Payment Provider Pressure Prompts Removal of Adult Games From Online Stores

Visa, Mastercard and Stripe faced a backlash after Steam and itch.io removed or hid adult games following pressure on payment services. The Guardian reported on 29 July 2025 that itch.io removed all adult content from browsing and search to protect its payment infrastructure after a campaign by Collective Shout. Some games were removed entirely. Access to payment processing gave financial intermediaries influence over what these stores could distribute.