British minister criticises Valve for distributing violent games on Steam

The UK Minister of Technology Peter Kyle has strongly criticised Valve for publishing the game No Mercy by Zerat Games on Steam. In this visual novel, the protagonist commits non-consensual sexual contact, sexual assault, rape and incest. And this game does not have effective age verification mechanisms, except for a request for proof of age before viewing the game page.

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Peter Kyle stressed the need to immediately remove such content from platforms:

"We expect each of these [technology] companies to remove the content as soon as they become aware of it. That's what the law requires, that's what I demand, and that's certainly how we expect platforms that operate and have the privilege of access to British society and the economy to act."

Women in Games also condemned the availability of the game on Steam. The organisation's CEO, Dr Marie-Claire Isaaman, said:

"The fact that a game like this is available on Steam, one of the largest gaming platforms in the world, is completely unacceptable. It sends a clear and disturbing message: that violence against women is not only tolerated, but also playable. This message has no place in our industry, our communities, or our society."

At the time of writing, No Mercy is still available on Steam. Valve has not yet provided any official comment on the matter.

Source: GamesIndustry