The “Incest Game” Trend
An incest game is a type of “adult” video game that involves illegal family relationships. While the majority of these games seem to be relegated to underground and non-mainstream subcultures, this genre has started to see surprising visibility on certain gaming platforms and related forums. These games also involve narrative-driven content, branching storylines and animated scenes where the game developer also managed to see their various ethical lines cross and leave the station.
Why this Genre Exists at All
The developers of incest games typically insist that their games are purely fantasy, not real actions, and assume the players are capable of making the distinction. Others characterize an incest game‘s shame and illegal nature as shock genre, where families share elements with horror and crime-based thrillers. The audience tends to be niche within a larger gaming culture, which may like many small groups to creates a demand for better stories, and better production quality options.
Incest Games, Legal Loopholes, and Content Warnings
Most incest games seem to skirt the law by either making all character’s step-relatives or by using phrasing like, all characters are over 18 years of age. While some of these strategies are clever, there is still a ban against these kinds of content in many venues. Some adult gaming sites will host these games freely, or they might have a regional recognition, where the game is unplayable in certain places. The game’s developers will often remain anonymous, due to the risk of legal and social implications.
Patreon and Subscription Services in the World of Adult Games
A lot of these games have been crowdfunded via places like Patreon and Subscribe Star, allowing fans to give directly each month, and obtain content updates. Patreon and subscription environments allow creators to connect with the player base, and ultimately eliminate the traditional “middle-man” of distributing to other publishers.
The Public Reaction
While a lot of people consider incest games to be wrong, evil, or dangerous, others will defend them by claiming their right to freedom of expression. There are consumption forums like Reddit, or 4Chan, that frequently have long threads of debate on whether incest games should even exist, with critics of incest games arguing that they normalize a kind of sick, unhealthy behavior for gamers-a particularly dangerous situation for younger players.
Ethical and Psychological Concerns
Psychologists and ethics-based people have even weighed in to suggest that even fictions can alter perception. While there is minimal data on direct causal links, these aren’t unfounded concerns. Certain nations have begun to regulate the sexual content of digital goods with more scrutiny. But the incest game genre persists as a valid form of gaming, with new entries always being released, and finding enough advocates to support cult-like communities.
Incest Game Culture
While a lot of opponents speak out against it and some sites have even banned it, the incest game genre is not going away. In fact, it has created its own space online with dedicated fandom, game modifying, and cosplay on the social media sites. Some see it as a form of creative expression, while others find it offensive.
FAQs
Q1. Are incest games illegal to play?
Ans: Not exactly. Many countries allow fiction, but some countries have banned incest media outright.
Q2. Where are incest games commonly distributed?
Ans: Incest games are often found on niche adult-oriented gaming websites, or just direct downloads from developer distribution platforms like Patreon or itch.io.
Q3. Do the games have any mental health risks?
Ans: There is not a lot of evidence, but some researchers express concern that, over time, gamers are likely to become desensitized, and even more so, the social norms will become blurred for some players.
Q4. Are incest games banned on Steam?
Ans: Yes. Steam bans sexual content related to family members and also anything that could be interpreted as non-consensual, even if the game is fiction.
