Following Itch.io’s mass delisting of adult games in response to pressure from payment processors, a new report includes claims from LGBTQ+ devs that safe-for-work titles with lesbian or yuri themes have also been affected.
Both Itch and Valve changed their rules on adult content last month, with the issue evolving into a complex pointing of fingers which traced from the storefronts, to credit card companies, and on to an Australian protest group. That group, Collective Shout, claimed responsibility for exerting the initial pressure that got the ball rolling. Itch.io have since allowed free adult games back onto the platform, but paid ones currently remain on the naughty step as the storefront seeks new payment processors.
Naturally, that’s had a substantial affect on developers of NSFW games, which this extensive report from Trans News Network delves into. It touches on the various situations of LGBTQ+ devs from a number of different countries, and sees a few of them claim that even safe-for-work lesbian or yuri games have been affected by the ban. For the unfamiliar, yuri is a genre of Japanese media focusing on relationships between women. These can be of a romantic nature, but aren’t always.
Having had an NSFW demo taken down as part of the deindexing, developer krispycat claims they searched up three of their safe-for-work games (Wendy, Warm, and Like Seafoam). “However, they don’t appear in the suggestions either – I suspect it’s because they’re yuri games,” they said. “I am concerned that my audience will be severely cut. I’m already having to search for other places to release [the full game that accompanies their NSFW demo], and am worrying where I will be able to release future projects as well.”
Another developer known as Maddie May AKA Milkboy also claims that a safe-for-work project of hers has been deindexed as part of the changes. Meanwhile, the report cites writer Dee as claiming that her works don’t contain anything that violates Itch’s content rules, but have still been deindexed. A game jam dubbed the Toxic Yuri Game Jam has also reportedly seen over half of its 200 plus games delisted, with several removed from Itch.io completely.
We’ve reached out to Itch.io for comment.
It’s worth giving the full report a read, as it features numerous tales of the effect this content policy change has had on the lives and livelihoods of affected devs.
“I am an older millennial queer and I remember the feelings of loneliness and the void of just not having anything like me in what I played,” said developer Taylor McCue. “I got to see Itch become a renaissance of queer works and community. I viewed it as an art movement and a potential future that I was a part of. Since my game has been de-indexed, I don’t know what to think. The pessimistic part of me knew this day would come, but I didn’t think it would come so soon. When it did come I thought Itch would at least email me or something.”
If you’re keen for more information as to how payment processors and similar companies can influence where adult content’s permitted and what’s considered as falling under the definition of it, make sure to read our Edwin’s in-depth feature on the topic.
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