4 days ago
The shocking games your KIDS are playing - as an urgent warning is issued to every parent
Australian parents are being warned that children have access to hundreds of online games that simulate and encourage horrifying scenarios including rape, incest and child sex abuse.
When searching the word 'rape' on popular gaming platform Steam, at least 232 results matched the search, campaign group Collective Shout revealed.
On the same day, a search for 'incest' turned up 149 results.
The game titles are the stuff of parents' nightmares, from 'Incest DEMO' and 'Incest Twins', to virtual reality 'Reincarnation in another world going to rape'.
The latter allowed players to explore a virtual 'town' raping all the women who are non–player characters (NPCs) – avatars who are not controlled by a player.
Another game allowed players to 'set up' hidden surveillance at a female neighbour's home to secretly record her sexual acts.
Graphic imagery, which has been seen by Daily Mail but is too disturbing to publish, included violent sexual torture of women and children, including incest-related abuse.
Kelly Humphries, who lives in central Queensland, is a survivor of familial child sexual abuse and has shared her horror at the games.
'There's not a lot that surprises me anymore but this was shocking,' she told Daily Mail Australia.
'I look at that research and I'm just so ashamed, angry and frustrated because I don't understand why this behaviour is acceptable for big companies.'
Ms Humphries has worked in law enforcement and is an activist raising awareness about abuse, including as an ambassador for Collective Shout.
'To see this violence depicted in such a horrific, brazen and humiliating way pushes survivors back into themselves,' she said.
'It completely undermines their experiences by gamifying and almost making fun of their true experience.'
Ms Humphries said the games will take a psychological toll on players, particularly on young people who interact online more often than older generations.
'(The games) are normalising this behaviour,' she said.
'(Young people) are either going to act out that behaviour or they're going to be a victim and suffer silently.'
This was echoed by University of New South Wales' Professor Michael Salter, who said the games are 'part of subcultures online that normalise sexual abuse'.
Professor Salter, who is also director of the East Asia and Pacific branch of Childlight, said the content will reinforce the acceptability of violence for children or people with problematic behaviour if they play the games.
He said that, while the games breach national laws, platforms like Steam and operate internationally and as such, do not follow Australian standards.
Both Ms Humphries and Professor Salter signed an open letter to companies including PayPal, Mastercard, Visa, and Paysafe Limited, to request they cease processing payments for gaming platforms which host rape, incest and child sexual abuse–themed games.
Professor Salter said there are no rules in international law to manage the issue so 'payment services effectively become a de facto regulator'.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Valve Corporation, which operates Steam, and the platform which is also named in the open letter, regarding the claims.
Valve is understood to have changed its rules earlier this week, adding a clause prohibiting content that broke rules set out by payment processors including 'adult content'.
There were initially 14 clauses which banned content including hate speech, malware, sexual content of real people or exploitation of children, Automaton Media reported.
But a new 15th clause has outlawed 'content that may violate the rules and standards set forth by Steam's payment processors and related card networks and banks, or internet network providers. In particular, certain kinds of adult-only content.'
The database Steam DB also noted on Tuesday a 'large number of games have been removed from the platform in the past 16 hours'.
'Judging from the list, it appears "sex simulator" type games with keywords such as "incest" and "slavery" make up the majority,' it said.
Daily Mail Australia has also contacted the payment services named in the open letter for comment.
Spokespeople for PayPal and Mastercard both emphasised their companies have a 'zero tolerance' policy for illegal activity on their networks.
Mastercard and the provider Paysafe have said they are investigating concerns that have been raised. Visa reponded with directions to a page on its website about protecting those who use its network.
Professor Salter has also raised concerns about discoveries by his team which noticed people breaching others' boundaries on new technology platforms.
'Gaming services often forge ahead with designs without building in safety,' he said.
'(On virtual reality platforms), we see kids adopt avatars that are highly sexualised adult avatars and then interact with actual adults.'
He said the issue comes down to regulation and the need for clear, enforceable content rules to protect children, adding that parents can take action at home too.
'It's important to have discussions with kids about the gaming services they are on and the content they are seeing,' he said.
'It's not as easy as monitoring games so parents should set clear rules about types of games they are permitted to play and the types they are not allowed to play.'
Another suggestion was that parents explain to children that their behaviour online matters and speaks to their character.
'There is a pervasive view that online behaviour is not real, that it is not serious,' he said.
'So it licenses a range of behaviours that are antisocial and transgressive.'
