In an extensive three-hour interview with Denfaminicogamer, Naoya Shimokawa, president of Aquaplus, and Shinji Orito, co-founder of Key, shared their thoughts on the struggles Japanese game developers face in the global market.
The two industry vets called out the growing pressure from major platforms like Valve’s Steam, which seems to have an allergy to bishoujo aesthetics and moe culture. While they’re not thrilled about the restrictions, they admitted that Steam’s massive audience makes it impossible to ignore, like a necessary evil that bankrolls success while simultaneously stifling creative freedom and limiting what consumers can actually access.
When questioned about Steam’s marketplace policies, Orito was candid in his response. “The screening process is strict,” he remarked with a knowing smile, eliciting laughter from those present. “I’ve heard that the approval criteria vary depending on the reviewer in charge, making the process quite unpredictable.”
Shimokawa agreed, pointing out that Japanese illustrations of young-looking girls frequently clash with Western perspectives. “I definitely notice a difference in standards between Japan and the rest of the world,” he said, recalling an odd experience with White Album 2. The game’s dance scenes, which included jiggling 3D character breasts, were singled out for revision.
They conformed with the revisionist requests, after completely removing the skeletal framework to stop any breast jiggle movement, reviewers still insisted that “it’s still shaking,” a claim Shimokawa had to disprove by explaining that such movement was technically impossible, further illustrating that it’s neigh impossible to appeal to such demands as they’ll never be satisfied.
This incident reflects a larger issue: Steam’s moderation isn’t about enforcing clear-cut policies but often seems to depend on the personal biases of individual employees. While Valve famously insists it isn’t the “content police,” history tells a different story, Japanese games, whether erotic or not, frequently face rejection, even after making requested changes, while similar content from American or Chinese developers often passes through with little pushback.
This anecdote underscores a broader grievance: Steam’s moderation is less about enforcing specific policies but more rather operates about the whims of individual employees. While Valve famously claims it isn’t the “content police,” history tells otherwise as Japanese games, eroge or not face hypocritical rejection with alarming frequency, even after being censored, while erotic content from American or Chinese developers often sails through with minimal scrutiny.
Despite these frustrations, both developers acknowledge that Steam is impossible to ignore. “With the Japanese market shrinking, Steam’s massive global player base is crucial,” Shimokawa explained. He pointed out that Japan’s once-strong visual novel market is in decline, forcing companies like Aquaplus and Key to sanitize themselves for international sales.
However, this comes with added scrutiny from strict content regulations, especially as financial giants like VISA and Mastercard refuse to process payments for Japanese storefronts and retailers that sell legal doujinshi and other similar content they disapprove of.
Steam remains the face of PC gaming with unmatched visibility, but that exposure comes at a heavy cultural cost.
This cultural shift is especially apparent in the remakes and re-releases of beloved classics. Aquaplus’s ToHeart, the original debuted in 1997, is set for a revival on June 26, 2025, featuring a new divisive 3D art style and an emphasis on “simulated love experiences.”
Shimokawa explained that the goal is to bring the nostalgic charm of youth to a modern audience, many of whom might find the original’s 4:3 aspect ratio outdated.
That said, there’s a catch, its signature 18+ content has been stripped away. The decision seems driven by a desire to appeal to younger audiences and, more importantly, to stay in line with the content policies of major global platforms like Steam and Nintendo.
Fans can likely expect other suggestive CG scenes, epilogues and routes featuring the game’s heroines in revealing outfits or provocative poses to be altered or removed as well.
Key’s Kanon, a beloved emotional classic, went through even harsher censorship in its recent HD re-release. All adult content was stripped away, and further cuts were made outside of Japan.
Bath scenes were removed, dialogue was adjusted to avoid anything that might be considered “crude” or “offensive,” and even a simple kissing scene, a heartfelt moment in its story was cut from the Western version. These changes were made to align with Nintendo of America and Nintendo of Europe’s increasingly strict policies, which have already prevented several titles from being released on the Switch outside Japan.
And yet, none of this censorship bullshit even guarantees a game will make it through. Steam still slaps down games like Tokyo Clanpool and The Key to Home, even when they censor themselves or contain absolutely nothing explicit. Why? Because they’re “too Japanese,” and moe culture may as well be considered a crime.
