Valve is enforcing stricter policies on adult-only content to align with requirements from Steam's payment processing partners, resulting in the removal of numerous sexually explicit games from the platform this week.

As noted by GameSpark and reported by Automaton, SteamDB logs indicate significant behind-the-scenes activity as Steam revised its 'Rules and Guidelines' policy, clarifying that publishing certain types of adult-only content may breach these rules.

The newly introduced clause 15 of the policy explicitly prohibits content that could violate the standards set by Steam’s payment processors, card networks, banks, or internet network providers.

The X / Twitter account for SteamDB shared a detailed list of pornographic games recently removed from Steam.

This may be linked to PayPal, as users in some regions have been unable to use it for Steam payments over the past five days.

Permanent link to the list of store removals: https://t.co/Vy44Q0hVGN

— SteamDB (@SteamDB) July 16, 2025

This follows public backlash earlier this year when UK technology secretary Peter Kyle criticized Steam for hosting a sexually explicit visual novel featuring non-consensual sexual content, including rape and incest. The developer, Zerat Games, later announced the voluntary withdrawal of the visual novel after it was pulled from sale in the UK, Canada, and Australia.

However, Valve’s updated guidelines have drawn criticism from some who argue the rules are vague and raise concerns about censorship.

Earlier today, we covered Valve co-founder and CEO Gabe Newell, who shared rare details about his life, work, and leisure aboard a superyacht he refers to as a "boat."