Japanese developer Hyogo Onimushi has spoken out after Steam reportedly rejected a demo for his all-ages visual novel Yellow Flame. The controversy drew attention after he claimed a completely black shower scene was flagged as sexual content, leading to the rejection of the game’s demo despite the title being aimed at a general audience.
Since then, the developer has posted a series of tweets expressing frustration with what he describes as inconsistent and increasingly opaque content review standards on Steam. Rather than focusing solely on his own game, he argues that the issue could affect a broader range of visual novels and character designs in the future.
The developer also pointed to other recent cases involving visual novels and games featuring petite adult characters, questioning whether reviewers are applying standards consistently. Several of his posts gained significant traction online, with some surpassing hundreds of thousands of views.
The scene in question:
“(´・ω・`) Since I’m already talking about it, maybe I should upload the scene that got rejected by Steam… Then again, if Steam rejected it, maybe X would get angry at me for posting it too. (joking)”
Some of the developer’s tweets:
“(´・ω・`) Steam’s review standards for sensitive content have become seriously impossible to understand lately. Is it just us? It’s an all-ages visual novel, yet during review we keep getting hit with moments where we go, ‘Huh!? That’s not allowed?’
I understand that Steam has its own standards, and I understand moderation is necessary. But the line between what is and isn’t OK keeps shifting so much that nobody can read it anymore. The biggest problem is that decisions seem to vary depending on the reviewer.
In the case of CHAOS;HEAD NOAH, it was initially rejected and then later approved after a major online backlash. Valve itself acknowledged that its original review process had changed.
With the horror game Aftermath 2: Red Pine Lake, Steam reportedly rejected an image because it was said to be sexually suggestive simply due to focusing on a female character’s back. Later, a different reviewer approved it normally.
If something gets approved after a controversy or when a reviewer changes, can we really call that a unified standard? Does Valve management actually know what’s happening on the ground? I understand that pressure from payment processors and credit card companies may be making things stricter. But that pressure is supposed to be aimed at adult content. It’s hard to accept that creators making non-provocative all-ages games are getting caught in the blast radius.
Just to be clear, I’m not trying to release explicit content. Our game is an all-ages visual novel. I just want to tell a story. If this situation continues, I think the range of expression possible on Steam will continue to shrink. I hope this issue gets discussed more broadly. I’d like to hear from other developers too. Doesn’t Steam’s review process feel strange lately?”
“(´・ω・`) Come to think of it, there are other people running into the same thing recently… An all-ages visual novel was reportedly rejected for adult content that didn’t even exist. What exactly has happened to Steam’s review process lately?”
“(´・ω・`) Is it true…? Steam’s review process is getting pretty bad… I wonder if Gabe even knows the current state of things?”
“To be honest, I was surprised when I heard this, but apparently even romance games set in schools are having trouble getting through Steam review recently. Even all-ages games. That’s a pretty serious situation.”
“(´・ω・`) The only thing saving me is that I was born in Japan, a country where I’m free to create what I want. Thank you, sincerely… Wait, wasn’t America supposed to be the country of freedom? Or am I imagining that?”
“(´・ω・`) I’ve wondered for a long time why some overseas game companies take beautiful models and deliberately make their 3D characters look older. After this incident, I kind of went, ‘Ah… I see.'”
Responding to another user asking whether a completely black image had really been rejected, Onimushi explained:
“Yeah. The scene is just a catgirl named Nene who fell into a moat borrowing a shower from Tanji’s apartment. The content is basically her thinking, ‘What should I do now…?’ There’s no erotic content at all. Yet it was treated as ‘too sexual, review failed.’ At this point I’m wondering if even a black screen isn’t safe.”
Responding to discussion about Bunny Garden and concerns over character designs:
“(´・ω・`) Yeah, that discussion surprised me too. It already feels like there’s pressure against certain kinds of character expression, and I have a feeling that trend is only going to accelerate.”
On concerns regarding petite adult characters:
“This came up in the Bunny Garden discussion too, but right now people are saying that even adult characters with small breasts could get banned, which means those character types can’t be used. Is that really where things are heading? Before long, are we going to reach a point where underage-looking characters can’t appear at all, regardless of context?”
Comparing the current situation to earlier years on Steam:
“Steam’s reviews used to be much more relaxed. Adult games are still being sold there today. Yet now all-ages games are being subjected to extremely strict reviews and can’t be released. Honestly, I don’t understand it. I keep finding myself thinking, ‘That was allowed, but our game wasn’t?'”
He also called for wider discussion of the issue:
“Unless this becomes a major controversy, I think Steam will continue tightening restrictions on expression. I hope these concerns reach the people involved.”
Finally, he directly appealed to Elon Musk:
“@elonmusk Hi Elon. Steam has become way too restrictive and opaque for indie devs. Even all-ages games can be rejected over harmless themes. X could build the ultimate alternative: posts, playable demos, wishlists, purchases, streaming, and dev spaces in one ecosystem. It could revolutionize game distribution and give indies a real alternative.”
You can thank the activist troons at Steam for this, they need to all be summarily fired before Gaben kicks the bucket or the platform is doomed.
Oh well go ahead and fire them then. Lil weirdo.
It was the music. The music was too sexually suggestive. Just hearing it makes me want to run out into the street and start graping every woman I see.
Nah, for me it was all those sexy black pixels, they drove me crazy!
Apparently there’s also an uncensored version of the scene too somewhere in the comments. Even that post shows something along the lines of Evie from Blood Rain’s bodytype