Shimokawa and Orito are being forced to “adapt” or more accurately, conform to the increasingly biased standards that target Japanese games. “From the planning stage onwards, we have begun to consider multilingualization,” Orito explained, highlighting a move toward broader global accessibility. He also noted that, to survive, games must now be designed as “long-lasting works,” bolstered by anime adaptations, merchandise, and live events to counter the financial risks of being rejected by major platforms.
This shift isn’t about innovation but profiteering and or survival. Western restrictions are tightening around Japanese creativity, leaving developers with two options: comply with these standards or retain their creative freedom by being forced to gatekeep themselves on niche platforms like DLsite.
While DLsite and similar sites serve dedicated Japanese audiences, they obviously lack Steam’s global reach, with Valve’s platform recording over 132 million active accounts on a monthly basis, needless to say that a game releasing on Steam is an essential factor for smaller developers seeking visibility and sustainable sales across global regions.
Shimokawa remains defiant in principle, even if reality demands compromise. When discussing the ToHeart remake, he made it clear that the core emotion “the bittersweetness of youth” was more important than following trends like making protagonists more mild-mannered. “If we made them milder, it wouldn’t be ToHeart,” he argued, drawing inspiration from Steven Spielberg’s regret over editing E.T.
But despite his convictions, Steam’s ever-tightening restrictions make creative freedom harder to maintain. Even censored games can still be rejected if they end up in the hands of a biased reviewer, leaving studios like Aquaplus and Key caught between staying true to their vision and securing global sales.
To make matters worse, Nintendo of America has begun systematically blocking Japanese titles from the Switch simply for containing suggestive imagery, whether it’s a bath scene, implying nudity or even a simple kiss.
The struggle against censorship isn’t just a Steam issue. Sony has been enforcing stricter content policies ever since they moved Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) from Japan to the U.S., pushing an agenda that forces Japanese developers to comply whether their games are intended for the domestic market or not.
This shift ultimately killed the Senran Kagura franchise and took Marvelous down with it.
For a while, Nintendo seemed like the last major console company willing to allow fanservice, but now that too is changing. The rejection of Neptunia: Riders vs. Dogoos DLC and the cancellation of Hyperdimension Neptunia Rebirth Trilogy for the Switch signal that Nintendo’s foreign branches are going rogue, tarnishing the reputation Nintendo of Japan built over the years.
And beyond censorship, payment processors like Visa are blocking payments to eroge developers and Japanese banks refusing to process Steam payouts to those who’ve managed to get approved are making survival even harder for Japan’s creative industry.
All of these factors point to a deliberate effort to stifle Japan’s creative expression, forcing developers to either tone down their work or risk fading into domestic obscurity. Even Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii couldn’t hide his frustration with Square Enix’s politically motivated censorship and gender-neutral changes in the Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake.
Horii didn’t mince words, calling the changes unnatural and completely unnecessary. Square Enix isn’t the only Japanese publisher pushing “global ethical values” over creative freedom, but the approach isn’t working. Their latest titles, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and Final Fantasy XVI, have struggled commercially, proving that such changes driven by Western influence isn’t resonating with audiences.
The backlash isn’t limited to RPG fans, visual novel enthusiasts worldwide are equally frustrated. The thought of beloved classics being remade or re-released with censored content, butchered localization and removed adult scenes has left many feeling alienated.
Shimokawa and Orito, veterans of the bishoujo golden era, see Steam as a “welcome presence” for its opportunities, but their amusement over its inconsistencies hints at a deeper unease. Japan’s visual novel tradition, a vibrant mix of romance, emotion, and unfiltered creativity is now being reshaped by hypocritical gatekeepers who turn a blind eye to Western erotica while cracking down on bishoujo games.
With ToHeart, Kanon and countless other re-released Visual Novels stripping away their adult content in the name of global appeal, one has to wonder: can Japan’s developers hold onto their artistic identity, or will the pressure to sanitize and the threat of exclusion from mainstream platforms ultimately compromise their creativity?
The steady wave of censorship affecting both classic and new releases raises concerns about the future of Japan’s media industries. As major studios like Aquaplus and Key adjust their works to cater to global markets, there’s no denying that that Japanese games are being increasingly shaped by outside cultural standards.
Independent developers who refuse to conform may find themselves more isolated, with platforms like DLsite becoming the last refuge for creators who refuse to compromise their vision. If this trend continues, Japan’s visual novel industry will be left with a choice: conform to global expectations or risk playing reviewer roulette and be pushed away from mainstream visibility.
And with major studios already folding under global pressure, the loss of Japan’s unique gaming culture seems all too likely in the coming years.
