News doing the rounds at the moment, is that Valve seem to be tightening their rules concerning games with sexual content.
Here's developer Lupiesoft as an example, who made Mutiny!!, a visual novel with puzzle mini-games, ship combat and it even supports Linux:
We've just received some troubling news today that @steam_games has decided to pull down our titled "Mutiny!!" within 2 weeks for 'reports of pornographic content'. Now those of you who know @Lupiesoft know that we don't put that on Steam, or advertise that content on Steam.
— Lupiesoft (@Lupiesoft) May 18, 2018
The developer continued on from this tweet, to mention that their publisher even met with Valve previously and apparently they didn't have a problem then.
Here's another example from developer HuniePot, who made HuniePop which also supports Linux:
- IMPORTANT NOTICE -
— HunieDev (@HuniePotDev) May 17, 2018
I've received an e-mail from Valve stating that HuniePop violates the rules & guidelines for pornographic content on Steam and will be removed from the store unless the game is updated to remove said content.
Honestly, I don't really get what Valve's doing. There must be some ridiculous business-type decision behind it. Perhaps they think such games are putting off some bigger publishers, as if somehow they think it makes Steam look less attractive? I do always find this odd, that content of a sexual nature is so often frowned upon, when games where you brutally murder people for 90% of the gameplay are often promoted by Valve.
Worth point out, that itch.io is a rather open store, as I understand it developers themselves set the amount they wish to give to itch out of their sales (even if it's nothing) and they even have an open source client which is due a big upgrade soon. As much as I personally like Steam (it is my favourite store), I do wish more games were available on itch.io. Competition is healthy, the bigger players need it to keep them on the straight and narrow and we all know this.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Some you may have missed, popular articles from the last month:
The comments on this article are closed.
Quoting: liamdaweQuoting: RussianNeuroMancerhttps://endsexualexploitation.org/articles/victory-steam-remove-sexually-explicit-violent-videogames-platform/I will probably annoy someone with this, but reading that article made me literally say "what the fuck". What a bunch of drivel.
They not gonna get TW3 or GTA removed, but they is dedicated to hurt VN sales for sure.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Center_on_Sexual_Exploitation
Bullshit conservative puritan lobby group from the USA that is against anything of sexual nature, even medical information.
Last edited by Faattori on 18 May 2018 at 7:53 pm UTC
6 Likes, Who?
This is pretty sad. I certainly hope that it´s a mistake that will be corrected in time. Otherwise, I too will be tempted to migrate away from steam as much as is feasible, given their massive dominance.
Ironically, it is a decision of theirs that don´t really impact me in any way whatsoever, since I don´t think I own a single sexually explicit game on steam, but nevertheless a decision that I find ethically abhorrent to the point where I want to minimize my support.
Ironically, it is a decision of theirs that don´t really impact me in any way whatsoever, since I don´t think I own a single sexually explicit game on steam, but nevertheless a decision that I find ethically abhorrent to the point where I want to minimize my support.
5 Likes, Who?
ElectricPrism May 18, 2018
I think I can finally make some sense of this. I think that sexuality is not the thing that distinguishes the game for removal.
According to other articles on the web, some of the images in the game, though cartoon have girls that appear to be underage. Underage sex, consensual or not is in most places still illegal.
I think Valve is afraid to come out and say it outright.
http://www.game-debate.com/news/25100/steam-devs-claim-valve-asking-for-sexual-content-to-be-censored-or-games-may-be-removed
Last edited by ElectricPrism on 18 May 2018 at 7:59 pm UTC
According to other articles on the web, some of the images in the game, though cartoon have girls that appear to be underage. Underage sex, consensual or not is in most places still illegal.
I think Valve is afraid to come out and say it outright.
QuoteAs of right now, we’re sort of left clutching straws with this one. Steam’s rules and regulations on sexual content are confusing at the best of times, and there are plenty of games like The Witcher 3 which seem to get by with some fairly overt sexual content. As a best guess, it may be that these affected games feature content which could be interpreted as sexualising minors.
QuoteThere’s a common theme of young looking girls that runs through these games on Steam, including some dressed as schoolgirls, and there’s certainly an argument to be made that these games are depicting young people in a sexual manner. The question though, is just how young are they meant to be? The creators can claim they're thirty years old and there's not really any way for Valve to disprove this.
http://www.game-debate.com/news/25100/steam-devs-claim-valve-asking-for-sexual-content-to-be-censored-or-games-may-be-removed
Last edited by ElectricPrism on 18 May 2018 at 7:59 pm UTC
2 Likes, Who?
Well, that's just idiotic. Changing their guidelines without a warning isn't nice.
0 Likes
qptain Nemo May 18, 2018
Quoting: ElectricPrismI think I can finally make some sense of this. I think that sexuality is not the thing that distinguishes the game for removal.If that's the real reason, that's very understandable but then they definitely chose the wrong moment to be coy and vague.
According to other articles on the web, some of the images in the game, though cartoon have girls that appear to be underage. Underage sex, consensual or not is in most places still illegal.
