Valve confirms pressure from banks and card companies is to blame for the storefront axing adult Steam games: "Loss of payment methods would prevent customers from being able to purchase other titles"

Following reports that adult-only games were being targeted by Valve due to issues with payment processors, the company behind Steam has issued a statement on the matter.

Just a couple of days ago, it was reported that Steam is cracking down on games that violate the "rules and standards" of payment processors. Valve has since expanded on the situation in a new press release to multiple sources, including GamingOnLinux and Rock Paper Shotgun. "We were recently notified that certain games on Steam may violate the rules and standards set forth by our payment processors and their related card networks and banks," it writes.

"As a result, we are retiring those games from being sold on the Steam Store, because loss of payment methods would prevent customers from being able to purchase other titles and game content on Steam," explains Valve. "We are directly notifying developers of these games, and issuing app credits should they have another game they'd like to distribute on Steam in the future." Many games have already been affected by the pressure from payment processors.

Judging by the information available on SteamDB, over 100 games have been marked as "retired" from Valve's storefront in just two days – many of which are titles with adult-only content. Some were taken down from the platform literally minutes ago, too, so it's evident the situation is ongoing, and the removal of releases that "violate" banks' standards is a process rather than a one-off move. Unsurprisingly, PC gamers aren't sure how to feel about it all.

A recent Reddit thread on the matter proves as much, with many expressing confusion. One admits, "I don't even understand what issues payment processors have with porn games." Others point out that many of the retired games thus far feature controversial sexual themes and terms, like "incest." As of now, though, there's no telling how many developers will be affected by the Steam removals – but if the last couple of days are anything to go by, it'll probably be a lot.

Here are some of the most exciting new games this year and beyond to keep an eye on.