Question: can you dodge the drama by accepting donations for another "game"(maybe just a PDF with a code emailed out) which has a code or key or something attached or do something in that style.... Or is that illegal/not allowed?
A "fake game" would be against itch's rules. Even if I get under the radar, I don't want to risk it, but it also wouldn't have any traction. An actual free game, like "Waifu's Love Room: Lite (Censored)", could be a decent approach, though. They also have rules against duplicating game pages, which means I would be walking a thin line here.