Gamers, we are losing the battle against censorship.
We have watched as games are removed from platforms like Steam and Patreon due to requirements of payment processing companies being applied to fictional characters. Even free access to adult game mods will become gated behind mandatory privacy-destroying ID checks on sites like NexusMods for users who live in one of the 25 US states with age verification requirements.
Our opponents in the powerful censorship lobbies are incredibly well resourced financially and politically mobilized. They have made amazing gains against free speech and have distressing momentum. Their policies are designed to intentionally starve out adult creators, making the creation of adult content financially impossible. It is their stated end goal to criminalize the creation of all adult content (and eventually, even non-adult LGBTQ content).
The censorship is working -- In private conversations with my fellow adult game developers, a number have been intimidated by these policies or pre-emptively compromised their artistic vision in order to appease the payment processors and platforms. The chilling effect is real, especially paired with the terrifying one-strike policy Valve has for adult game submissions' acceptable content review and the permanent bans issued by Patreon. Even selling direct to fans is no cure, as creators with their own merchant accounts risk crushing penalty fines and ending up on the payment network MATCH blacklist.
Adult content is becoming more and more difficult to distribute, and if the censors have their way, it will eventually be blocked entirely. We have sat idly by as the line of censorship advances further and further -- they are winning and we do nothing to defend ourselves.
Are you okay with extremist religious conservative groups deciding what games you can play? Are you okay with finance oligopolies deciding what legal content is acceptable to their "brand image" that you can spend your money on?
It is time for us to make our voices heard as well...
RISE UP, GAMERS!
Speak up now to stop even more adult games from getting suppressed. We can work together to restore the First Amendment and turn the tides of this censorship battle. Through regulation, we can preserve our rights and our lawmakers can show their commitment to our constitutional rights.
It is vitally important our lawmakers hear from us -- even if they are not willing to enact regulation to help us, it will give them pause before enacting further regulation against us if they understand adult content censorship is unpopular.
Here is a template you can customize to write to your lawmakers:
Dear [Legislator Name],
I am concerned about the recent rise in censorship of legal adult content.
1) Regulate Visa/Mastercard/PayPal to prevent them from blocking legal fictional adult content from their network.
Recently, many legal 18+ videogame titles were removed from the popular video gaming platform Steam due to requirements from payment processors. Fictional content should not be censored as this is a violation of our First Amendment rights. Visa, Mastercard & PayPal represent a payment oligopoly -- it is not possible for merchants to survive in the United States without using their networks. There is no other viable way for creators to be paid for their fictional works, but all three have engaged in heavy censorship. Thus, I request you introduce or support a bill to regulate Visa/Mastercard/PayPal and ensure all legal fictional adult content may be sold on their networks.
2) Institute a nationwide halt to mandatory Age Verification for adults to access 18+ content.
Many states have passed Age Verification laws that impinge upon Americans' First Amendment right to access adult content. These laws harm our privacy and put us at risk. You should not need to upload your ID to a website to access free speech. These restrictions are unreasonable, and do nothing to prevent children from accessing adult content. Uploading IDs is inheritly unsafe: one of the members of the pro-AV lobby is Experian, a well known data broker who has suffered a catastrophic data breach in past. And most users are not willing to do so: a major traditional adult content site cited a ~90% reduction in traffic after implementing Age Verification checks, signaling that creators that comply with the legislation are doomed to fail financially. I request new legislation to eliminate mandatory age verification requirements nationwide for adult content.
I thank you for your time. These are important issues to me and will affect my voting in the next election.
[Optional: I am a voter in your legislative district and requesting a written response.]
Sincerely,
[First Name] [Last Name]
[Mailing Address]
Customize it and send to your elected representatives (Congress.gov finding tool). You can e-mail it or print it out and snail mail it. (Some people say printed letters that a staffer has to physically deal with are more impactful, but either are good!) Even if e-mailing, be sure to include your address so your representative knows you are in their district.
Phone calls are cited as the single most effective contact method if you feel comfortable making one! (The above Congress link includes office phone numbers.)
For even more impact, encourage your friends and followers to send letters as well (#StopCensoringGames). Will you @everyone for your rights? Can you make your next Twitch game contacting your elected representatives? Your voice counts! Will you speak louder than the censorship lobbies trying to silence you?
Say "NO!" to modern day book burning!
Looking for more ways to get involved? [expand]
We are adult game developers and fans who are fighting for our right of creative expression.