Once a relative haven for adult games, itch.io begins removing explicit titles

In a significant move, itch.io, a popular hub for indie games, has begun removing or restricting access to various adult-themed content. This decision follows increasing pressure from payment processors influenced by an Australian activist group, Collective Shout, which campaigns against sexualized media. Users and developers on itch.io started noticing the absence of many adult-oriented games from search results late Wednesday night. Several creators reported that their adult-themed titles had been entirely removed from the platform without prior notice. By Thursday morning, itch.io confirmed via a blog post that it had "deindexed" all adult NSFW content from its search and browser pages, acknowledging that this action was both "sudden and disruptive." Collective Shout, an organization dedicated to challenging the objectification of women and the sexualization of girls, had previously called out platforms like Steam and itch.io for hosting problematic titles, including the controversial "No Mercy" sexual assault simulator. They highlighted the presence of numerous games featuring themes of rape, incest, and child sexual abuse on these platforms. The group urged payment processors, including Visa, MasterCard, and PayPal, to reconsider their partnerships with companies that allow such content. In response to the concerns raised by these payment processors, itch.io announced that it is undertaking a comprehensive audit of its content. Following this review, creators of NSFW material will need to verify that their content complies with the policies of their associated payment processors. The effects of this audit are already evident, as many game pages have been replaced with a notice stating, "this game's files have been suspended by an itch.io administrator." As a result, these games are no longer available for purchase, and users have reported difficulties in redownloading previously acquired titles from the platform.