I think Valve is afraid to come out and say it outright.
QuoteAs of right now, we’re sort of left clutching straws with this one. Steam’s rules and regulations on sexual content are confusing at the best of times, and there are plenty of games like The Witcher 3 which seem to get by with some fairly overt sexual content. As a best guess, it may be that these affected games feature content which could be interpreted as sexualising minors.
QuoteThere’s a common theme of young looking girls that runs through these games on Steam, including some dressed as schoolgirls, and there’s certainly an argument to be made that these games are depicting young people in a sexual manner. The question though, is just how young are they meant to be? The creators can claim they're thirty years old and there's not really any way for Valve to disprove this.
http://www.game-debate.com/news/25100/steam-devs-claim-valve-asking-for-sexual-content-to-be-censored-or-games-may-be-removed
0 Likes
Quoting: qptain NemoIf that is the reason, then they need to fully explain that to the developer.Quoting: ElectricPrismI think I can finally make some sense of this. I think that sexuality is not the thing that distinguishes the game for removal.If that's the real reason, that's very understandable but then they definitely chose the wrong moment to be coy and vague.
According to other articles on the web, some of the images in the game, though cartoon have girls that appear to be underage. Underage sex, consensual or not is in most places still illegal.
I think Valve is afraid to come out and say it outright.
QuoteAs of right now, we’re sort of left clutching straws with this one. Steam’s rules and regulations on sexual content are confusing at the best of times, and there are plenty of games like The Witcher 3 which seem to get by with some fairly overt sexual content. As a best guess, it may be that these affected games feature content which could be interpreted as sexualising minors.
QuoteThere’s a common theme of young looking girls that runs through these games on Steam, including some dressed as schoolgirls, and there’s certainly an argument to be made that these games are depicting young people in a sexual manner. The question though, is just how young are they meant to be? The creators can claim they're thirty years old and there's not really any way for Valve to disprove this.
http://www.game-debate.com/news/25100/steam-devs-claim-valve-asking-for-sexual-content-to-be-censored-or-games-may-be-removed
Edit: Spelling.
Last edited by Liam Dawe on 18 May 2018 at 8:15 pm UTC
4 Likes, Who?
It's parents duty to shield our children from explict contents. And it's weird when sexual contents being censored, but violence being 'promoted extensively'.
For me, the best 'parent lock' is when parents sit beside their children when they using any devices.
For me, the best 'parent lock' is when parents sit beside their children when they using any devices.
7 Likes, Who?
Quoting: tonRIt's parents duty to shield our children from explict contents. And it's weird when sexual contents being censored, but violence being 'promoted extensively'.
For me, the best 'parent lock' is when parents sit beside their children when they using any devices.
Indeed. That way you can also properly teach them stuff - not just keep them away from it.
1 Likes, Who?
qptain Nemo May 18, 2018
Quoting: liamdaweYeah.Quoting: qptain NemoIf that is the reason, then the need to fully explain that to the developer.Quoting: ElectricPrismI think I can finally make some sense of this. I think that sexuality is not the thing that distinguishes the game for removal.If that's the real reason, that's very understandable but then they definitely chose the wrong moment to be coy and vague.
According to other articles on the web, some of the images in the game, though cartoon have girls that appear to be underage. Underage sex, consensual or not is in most places still illegal.
I think Valve is afraid to come out and say it outright.
QuoteAs of right now, we’re sort of left clutching straws with this one. Steam’s rules and regulations on sexual content are confusing at the best of times, and there are plenty of games like The Witcher 3 which seem to get by with some fairly overt sexual content. As a best guess, it may be that these affected games feature content which could be interpreted as sexualising minors.
QuoteThere’s a common theme of young looking girls that runs through these games on Steam, including some dressed as schoolgirls, and there’s certainly an argument to be made that these games are depicting young people in a sexual manner. The question though, is just how young are they meant to be? The creators can claim they're thirty years old and there's not really any way for Valve to disprove this.
http://www.game-debate.com/news/25100/steam-devs-claim-valve-asking-for-sexual-content-to-be-censored-or-games-may-be-removed
Although on second thought I can kinda see why they wouldn't want to send an email to someone which explicitly admits that they've been potentially distributing child-sexualizing content for years.
Unfortunately, this precaution didn't work anyway and is only backfiring now.
2 Likes, Who?
Quoting: tonRIt's parents duty to shield our children from explict contents. And it's weird when sexual contents being censored, but violence being 'promoted extensively'.
For me, the best 'parent lock' is when parents sit beside their children when they using any devices.
The problem here is that "it's the parents duty to shield our children from explicit contents" that is at play here. By organising into groups that demand that places like Steam remove content such as this they are in essence shielding their children from explicit contents.
As a parent of two children I feel no need to shield my children from any explicit materials except maybe religions since that have caused far more harm than games of a sexual or violent nature.
3 Likes, Who?
Patreon
PayPal
See more from me