Valve has made the controversial decision to remove a mod for Mount and Blade: Warband at the request of the South Korean government, setting a precedent in the company’s content moderation policy. This mod, called Gwangju Running Man, presents a revisionist narrative about the Gwangju uprising of 1980, where human rights violations by the government were particularly brutal, resulting in the deaths of up to 2,300 people. The removal of the mod not only affects South Korea, but its distribution has been blocked globally, which is unusual in Valve’s history.
A mod that made the government look bad and its commitment to human rights
The Gwangju uprising is remembered as a key moment in South Korea’s struggle against authoritarianism. However, this mod offered a distorted approach that favored the dictator Chun Doo-hwan, justifying the violence exercised by the government during those days. This has raised concerns about possible censorship, as Valve’s intervention could open the door to future content removal requests from more repressive governments.
Valve’s decision comes in a context where the company generally maintains a lax content moderation policy, rarely removing games or mods unless they violate the law or manipulate the platform. This case is unusual, as it was not driven by a violation of its terms of service or by the content itself, but by the direct objection of the South Korean government.
This invites reflection on the role of platforms like Steam in the context of freedom of expression. The situation is similar to cases on social media platforms like Twitter, where there have been government pressures to censor content. Over time, it is likely that government efforts to regulate content on gaming platforms like Steam will intensify, both legitimately and maliciously.
