major payment providers such as Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal, which sought to restrict transactions involving games with themes including sexual violence. Although initially aimed at a narrow subset of titles, these policies led to many more removals than intended. Games without explicit content—including awarded and LGBTQ+ titles—were also affected.

Trigger and Platform Responses

The campaign began after the conservative advocacy group Collective Shout raised concerns with financial institutions, citing certain extreme games such as No Mercy, accused of depicting non-consensual sexual content. In response to mounting pressure, Valve updated Steam’s publishing rules on roughly 16 July to exclude content contrary to payment processor standards; soon after, valve began retiring titles they considered non-compliant. itch.io followed suit with an emergency removal of NSFW-tagged content, citing the need to protect its critical payment infrastructure, even though the removal was swift and came without advance warning for creators.

Impacts on Creators and Content Diversity

Consequences have been far-reaching. Creators—especially those from marginalized communities—have seen their work vanish. LGBTQ+ projects without explicit adult content were often swept up in the purge if tagged NSFW or by automated review filters, resulting in confusion and frustration. The lack of clear criteria, consistent enforcement, or an appeals process left many developers stranded. As a result, concerns have grown over censorship veiled as compliance, prompting protests and petitions from creators and players alike.

Industry Reaction

The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) strongly condemned these developments, labeling them as financial censorship. The organization urged platforms and payment firms to establish transparent, fair policies that do not penalize lawful, consensual adult content. They emphasized that vague enforcement disproportionately affects creators of queer or niche storytelling.

Ongoing Developments

In light of feedback and ongoing controversy, itch.io has committed to policy refinement, including requiring creators to affirm compliance with payment provider rules and exploring alternative processors more accepting of adult-themed content. Steam’s updated guidelines remain in place, though its future approach remains under scrutiny. Meanwhile, gamers and advocates have mobilized—launching campaigns, directing complaints at Visa and Mastercard, and pressing for greater oversight and openness around content moderation driven by financial gatekeepers.