Valve has taken down a Steam Workshop mod after a formal request from the South Korean government, following concerns over “historical distortion” related to the country’s former military dictatorship.
The mod, titled Gwangju Running Man, is a total conversion for the game Mount & Blade: Warband, depicting the 1980 Gwangju Uprising – a pro-democracy student-led protest violently crushed by the military regime under South Korean President and former General Chun Doo-hwan.
According to a translated report from Automaton, the mod portrayed pro-democracy protesters as violent rioters and framed the military response as justified, effectively glorifying the slayings of protestors and rewriting this bloody chapter of South Korean history.
In response to the mod, South Korea’s Game Rating and Administration Committee (GRAC) initially blocked access within the country. However, GRAC later contacted Valve directly to request a global takedown, arguing that the content violated the country’s laws against historical revisionism and could cause public harm.
Valve removes mod following South Korean gov request
Valve complied with the South Korean government’s request and removed the mod from Steam globally around June 12, 2025. According to PC Gamer, this represents one of the very first confirmed cases where Valve has taken down user-created content worldwide at the direct request of a foreign government on political grounds, rather than due to legal or policy violations.
While Valve has previously removed controversial titles like Active Shooter, a game that let players take the role of a school shooter, the decision was driven by internal moderation and public backlash. Valve has also banned developers for misconduct or abusing Steam’s systems, but these actions were not tied to governmental intervention.
For context, the Gwangju Uprising remains a deeply significant event in South Korean history and is widely regarded as a turning point in the nation’s push toward democracy.
The violent suppression of civilians during the uprising led to the deaths of hundreds, with some estimates placing the toll at over 2,000. Chun Doo-hwan, the general who seized power through a military coup, was later convicted for his role in the crackdown, though his legacy continues to provoke national debate.
Valve has not issued a public statement on the matter at the time of writing.
Ukrainian drone strike hits major oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, HUR source claims