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Itch.io, a beloved hub for indie developers and niche games, has made waves this week with a bold decision: adult and NSFW games have been removed from its search and browse pages. For a platform that’s long prided itself on creator freedom and boundary-pushing content, the sudden move feels like a plot twist no one saw coming.
Why Itch.io Pulled the Plug on Adult Content Visibility
This all kicked off when advocacy group Collective Shout, known for taking aim at controversial media, launched a campaign targeting both Itch.io and Steam. Their focus? A game called No Mercy, which was briefly available on Itch.io before being banned back in April. The game featured highly disturbing themes like rape and incest — content Collective Shout claims normalizes abuse and undermines global efforts to address violence against women.
In an open letter to financial giants like Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal, the group argued that profiting from such games clashed with the payment companies’ stated values. The pressure seems to have worked. Earlier this month, Steam issued a new policy banning any games that might violate the terms set by their payment partners.
Now, Itch.io is following suit.
“To ensure that we can continue to operate and provide a marketplace for all developers,” the company stated, “we must prioritize our relationship with our payment partners and take immediate steps towards compliance.”
What Does This Mean for Developers?
Itch.io’s immediate response was to “deindex” NSFW titles — which means you can’t find them via search or while browsing categories, even if they’re still technically hosted on the site. And that’s just the beginning. A full audit of all adult content is underway. Once complete, creators of NSFW games will have to verify that their content aligns with the rules of the payment processors linked to their account.
The rapid rollout has left some developers feeling blindsided. There was no advance warning, and many creators worry about what comes next. One particularly troubling policy detail caught fire on social media: if a game is found in violation, all funds in that creator’s account could be withheld permanently — not just the money earned from the offending game, but every dollar they’ve ever made on the platform.
The Bigger Picture
Itch.io’s decision is the latest in a growing trend: payment processors quietly shaping what kind of content is allowed online. We’ve seen it before. Gumroad cracked down on adult art last year, blaming payment restrictions. OnlyFans tried banning explicit content too, though it reversed course after significant backlash.
A Change.org petition demanding that Visa and Mastercard “stop censoring legal fictional content” now has over 137,000 verified signatures. Supporters argue that while No Mercy crossed a line for many, blanket restrictions on adult content punish a wide range of legal, creative work — much of which has nothing to do with violence or exploitation.
So What Happens Now?
Itch.io isn’t banning adult games outright (at least not yet), but this shift sends a clear message: payment processors have more power over online content than most of us realized. For developers who rely on platforms like Itch.io to support their work — especially those in adult or alternative genres — the future feels uncertain.
As the audit unfolds and new policies roll out, Itch.io will have to walk a fine line between protecting its business and preserving the creative freedom that made it stand out in the first place. Whether it can pull that off without alienating its core community remains to be seen.
One thing’s clear: the indie gaming world just got a little more complicated.
