Steam Accused of Censoring LGBTQ+ Themed Game in Russia

Valve and Steam are facing scrutiny after reportedly removing the indie title Flick Solitaire from its Russian storefront at the request of the country’s censorship board, Roskomnadzor. A Video Games Industry Memo (VGIM) report, published on Nov. 27, detailed that the game was taken out of Steam because its promotion of LGBTQ+ themed art did not align with Russia’s ban against “promoting non-traditional sexualities” law.

Flick Solitaire, developed by U.K.-based indie studio Flick Games, features card decks illustrated by London artists, Amee Wilson and Ollie T, and Swedish artist Karin Hammarsten, promoting Pride-themed and LGBTQ+-inclusive designs. The game first launched in Russia in 2020 on App Store and Google Play. According to VGIM, Flick Games has said that Russia became the second-largest market for the title, due to its popularity among players.

Rising Censorship Patterns in Russia

While the game has stayed on the App Store and Google Play for five years now, Roskomnadzor noticed its presence after its PC launch with Steam on Oct. 1, 2025. Shortly after the Steam release, on Oct. 28, 2025, the censorship agency sent three notices to Flick Games and all three of the publishers to remove Flick Solitaire from their storefronts.

Apple and Google did not comply with Roskomnadzor's notice; however, Steam removed the game, stating the studio violated rules by not complying with the laws of the countries it is available. Steam further emphasized, “[Flick Games] promised Valve under the Steam Distribution Agreement that your game complies with all applicable laws,” to justify the action. 

Flick Games’ founder Ian Masters stated, the game “was determined by Roskomnadzor to be in violation of Russian requirements for distribution,” without giving the developer any chance to contest the decision. He further emphasized that Steam should be transparent if the platform decides not to support “free speech of LGBTQ+ people,” emphasizing that other platforms kept the game. 

He also noted, the game was made available in more than 40 countries that criminalize LGBTQ+ representations, including Russia, without self-censoring any content, and even kept it available for the country following the demonetization in 2022 after the Russia-Ukraine war. However, the recent flagging has triggered fresh debate over platform accountability to support freedom of expression inclusively.

The Gray Area of Censorship

VGMI notes that this is not the first instance; according to PC Gamer's report, hundreds of titles have been quietly delisted from Steam’s Russian storefront in recent years for similar reasons, though none were publicly disclosed by Valve. Additionally, Valve did not make any comments regarding this matter when approached by VGMI. 

The removal of Flick Solitaire builds on a series of recent censorship attempts in 2025, under Russia’s expanded “gay propaganda” law, amended in 2022. It has previously issued such orders for popular Japanese content, such as Death Note, Tokyo Ghoul, and Inuyashiki, along with games and movies under similar frameworks. 

As for Steam, the platform has long been under scrutiny for its opaque content moderation strategy. Its 2018 policy to allow everything unless the publisher deems it to be “illegal, or straight-up trolling,” left caveats without explaining proper terms and conditions. While it removed Flick Solitaire for having queer-themed artworks, it hosted Zerat Games’ No Mercy, an NSFW title featuring graphic nudity, violence, and “unavoidable non-consensual sex.” The game later saw backlash from the U.K. government. 

Nonetheless, Steam’s decision to comply with Roskomnadzor’s request raises a broader question for the global games industry. Organizations, such as Out Making Games, raised concerns about the incident, stating it was “deeply disturbing.”