Hazelnut Latte
Itch did an Oopsy, Now What?
Hello everyone! For those who don't know, Itch.io, the website on which I started Hazelnut Latte, has decided to delist all adult games from their website. They are manually reviewing every game, and some games, such as Max the Elf, are being taken down.
So what does this mean for our future on Itch?
We honestly don't know! But here is what we plan to do.
If we get removed
Might not be much recourse here, but we will try to fight Itch to keep our account alive. Upon reviewing their rules, we don't appear to violate anything. But if they don't want us, we can't stop them.
If we are allowed to stay
This is way more likely. The games I am seeing getting removed have Gen AI, non-con lewd combat, or have characters that look way too young. Hazelnut Latte doesn't fit those categories, so I am confident it will stay, but who knows?
If we stay, we want to make some changes at some point to future-proof the game.
When the Unity demo is released, it will be "SFW," meaning that nothing lewd will occur in the game. We will sell an NSFW Patch for the demo on Patreon; you can install it on the demo for a pretty low price.
Since this crackdown has been affecting Steam, we also want to take similar action. When the game is eventually released on Steam, it will be SFW with an NSFW DLC.
This helps us because if they ever decide they don't like the lewd content, the DLC will be the target, not the game. Then we'd sell the NSFW patch on Patreon with install instructions. (Hoping they don't just nuke the whole page.)
This is also beneficial because people will be able to stream the game without fear of being taken down, as the SFW version will have no lewd content. And streamers do help sales.
Wrap Up
Does this suck? Yes, we make/play adult games, and we are always in the political crosshairs. We are constantly looked down on and made easy targets. It's annoying, since games with gore and stuff are completely fine, but falling in love? Ban it!
But no matter what, I will be here, and I will continue to make games.
Life, uh, finds a way.
Stay safe out there as we continue to navigate these troubling times, and don't forget to Stay Rad!
Comments
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they killed my boy max...
The immediate backlash to Collective Shout is hilarious.
So then the game will be free but the NSFW patch will be payed?
The demo. I am never going to release the full game for free, SFW or NSFW.
https://chng.it/wgFQ5zyb7B
This is a petition to tell Card companies and other presure groups to stop this censorship movement
Each day that passes by, we're getting closer and closer to shimoneta's world...
If this was really just set in motion by that one fucked up game then I hope the developer hides cuz he caused so much shit too happen and messed with a lot of people's way to make money and content on this site.
Also, does this mean you won't release a full NSFW game version on itch then?
Not after the shit Itch just pulled, no.
Edit: Yeah, it really isn't the devs fault. Did he make a fucked up game? Sure, but he's not the one who created Collective Shout who want to be the moral police.
Anger should be directed at them.
Ah, Ok thanks for the info and damn well I guess I'll wait till the game is fully released and buy it on wherever your selling it but not steam.
How is this the developer's fault? I have been in this ecosystem for 3 years now and seen countless games like that. This was just the most up front about it, and Collective Shout was looking for a Trojan horse, and they found it. Hell, they even tried going after Detroit: Become Human because a woman was hit once in the game, and that was part of the player's choice.
Ah, I see good to get this type of info not really someone who goes and takes deep dives to the internet to search up drama or stuff that goes on
https://action.aclu.org/petition/mastercard-sex-work-work-end-your-unjust-policy
Corrupted Kingdom posted this
Hey, just posting to show another user supporting you!
Personally, I believe your game is in the clear (for now, as history repeats for the best and the worse), and your plan for the future seems the best strategy, so I'm really really hoping for one day to buy your game (full price, too, I'm not waiting for a sale discount!) on Steam (already on my wishlist!).
Best of luck to you!
Im really sad this is happening. Im not really into the things they list wishing to get rid off, but some things I happen to be into also includes stuff like dubious consent sometimes.
How are we supposed to hope Patreon is not going to be next, considering Visa and Mastercard are being used as the mean attack vector here?
We gotta hope I guess
That's what Superman would want
I hear ya. For now, this is a complete mess though. NSFW stuff from this website is one way I like to escape the challenge of living with autism for a few hours once in a while. Im gutted.
Its Hazelover... Kinda D:
Not at all. Itch is really a signpost for our Patreon, where we have our new builds.
Still sucks to lose it xD
Speaking of which, assuming there will sill be a Patreon in a few weeks, what is the optimal moment to join? I am following the Patreon for a bit but haven't been sure about the release schedule. When does what drop for what tier?
I would say the optimal time is now.
The more people who support the game contribute to the 6 people we have on staff who need to be paid a living wage. If we can't pay our people, there is no game. We have loads of BTS and updates, plus the monthly pinup. We're an indie adult game; we have no big investors, just players who want to see good games get made.
godspeed, my friend, and may the Force be with you o7