According to a report by The Verge, the controversial horror game Horses, developed by Santa Ragione, was released in early December 2025. In an interview, Santa Ragione’s co-founder, Pietro Righi Riva, spoke candidly about the troubled path to release and expressed deep concerns about the game industry’s future.

Even before launch, Horses had already attracted widespread media scrutiny. The developer revealed that in 2023, the standard digital store Steam rejected the game — and did so without giving any concrete feedback on what needed to be changed. All subsequent appeals were denied.

More dramatically, just one day before its planned release, another major PC storefront — Epic Games Store (EGS) — also rejected the game’s submission, again offering only vague justifications.

Because the game was excluded from both major platforms, Horses ended up being released only on smaller storefronts, including itch.io, GOG.com, and the Humble Store (though it was briefly removed from the latter before being re-listed).

Riva admitted that it was precisely because of Steam’s rejection that the studio struggled to find a publisher — they had to borrow roughly US$100,000 (around ¥710,000) to complete development. He said: “I’m breathing a little easier, because with the attention we’ve gotten, maybe I’ll be able to pay back most of the money we borrowed … but we are still not fully out of the woods.”

He also acknowledged that it was the “ban plus subsequent media and public attention” that ultimately made the game’s release possible: “If it weren’t for these bans, there’s absolutely no way we’d get the same level of attention.”

Despite all the publicity, Riva cautioned that sales on alternative storefronts still can’t compare to the reach Steam would have provided: “Even with all the press, all the coverage, all the commentary, none of it can match the audience scale we’d reach on Steam.”

Given Steam’s dominant role in the PC gaming market and its support for independent games, Riva expressed his deep concern for the future of indie development — especially for creators who want to tackle challenging or controversial themes. He warned that this may push developers into self-censorship and lead to “safer,” less ambitious games — including possibly himself.

The above content is compiled by ModeZone, a fashion and entertainment magazine.