Gaming

Horrifying rape and incest game finally taken down from Steam - but developers defend it

A screenshot from No Mercy

No Mercy is a horrifying game featuring rape and incest that has finally been taken down from Steam

Zerat Games

WARNING: The following article contains references of sexual assault, violence against women, incest and misogyny.

A horrifying game that allows players to engage in acts of rape and incest which does not have an official age rating has finally been taken down from Steam - but developers have reportedly defended it.

In March, Zerat Games released a game called No Mercy, a horrifyingly misogynistic title which encourages players to engage in illegal sexual activities and violence against women, and it was available to purchase on Steam.

Steam is not signed up to any age rating frameworks such as ESRB or PEGI so anyone can upload a game onto the site and sell it.

Even the screenshots and trailer on the Steam listing contained pornographic and disturbing content with very few barriers in the way of accessing it, including for kids.

The game was met with widespread backlash, including the UK's Technology Secretary Peter Kyle leading calls for it to be taken down, with a Change.org petition for the game to be delisted reaching more than 70,000 signatures.

Kotaku reports Valve, the company behind Steam, pulled the game from sale in the UK, Canada and Australia before Zerat Games eventually pulled it from Steam entirely.

But not before developers reportedly defended it.

According to Kotaku, a statement from Zerat Games on the Steam listing on April 10 said incest is "disgusting" but things such as that, rape and male domination are popular "kinks".

"I fully understand that for many people, such things may be disgusting but during sex, people should really do what they want, as long as they don't harm anyone," Zerat Games added. "If after reading [our statement] you still believe that such a game should not have been created, then we sincerely apologise to you.

"At the same time, we would like you to be a bit more open to human fetishes that don't harm anyone, even though they may seem disgusting to you. This is still just a game and although many people are trying to make it into something more, it remains and will continue to be a game."

indy100 contacted Valve for further comment.

Elsewhere, a report claims the Nintendo Switch 2 US price will soar due to a colossal tariff and The Last of Us Season 2 opening scene already deviates from the game in a major way.

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