Spanking Exorcist, A Game About Spanking Ghosts, Is “Too Naughty” For Steam

A Game About Spanking Ghosts Has Been Delayed Because It’s “Too Naughty” For Steam Published Jul 24, 2026, 4:30 AM EDT Sam Woods is TheGamer’s Senior Reporter. He’s been in games journalism since 2020 and has undertaken a variety of roles in that time. These have included roles such as SEO Editor, Managing Editor at DualShockers, and Global Head of Gaming, and he's also been seen on the BBC. He was promoted to the Senior Reporter position in 2025 following a series of high-quality reports and exclusives for TheGamer. Since 2020, Sam has written over 2,500 articles and specializes in telling the stories of the people behind the games. He’s interviewed the biggest game directors, some of the industry’s top talents, told the stories of how indie games came to be, and spoken to players about what really makes them tick. He’s also interviewed some of the world’s biggest musical artists to find out how the medium has inspired their work, and TV and Film actors about their roles in video game adaptations. He even hosted a PAX panel in 2021 and made a documentary in 2024 surrounding the creation of a Disney game. Alongside this, Sam focuses on breaking news. He got the scoop on Perfect Dark’s cancellation, got context around some AI drama, and revealed how Lady Dimitrescu’s actress would love to step back into the character’s giant shoes. These articles have been picked up by the biggest gaming sites, including IGN, GameSpot, and PC Gamer. He also loves to dive into the numbers behind the games. Sam’s journey in games journalism has taken him all over the world. He’s covered Gamescom in Germany, Summer Game Fest in Los Angeles, and Tokyo Game Show in Japan, each on more than one occasion. He’s been learning Japanese since 2024 with the intention of identifying and translating Japanese-language news and bringing it to English-language audiences first, something he’s done countless times. Sam’s first review was 2020’s Battletoads reboot, and he’s since reviewed games in The Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, and Pokemon franchises. Sign in to your TheGamer account Steam censorship has been a hot topic in video games for the last 12 months. As activist group Collective Shout called on payment processors to stop the purchase of games it deemed "too adult" in nature, platforms like Steam, Itch, and Kickstarter began to bow, removing certain titles and the ability to buy or back them. While some of the bans were questionable, there are some games that you can understand facing a little bit of censorship. One of these games is indie Spanking Exorcist, a game where you help spirits pass to the other side by helping with their unfulfilled desire to “be spanked as hard as possible.” That game was scheduled for release in the near future, but its solo developer has delayed it indefinitely after a conversation with Steam deemed it "too naughty." A Game About Spanking Ghosts Has Been Delayed Indefinitely, Sorry Gooners Spanking Exorcist is described as a game where you "Explore a somewhat alluring apartment complex, avoiding evil spirits while exorcising the ghosts of housewives." This is done by spanking them... It takes place in the Peach Butt Housing Complex, which players must explore to resolve the spirits' "lingering regrets." It comes with a mature content warning on Steam for "sexy costumes, voice acting, and depictions of spanking on the buttocks." But if you're not a fan of horror, don't worry, as there are "no chase elements." The game was set to release today, but much like Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game, it was delayed just hours before launch. "We are deeply sorry, but we have decided to postpone the release of Spanking Exorcist, which was scheduled for July 24th (Fri)," said its creator on Twitter. "Since the end of last month, we have been working on verifications regarding the build review process. [Steam said] 'This part, isn't it kind of naughty?' "We've been going back and forth with exchanges like that to address the issues, but since the review hasn't been completed yet, it's become difficult to meet the original release date. The new release date is still TBD, but we are working diligently to get it into everyone's hands as soon as possible. We sincerely apologize to everyone who was looking forward to it. We would greatly appreciate it if you could wait just a little longer." While clearly a niche title, Spanking Exorcist's creator references "everyone who was looking forward to it," and there were a number of them. A few days ago, on July 19, it was revealed that over 7,000 people had wishlisted the game. Justice for Spanking Exorcists.