International Game Developers Association says it’s ‘seriously alarmed’ by recent adult game delistings

The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) says it is “seriously alarmed” by the recent delistings of adult games from stores like itch.io.

Last week indie digital game store Itch.io deindexed its entire NSFW (not safe for work) games library from its store, a move which  comes as payment providers have started scrutinising NSFW content on platforms such as Steam.

In  a new statement, the IGDA said it is “calling for greater transparency and fairness in how adult games are moderated and actioned across major platforms”.

“The IGDA is seriously alarmed by the recent wave of game delistings, deindexing, and payment disruptions targeting adult-themed titles on platforms such as Steam and Itch.io,” it said.

“Reports suggest these actions have been taken with little to no communication and have disproportionately harmed developers producing legal, consensual, and ethically-developed content, including creators from marginalized communities.”

The organisation pointed out that while it’s not uncommon for platforms to have terms of service restricting game content such as non-consensual acts and incest which violate payment processor guidelines, its concern “is not the existence of these rules, but rather that their enforcement is adversely impacting games that do not actually violate these restrictions, often without warning or explanation.”

“Games that feature consensual adult content, including queer, kink-positive, or romantic narratives, are easily targeted under vague or overly cautious enforcement, often forcing developers into silence or self-censorship because platforms fear perceived risks associated with hosting legal adult content,” it added.

“Further reports suggest that recent policy changes are driven in large part by pressure from payment processors like Visa, Mastercard, and others, who may threaten to withhold payment processing services from platforms hosting adult content. As a result, financial institutions are now influencing which stories can be told and sold in games, with minimal transparency or public accountability.”

We’ve posted an addendum FAQ to our original blog post about NSFW content. You can read it here: https://t.co/TyKnqDVZht

Thank you for your patience as we navigate through this. We’re upset too. We’re doing what we can but there are still many unknowns at this point.

— itch.io (@itchio) July 28, 2025

The group makes it clear that it “does not condone or support content that promotes or fetishizes sexual violence, non-consensual sexual acts, or the sexualization of minors”, and that it is instead focused on “developers creating consensual, lawful, and ethically-developed games,” adding that it supports “clear, consistent content policies, not vague or overly broad censorship”.

Itch.Io stated last week that due to pressure from the group Collective Shout, which issued an open letter to payment processors demanding that they cease supporting online platforms that host explicit games, they had removed all adult games from their search and browse features while determining their next steps.

In its statement, Itchi.io said it was “a time-critical moment” for the platform, apologising that it couldn’t warn NSFW game developers of the changes, because it was “not realistic” to provide advanced warning.

“We are currently conducting a comprehensive audit of content to ensure we can meet the requirements of our payment processors,” it said. “Pages will remain deindexed as we complete our review. Once this review is complete, we will introduce new compliance measures.

“For NSFW pages, this will include a new step where creators must confirm that their content is allowable under the policies of the respective payment processors linked to their account.”