itch.io is Reindexing Free Adult NSFW Content

The announcement then ends with a statement of intent to potentially review the initial deindex list with Stripe’s more specific definition in mind, as well as confirmation that the long-term plan is to find “one or more new processors to avoid putting the platform at risk.” It also includes a glossary with itch’s definitions for “adult nsfw content” and “deindexed.” Often as it happens with short-term fixes, this update doesn’t address all the issues at play.

On the one hand, the steps itch.io has taken to ensure some adult NSFW content can make its way back on the platform is a small boon for creators who want to ensure their content doesn’t disappear forever from itch.io (and possibly the Internet if the platform was a work’s only home). This, plus the plan to find payment processors who presumably would be less eager to listen to censorship-hungry groups like Collective Shout, feels like a step toward the right direction, or at least the right mindset.

However, these concessions don’t mitigate a couple of core issues. For starters, this current state of play ultimately means a continued loss of income for many creators, which still leaves them in a state of vulnerability. After all, it’s hard to make more things without enough income. Additionally, Stripe’s more specific definition is fundamentally still censorship. As should be reiterated until payment processors and their banking partners can say it backwards, there is nothing wrong with games that have NSFW content broadly, including those that only aim to get someone off. It may not be for everyone, which is also okay, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t exist safely.  

These latest updates come as this story has seemingly broken the usual gaming news containment, as other major outlets have begun reporting on how much payment processors are struggling with the sheer volume of people pissed at them for encroaching on creators’ freedom of speech.