Valve has denied reports its pulled a controversial mod from Steam around the world at the request of the South Korean government, saying the mod was only blocked in South Korea and only because it broke local laws. The mod’s author is said to be behind its global removal.
Over the weekend, Automaton (citing several South Korean sources including the Yonhap News Agency and ThisIsGame) reported Valve had agreed to a request by South Korea’s Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC) to remove a mod for strategy RPG Mount & Blade: Warband not just locally but overseas as well.
The mod, titled Gwangju Running Man, reportedly depicted the events of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising – in which student-led pro-democracy protests were violently suppressed by the South Korean military, resulting in significant civilian casualties – in a way that “distorted historical facts”. It’s said the mod (which featured military dictator Chun Doo Hwan as its cover), depicted protesters as “armed and violent criminals”, framing the military’s response as “justified”.
As reports of Valve’s response began circulating, some expressed concern that the company was now seemingly willing to remove content worldwide at the request of a country’s government. Valve, though, has now provided clarification on the events leading to the Mount & Blade mod’s removal, saying access was restricted in March – but only in South Korea – after the company was informed it violated South Korean laws. Valve added the mod was then deleted from Steam in June by its original uploader, causing its worldwide disappearance.
Valve has, of course, been heavily criticised for its lack of adequate content moderation in the past, facing condemnation for allowing the likes of school shooting game Active Shooter, Rape Day, and, more recently, non-consensual sex game No Mercy onto its store.
In 2018, following the controversy caused by Active Shooter, Valve announced it had decided to “allow everything” onto Steam, provided it wasn’t illegal, “or straight up trolling”. While Valve has also been known to quietly remove titles when faced with significant negative public attention, it seems Gwangju Running Man specifically fell foul of its legality rules.