Google bans Doki Doki Literature Club from their store due to "sensitive themes"

[Chrkeller]

curl-6 said:

Chrkeller said:

I dont recall there being sex in tlou expansion.  

And I haven't played this game but steam, google, reddit and copilot all say there is sexual comments and very heavily implied sexual activities.

Sex involving minors is a fair concern.  It just is.  Move the game from highschool to uni is a reasonable position.

I didn't say sex, I said sexuality. Sexuality is not limited to the physical act of intercourse, it encompasses everything from who we are attracted to romance. Ellie and Riley share a romantic interlude and kiss. This is an exploration of sexuality.

Steam, Playstation, Xbox, even the infamously conservative Nintendo have had no issue hosting this game for years. Even Google themselves approved it, and hosted it for months before taking it down recently. It has been reviewed and rated by all the relevant organizations in charge of making sure content is appropriate for public consumption. 

The game does not show minors engaging in sex. Also, many high schoolers are technically adults; when I was in Year 12, the large majority of my classmates were 18.

Sharing a kiss and a someone stealing a pen of a boy she likes and touching herself with it..  yeah, I don't think those are remotely the same thing.  

The adult nature of it doesn't bother me.  The game taking place in a high school, which is (factually) 75-90% minors is the problem.  At least here in the States, high school has a hand full of legal adults, the overwhelming majority are not adults.

I have daughters in high school, they are minors.  Same with my niece.  Highschool = kids (here in the States)  

Edit

This isn't censorship.  This is google making a business decision.  Censorship is government banning of material.  A company making business decisions is absolutely not censorship.  

Last edited by Chrkeller - on 15 April 2026