Update: Developer Bobby Ricci responded to my question over exactly what was censored in the new Steam version of House Party, stating the following over email:
"The only thing that was changed, was that a censor bar was added to the sex scenes. The censor bar was actually in the game already, but it was a player setting. Now, it is forced on during the few sex scenes in the game."
So there you have it. The sex scenes are still there, just layered over with those iconic black bars. The 'censor removal patch' just removes them.
Original story: Late last week House Party was removed from Steam amid complaints over ‘pornographic’ content. On sale for a month in Early Access, it depicted fully simulated sex scenes with uncanny physics-boobed women, enabling the player character to whip their dick out at will (and put it on a charcoal barbecue, for instance). But now House Party is back, albeit in an altered state. The changes are hinted at in a recent blog by the developers at Eek! Games:
“I’m happy to say that the entire story of the game is 100% in tact [sic], and there have been no changes made to the content of the game. The issue was specifically with the portrayal of sex acts.”
Whether that means the simulated sex is completely out or not, I’m not certain. I’ve reached out for clarification, and will update as necessary. The release of a "censor removal patch", also detailed in the blog, seems to imply they’re out or toned down somehow, but stating no changes were made to the content of the game confuses the message. I’m just hoping I can still put the penis on the barbecue. Either way, people can buy the game on Steam again and, as the drill has been for decades, make the eerie people nude by downloading a zipped folder from a sketchy hyperlink.
