So I'm a new AVN developer. I'm currently developing the prologue for my novel in Renpy. It is medieval time based so historical treatments of various subjects is a major factor in the writing. I was planning on publishing on itch.io, but with the changes to NSFW categories on both Steam and Itch.io, do I even bother? How long before Patreon and Subscribestar follows the pressure from payment companies and shut down all indie type development?
Yes, create your game. If this situation is not fixed by the end of the year, i would recommend you to search alternative stores that aren't affected by this issue. Maybe Visa/Mastercard will roll back, but don't get hopes too high. Same way nothing guarantee other payment providers aren't going to fall in the same issue. In some other threads people are arguing if crypto payments like Bitcoin may be a solution.
Of course this is just my subjective opinion.
Just try to keep a cold head, breathe and evaluate what you can do for yourself.
Luck with your projects.
Don't let bullies stop you from following your passions.
While it currently might seem dire for distribution and getting your game to the hands of audiences, people do want art and experiences, so something will end up surfacing to facilitate that. If these fossils won't make it possible, someone sane will do something about it, allowing us to enjoy the freedom of artistic expression again.
