fix: 💬 update blog post
- Add info about Consume Me winning awards - Mention Radiator 2 as affected game from itch.io delistings - Add paragraph explaining how a US lead payment infrastructure has serious implications on other countries' autonomy
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@ -110,11 +110,25 @@ Among the casualties of games that no longer appear in the search results becaus
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[itch-consume-me]: https://q_dork.itch.io/consume-me
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You would think that, given *Collective Shout* understands sexualization as "a person is held to a standard that equates physical attractiveness (narrowly defined) with being sexy", together with [studies][instagram-study-body-image] showing Instagram/Facebook are very much aware their algorithms cause teenage girls to develop the exact disorders *Consume Me* shines a light on in ways only a video game could, they would have an interest in not having it delisted—yet here we are. The puritanical fervor is hurting the exact group *Collective Shout* claims they're trying to protect.
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You would think that, given *Collective Shout* understands sexualization as "a person is held to a standard that equates physical attractiveness (narrowly defined) with being sexy", together with [studies][instagram-study-body-image] showing Instagram/Facebook are very much aware their algorithms cause teenage girls to develop the exact disorders *Consume Me* shines a light on in ways only an [award winning][consume-me-awards] video game could, they would have an interest in not having it delisted—yet here we are. The puritanical fervor is hurting the exact group *Collective Shout* claims they're trying to protect.
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[instagram-study-body-image]: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8834897/
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[consume-me-awards]: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250319823476/en/Consume-Me-Wins-the-Seumas-McNally-Grand-Prize-and-Nuovo-Award-at-the-27th-Annual-Independent-Games-Festival-Awards
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## U.S. payment processors hold too much power
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> [!note] Update 2025-07-29
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> Add *Radiator 2* as another game which was affected by the delisting
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Another one is [*Radiator 2*][itch-radiator-2] by Robert Yang, former teacher at New York University's Game Center, which attempts to "expand eroticism in games beyond a cutscene", not by depicting intercourse, but more abstract and silly concepts, like:
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* "spank the heck out of a dude and learn about how BDSM communities formalize consent / caring"
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* "a short interactive music video game thing where you help a hunk enjoy a delicious shapely treat"
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* "an autoerotic night-driving game about pleasuring a gay car"
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[itch-radiator-2]: https://radiatoryang.itch.io/radiator2
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These games have absolutely nothing in common with the extreme contents that *Collective Shout* and similar bigoted advocacy groups claim to campaign against "to protect children from harm."
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## US payment processors hold too much power
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This is just the latest in a series of events that shows how brittle payment systems online are. Visa and MasterCard hold a [precarious duopoly][visa-mastercard-marketshare] over the global cash-free payment market, with 1.5 billion (37%) and 1.1 billion (32%) cards, respectively, in circulation globally.
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@ -149,11 +163,19 @@ PayPal is of particular mention here, as their controversial business decisions
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*Collective Shout* correctly identified the weak point of every platform, company or individual that wants to do business online: threaten their ability to get paid.
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> [!note] Update 2025-07-29
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> A friend sent me an article in which NieR: Automata director Yoko Taro rightly notes that the dominance US payment processors have gives them leverage over another country's autonomy
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Visa's and MasterCard's duopoly also has other implications: since they're corporations based in the United States, operating within the United States' legal framework, it gives the United States itself an uncomfortable leverage over the rest of the world. Suddenly, what is [perfectly legal][yoko-taro-payment-processors] in one country is effectively overruled if the same thing is illegal in the US or what intermediaries there think is acceptable use and what is not. It has the potential to greatly impact other countries' legal, political and economical autonomy. And the United States is [not shy][eu-us-tariff-talks] about using its dominance in certain areas to force other countries to cater to the interests of the United States and those of US lobby groups and corporations.
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[yoko-taro-payment-processors]: https://automaton-media.com/en/news/nier-creator-speaks-out-against-payment-processors-pressuring-japanese-adult-content-platforms/
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[eu-us-tariff-talks]: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c14g8gk8vdlo
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You might be inclined to think "Well, why won't they just process payments themselves?"
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Steam is big, but not *that* big. And certainly neither is itch.io. Rolling your own payment processing entangles you into a lot of regulatory obligations even Steam is not prepared to deal with. Their forte is games, not banking infrastructure and the regulatory compliance therein.
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There are, however, [alternatives][payment-alternatives] on the rise. One such alternative is [WERO], a payment system in which banks process payments directly among each other, currently available in Germany, France and Belgium, with plans to roll out to all of Europe in 2026. On the U.S. side there's [FedNOW] by the federal reserve bank which aims to do the same, with a small number of banks involved. Check if your bank supports these and if not ask them to do so.
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There are, however, [alternatives][payment-alternatives] on the rise. One such alternative is [WERO], a payment system in which banks process payments directly among each other, currently available in Germany, France and Belgium, with plans to roll out to all of Europe in 2026. On the US side there's [FedNOW] by the federal reserve bank which aims to do the same, with a small number of banks involved. Check if your bank supports these and if not ask them to do so.
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[payment-alternatives]: https://tech.lgbt/@pq1r/114907824163916258
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[WERO]: https://wero-wallet.eu/
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