Bro it's not a "weird art game about trauma" its a rape simulator. Should payment processors be involved here? Probably not. But the game is definitely a bad thing that should not exist and whoever made it is 100% a bad person.
Make a list of the most popular films and games. You'll find a lot of violence and sexual assault. You'd have to ban _most_ media to get rid of it.
[^1]: https://bsky.app/profile/siarate.bsky.social/post/3luz4cz6wx...
Tbh it's a pretty impressive narrative experience, it really leverages the difference between watching a story and experiencing it.
I recall some years ago that bans on sexual content for teenagers also ended up banning sex ed content, info about contraception and other vital information.
So I'd really prefer to err on the side of less rather than more bans. No blanket bans just because they address some topic, because some topics do need to be addressed.
Ultimately, though, I really don't think it should be up to payment processors to enforce stuff like this. It's up to either Steam or governments. If payment processors want to police stuff, they should be concerning themselves with money laundering, fraud, and other financial crimes.
If we still decided what was allowed based on the sense of disgust it engenders in some people, we'd still be living like Medieval peasants. Adults should be free to make informed choices, that includes purchasing and consuming things that you and I find repellent.
If not, where do you draw the line? And why there?
No, because that's illegal.
Slippery slope morality arguments are stupid and deserve to be treated as such. I've already heard this a thousand times with homosexuals. Men fucking men? What's next, men fucking kids? Men fucking dogs???
No, it's a stupid line of reasoning and, in fact, it's so stupid that even just a few seconds of inspection is enough to have it crumble and fall between the cracks of your hands.
> As in, some people want to watch it, and most people find it repulsive
You have a very fundamental misunderstanding here.
Okay, people find murder repulsive too. But is the reason that we outlawed murder because it's repulsive? Think about it. Throwing up is repulsive. Do we throw people in jail if they feel sick?
No. Whether or not ANYONE thinks something is repulsive is completely unrelated to if it should be allowed.
We did not, have not, and will never ban child pornography on the grounds it's "repulsive". It is, but that doesn't matter. We ban it because children are unable to consent, and subjecting unconsenting people to sexual acts is rape. Distributing the material is equally bad because it creates a market for it - meaning, more rape.
> If not, where do you draw the line? And why there?
When it comes to sex, consent. That's the only place you can draw the line. Otherwise I can easily weaponize your arguments against you. There are many sexual things you personally do which I find repulsive - please, tread carefully. This line of reasoning is dangerous.
Having actual CSAM out there does hurt actual people.
It was also removed from itch.io in 2014. Never made it to Steam.
But then they got Visa and Mastercard to throw their weight around with vague terms and now stores have to remove everything remotely erotic to not go out of business...
You don't like the game? Is there a gun to your head making you play it? No. The conversation should be over then.
But hey they're all bad people I guess, victims included.
Careful on that slippery slope, you might fall and break something!
What game are you talking about?
I think its obvious that making the game should be legal, and also obvious that platforms like Steam should ban it. Payment processors are a weird middle ground, I'll leave it to smarter people than me to figure out the ethics there.