Valve seems to be continuing its push against adult games on Steam. According to one developer, the Washington-based company is no longer allowing games with “mature themes” into Steam Early Access.
Developer Dammitbird, who is creating an adult-themed game call Heavy Hearts, applied for Steam Early Access in August. Unfortunately, for them, the game was denied upon review. In its message, Valve said, “Your app has failed our review because we’re unable to support the Early Access model of development for a game with mature themes. Please resubmit when your app is ready to launch without Early Access.”
Insider Gaming has reached out to Valve for clarification on what would qualify as “mature themes” for games. Should a response be received, it will added to this story.
The Fight Against Adult Games
Valve’s recent push against adult-themed games is no secret. Earlier this summer, Valve updated Steam’s policies in a way that would limit the games published on the platform. These limitations come from the “rules and standards” set by various payment processors on Steam, allowing them to dictate what can and can’t appear on the storefront.
It’s not just Steam, either. Itch.io also went on a game delisting spree, seemingly at the behest of “payment processors”. At the time, Itch.io said that they “came under scrutiny from our payment processors regarding the nature of some content hosted on itch.io” and that they needed to “prioritize our relationship with our payment partners”.
What do you think of Valve not accepting games into Steam Early Access if they have “mature themes”? And how far do you think this will go? Let us know down in the comments below, and take the discussion further in the official Insider Gaming forums.
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Mike has been covering the gaming industry since 2012, and has reported on some of the largest events in the industry while also working as an investigative reporter. Outside of…
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