Boy, I sure do L O V E censorship!

That was sarcastic, in case you couldn't tell. For those of you unaware, allow me to summarize the situation:

As of writing this, ALL NSFW games on itch.io and many NSFW games on Steam have been wiped from the platform, either by delisting them from search functions or by removing them from the service entirely. This is because a group named Collective Shout petitioned a group of payment proccessors to pressure Steam and itch.io to stop allowing certain content on their platforms.

The implications of this are severe and disquieting. If payment processors can be so easily persuaded to threaten other companies into submission, who's to say it'll stop at video games, let alone NSFW games specifically? Why not leverage payment processors against physical stores that sell sex toys, bookstores that sell erotica(or, indeed, anything suggestive at all), the fucking supermarket? Collective Shout claims that they take issue with only a select few games, those containing subjects like rape and inscest, but their actions have had ALL NSFW content on itch.io delisted, with whether any of it will be re-listed left and open question. And, anyway, who are they to arbitrate what art is made?

I'd argue that Collective Shout's actions are indicative of a far more sinister goal than they'd admit. Going after games that contain extreme or disturbing content was almost certainly just a precursor to far more harmful causes, such as the one listed on their website about "protecting minors from exposure to pornography". While it is true that minors shouldn't be viewing pornographic content, using this 'Think of the children!'-esque cause as a rallying cry is often used to promote ideas like requiring a government issued ID to access any adult content, which would allow the government to track who consumes what porn, which I'm sure someone is into but it ain't me. Think for a moment, especially if you live in the US: between RFK's autism registry, everything ICE is doing, and the cadre of vile monsters running the government right now: What do you think they'd do with that information?

I can already imagine people being dragged off to concentration camps for consuming the "wrong kind" of porn. Doubtless, someone reading this has somehow interpreted the previous statement as supporting CSAM, which I will now unequivocally state I revile with my entire being. I am referring specifically to pornography featuring only consenting adults, which is still legal, though for how long remains to be seen.

As a closing statement, I'd like to point out that there's nothing keeping groups like Collective Shout from pushing against SFW content either. I guarantee that some band of dipshits is already cobbling together a list of signatures to try and persuade some payment processor to press against "degenerate" LGBTQ content and/or content featuring people with a skin tone darker than Pantone 727.

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