Mastercard Responds To Censorship Allegations After Forcing Storefronts To Remove Adult Games

Here is a 193-word summary of the news article: Mastercard has responded to allegations of censorship after pressuring digital game platforms like Steam and Itch.io to remove adult-themed games. Mastercard claims it has not directly evaluated or required the removal of any specific games, but rather follows legal standards that prohibit the use of its payment network for illegal adult content. However, the games removed do not appear to have included illegal content. The pressure seems to have stemmed from a campaign by the Australian anti-porn group Collective Shout, which urged payment processors to threaten platforms over games with "rape, incest and child sexual abuse" - a claim not substantiated by evidence. The result has been the broad delisting of games with vaguely defined adult themes, including LGBTQ content. Developers have criticized payment processors for arbitrarily enforcing moral standards on what adults can access. Platforms like Itch.io have been forced to take drastic measures, with Stripe no longer supporting adult content sales. The game industry has pushed back, calling for greater transparency and fairness in content moderation. The situation highlights the power of payment processors to shape digital marketplaces through their enforcement of policies.