Itch.io adds a filter for games with gen AI disclosures

Itch.io

Game hosting site Itch.io announced that it is adding filters for AI-generated content. There is now a "No AI" option in the menu when browsing. For games, applying the filter today took the number of projects shown from more than 1.77 million to less than 425,000. The filter has also been added to its search feature and other spots where, in the company's own words, it was "critically lacking."

The platform has policies about use of generative AI on the books. Itch.io doesn't allow "uploading excessive amounts of automatically generated or AI-generated content," and said it will treat those actions as spam. It also asks creators to disclose use of generative AI when appropriate, but doesn't state whether there are penalties for not using the tag where it's merited. The rules haven't stopped AI slop from appearing (and disappearing) from the service. Itch.io is also a popular site for running game jams, and those can take widely differing stances toward AI use, from being outright prohibited to being the point.

Steam, a much larger gaming marketplace, also has rules governing disclosures for generative AI use, but there's not currently a way to filter them out in the store. Even if these platforms rely on self-reporting, it's still nice to have the option to avoid the slop when you want to.