Steam's LGBTQ+ Tag Appears Blocked in China With 'Violates Local Laws' Error

Steam's LGBTQ+ tag is reportedly blocked for users in China, throwing an error message that cites local laws — though Valve hasn't confirmed anything officially. Reports first surfaced on Weibo around June 24, and were picked up on ResetEra by user Neha.

Anyone trying to browse the LGBTQ+ tag on a China-registered Steam account now hits this message: "The content on this page has been identified as inappropriate because it violates local laws and regulations, and therefore cannot be viewed from your current location." Developers on Weibo are already warning each other that reverse tag searches no longer surface their games in the Chinese region. Kotaku reached out to Valve for comment and got no response before publication.

None of this would be out of character for Valve. The company has a well-documented pattern of complying with regional restrictions — earlier this year, developer Ebi-hime revealed that Valve had reprimanded her after removing several of her yuri visual novels from Russia's Steam storefront. Back in 2019, horror game Devotion was pulled from China's Steam store after players flagged in-game art that appeared to compare Xi Jinping to Winnie the Pooh. China decriminalized homosexuality in 1997 and permits gender-affirming surgery, but LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have faced shutdowns and forced confessions over the past decade.

Until Valve issues a statement, the block remains unconfirmed at the company level — but user reports and the error message text point in one direction. Whether this is a Valve-initiated compliance move or a broader platform-level filter isn't yet clear.