Steam and Epic Banning ‘Horses’ Makes No Sense | Unpacked

Maybe they should have just made the game 2 minutes long unless you download the “optional patch”. Although apparently those games don’t even bother with that level of plausible deniability anymore!

While we are at it, what the hell is with the Nintendo Eshop AI smut games?

Biggest challenge in all this is market pull, not having game on platforms is bad for game's sales. It also shows big companies not gonna be consistent in their decisions and that is just how it will be. Unless there is market regulation, best speech will be money speech.

Another great video from the "worst game journalist on the internet"

Oof, so, thorny subject. The right to free speech also protects you from coerced speech. So if Steam doesn’t want certain content on their platform, they absolutely have that right. Otherwise they might be seen as ‘promoting’ speech they do not support. But the rules should be clear and easy to follow. They shouldn’t be arbitrary, and impossible to appeal. And they should apply equally to everyone.

Would never play that kind of game, but I do agree on general principles. Let's hope the backlash and coverage ignites a more constructive and consistent dialog with Steam and others.

The joys of censorship... I had to straight up ditch Steam for buying Fear and Hunger because they would straight up not believe I was 18 and wouldn't accept anything but a credit card to prove so (which I lack). Granted, that was a knock-on effect of the UK Online Safety Act, though I do sense a growing authoritarianism and acceptance of censorship on both sides of the Atlantic that's inevitably having an impact on Steam making these sort of decisions. Frankly, all these restrictions I find absurd - if a game offends you, filter it out and don't buy it. Don't deny the right to make that decision to everyone else.

Probably personal beef by someone inside Valve with a rod up their rear.

Considering the games I have stumbled into on Steam... this one seems tame. Weird policy.

I'm torn when it comes to media like this. I don't know where to draw the line when it comes to art and expression, but I definitely have the urge to not want this stuff to be approved. Either way, the thing I think is objective is the creators should be informed as to why and these platforms should be completely transparent. Especially when there are so many examples of hypocrisy, whether due to automated processes or workloads too large to revisit new requests with honest and unbiased consideration.

good episode, never heard of this game but banning it raise some serious questions about Steam and Epic's curation process