Horror visual novel This Game Is Not Real rejected by Steam

The Japanese horror visual novel This Game Is Not Real, developed and published by indie team Viv, has recently run into an unexpected setback. The game was originally planned to launch on Steam in May 2026 and had already gathered 24,000 wishlists on the platform since August 2025. However, the development team has announced that the game will no longer be coming to Steam, after Valve rejected the request on the grounds that it did not meet the platform’s criteria.

Changes to the publishing platform

On May 13, 2026, Viv developer Bibu announced on social media that the game is changing its publishing platform. In the statement, they said: “We had planned to launch on Steam, but because it does not meet the distribution criteria, we will change platforms and release it on DLsite/BOOTH.”

Development history

The original release plan for This Game Is Not Real suggested the game would attract a community of enthusiastic players, as reflected by its high wishlist count. Even so, Bibu said in the announcement that the team did not name any specific content-related issues behind the rejection.

Reasons behind the rejection

Bibu implied that the rejected status may have had something to do with the game’s “too cute” art style, something that has previously been cited as a concern in relation to Steam’s content guidelines. However, the game’s new product page on DLsite includes a warning section for “radical expressions,” highlighting topics such as drug use, self-harm, and murder. In recent years, Steam has tightened its guidelines around adult content and themes, leading to a number of games being denied or removed from the platform.

Future availability

The developers of This Game Is Not Real say they will share more details soon about the new release date and further plans for the DLsite/BOOTH launch. Still, the unexpected platform change could affect the game’s accessibility for a wider audience.