Steam games warned for "pornographic content" have warnings dismissed, subject to re-review

Last week, multiple developers of anime-styled Steam games with visual novel elements and sexual themes reported that Valve had warned them to censor content in their games or have them removed from the Steam store. Over the weekend, it seems Valve has retracted at least some of these warnings, and is now subjecting the affected games to a "re-review."

The warnings were sent almost exclusively to smaller developers of anime-style games that involved sexual content, including some with only minor amounts of nudity. The developers were warned that their games included "pornographic content" and would be removed from Steam within two weeks if the game was not updated to censor said content.

Many of the games involved had been on Steam for years without trouble; some (such as Kindred Spirits on the Roof) had worked specifically with Valve to ensure the content was acceptable.

HunieDev (HuniePop), MangaGamer (Kindred Spirits on the Roof), and Lupiesoft (Mutiny!!) have since tweeted from official accounts saying that Valve has apologized and instructed them to disregard the warning. However, all three developers indicated their games were up for a "re-review" and that Valve would follow up soon if content needed to be addressed.

The sudden warning of these games has brought into the open Valve's unclear policies on sexual content and inconsistent enforcement across different genres. Valve has not issued an official statement on why these games were flagged.