Mastercard denies pressuring game platforms, while Valve offers a different account

Mastercard and Valve give conflicting stories on gaming content pressure, with banks noting brand risks.

: Following allegations of pressuring gaming platforms, Mastercard stated it did not require restrictions on games or activities, though it mandates controls for illegal purchases. Advocacy group Collective Shout accused Mastercard and others of allowing harmful games, prompting Steam and Itch.io to adjust policies per payment processors' rules. Valve countered Mastercard's denial, noting processors cited brand risk and rules against damaging transactions. Itch.io is negotiating with Stripe, who refrains from supporting sexually explicit content due to banking partner policies.

The recent controversy surrounding the removal of adult games from platforms such as Steam and Itch.io has sparked a heated conversation between payment processors and gaming companies. Mastercard, a key player in the industry, insisted that it has not directly evaluated or required restrictions on any games or gaming platforms, contradicting media reports. Nevertheless, Mastercard acknowledged that it enforces a mandate for merchants to establish controls that prevent Mastercard cards from being used for illegal purchases, especially concerning adult content.

A significant piece of this puzzle was a public stance taken by Collective Shout, an advocacy group focused on opposing the exploitation of women and children. They issued an open letter aimed at major payment processors, including Mastercard, Paypal, and Visa, criticizing their involvement with games that feature graphic content such as rape and child sexual abuse. This open letter amplified the pressure on these financial entities to reevaluate their policies, though Mastercard claims no direct connection to changes made on these platforms.

This situation escalated when Steam, owned by Valve Corporation, declared a ban on games that aren't compliant with the stipulations of their payment processors, highlighting the complex network and influence these financial institutions have on digital marketplaces. Itch.io, another prominent platform, also revised its strategy by auditing its content and removing specific adult games, albeit while stating they were only suspending them from browse and search capabilities.

In a rebuttal to Mastercard’s statements, Valve issued a statement declaring that they had not been in direct communication with Mastercard, but instead had received instructions via payment processors citing Mastercard's branding protection policies. This inferred that the processing companies, worried about brand damage, enforced changes on Valve, who had adhered to a policy of only distributing legal games since 2018.

Itch.io is seeking to navigate these challenges by negotiating with its payment partners, including Stripe. Stripe, however, has maintained that they cannot service transactions on platforms featuring sexually explicit content due to restrictions from their banking partners. This highlights the intricate web of operational and ethical considerations faced by payment processors working within global banking regulations.

Sources: Mastercard, PC Gamer, Collective Shout, Itch.io, Stripe

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