A petition to stop censorship on Steam is gaining traction after a group of fans began rallying against recent guideline changes. On July 16, Steam updated its publisher rules, adding a new term that opens the door for some third-party companies to moderate and police its content.
As of July 16, Steam's new guidelines state that game publishers should avoid releasing titles that may violate the terms and conditions of its payment processors. In other words, the storefront is asking creators to not only follow the platform's rules but also submit to potential oversight from companies like MasterCard, Visa, and PayPal.
European Parliament Vice President Nicolae Stefanuta voices his support for the Stop Killing Games movement, which aims to keep online games active.
Since Steam's new guidelines were implemented, dozens of games have been retired and removed from the platform, upsetting many players. In response to this censorship, some fans have launched a petition on Change.org urging Valve to revert its policies. As of this writing, the petition has over 10,000 signatures and outlines four key demands: 1) ending censorship of legal adult-only content, 2) protecting creators' right to express their creativity freely, 3) increased transparency from storefronts about...
