Itch.io deindexing adult content to appease payment providers

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Indie-focused video game marketplace Itch.io has deindexed all adult content from its browse and search pages at the behest of payment processors.

The company shared the news in a blog post and said it has become a target of the Collective Shout campaign, which has accused payment companies including Mastercard, Visa, and PayPal of "profiting from rape, incest [and] child abuse games" on Steam and other platforms.

Itch founder Leaf Corcoran noted the storefront became a target after it hosted a title called No Mercy, which was temporarily sold on the platform before being banned in April 2025.

"We understand this action is sudden and disruptive, and we are truly sorry for the frustration and confusion caused by this change," wrote Cochran. "[...] Our ability to process payments is critical for every creator on our platform. To ensure that we can continue to operate and provide a marketplace for all developers, we must prioritize our relationship with our payment partners and take immediate steps towards compliance."

Itch rolled out the change without notifying developers and has apologised for the "abruptness" of the pivot. The news comes after Steam similarly banned "certain kinds of adult content" and blamed the situation on restrictions imposed by payment providers (via 404 Media).

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"We are currently conducting a comprehensive audit of content to ensure we can meet the requirements of our payment processors. Pages will remain deindexed as we complete our review," continued Corcoran. "Once this review is complete, we will introduce new compliance measures. For NSFW pages, this will include a new step where creators must confirm that their content is allowable under the policies of the respective payment processors linked to their account."

The review will result in some pages being permanently removed from the storefront. Accounts impacted by the purge will receive an email from Itch's support address informing them of the impending removal.

"We ask for your patience and understanding as we navigate this challenging period,"said Corcoran. "I'm sorry we can not share more at this time as we are still getting a full understanding of the situation ourselves. We will post a follow up on our blog if the situation changes."

Game Developer has reached out to Itch for more information.