By
Nicholas Becher
Published 12 minutes ago
Nicholas Becher is a gaming journalist with an MFA in Creative Writing from FAU. With extensive experience playing video games, he covers all forms of gaming content at Screen Rant, from breaking news to the latest fan theories. Most-played games range from Clair Obscur to Civ to Elden Ring to Halo 2 and beyond.
Sign in to your ScreenRant account
Summary
Generate a summary of this story
follow
Follow
followed
Followed
Like
Like
Thread
Log in
Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents:
Try something different:
Show me the facts
Explain it like I’m 5
Give me a lighthearted recap
It isn't every day that a banned game on Steam garners so much interest from players, but the recently viral indie horror game HORSES has become a hot topic of debate after Steam failed to offer a proper explanation for its decision. Santa Ragione Game Studio, developers behind the banned game, asked for clarification multiple times, eventually deciding to move ahead without Steam approval.
As such, the banned horror game HORSES launches today for roughly $5 on GOG.com, one of the only outlets willing to publish the game at this point, with both Steam AND Epic now banning the game. Epic Games apparently sent a last-minute ban just hours before HORSES' launch, citing violations of their "Inappropriate Content and Hateful or Abusive Content policies."
Steam Banned HORSES, But It's Found A New Home
Epic Games Gave HORSES The Old 11th-Hour Rug Pull As Well
While Steam and Epic have both banned HORSES from their platforms, players can still see what all the fuss is about now on GOG. You can also purchase the game via itch.io, as well as Humble Bundle.
HORSES is a subversive horror game from a small indie studio, Santa Ragione, and it's pretty wild how much controversy has ended up surrounding what amounts to roughly 3 hours of gameplay. Steam banned the game at an early stage in its development, and failed to provide any options for gaining approval, such as editing specific scenes or gameplay so it wouldn't violate policies.
Over the course of its development, Steam remained silent, and the studio was forced to move ahead without approval. Unfortunately, Epic Games also decided to ban HORSES from their platform, but did so only a day before the game was set to launch. While they've already filed appeals to Epic, the last-minute ban is another huge blow to the small-time developers behind HORSES.
It's Available For Super Cheap
See For Yourself What's So Controversial About HORSES
HORSES is available for just $5 on GOG, which seems like chump change to see what all the excitement is about. I'd argue that both the Steam and Epic bans might end up doing HORSES a favor in the long run, as it's essentially acting like free advertising for a game that may have otherwise slipped completely under the radar.
All that said, HORSES is a mature game made for adult audiences, and it includes graphic depictions that might be offensive or inappropriate for certain audiences. Whether that substantiates a full-on ban from both Steam and Epic Games is up for debate, but at such a low price, HORSES seems worth a try.
Steam
Expand
Collapse
-
PC Games
We want to hear from you! Share your opinions in the thread below and remember to keep it respectful.
Be the first to post Images Attachment(s) Please respect our community guidelines. No links, inappropriate language, or spam.Your comment has not been saved
Send confirmation emailThis thread is open for discussion.
Be the first to post your thoughts.
- Terms
- Privacy
- Feedback
2 hours ago
Rick & Morty Teases Its End With a Deadly Mission That'll Change Everything
4 hours ago
Robert Irwin Shares What Mom Terri Really Thinks About Doing Dancing With The Stars
3 hours ago
6 Years Later, Channing Tatum & Jenna Dewan Settle Divorce Battle Over Magic Mike Earnings
5 hours ago
Anne Hathaway Is A Pop Star Haunted By Demons In The Mother Mary Trailer, A New A24 Horror Musical
Trending Now
Trump Stands By Slur Against Tim Walz Sparking A Republican Lawmaker To Call Him Out
Interview With The Vampire's Divisive New Spinoff Becomes Surprise Netflix Hit
Nicholas Hoult Reuniting With Creator Of Award-Winning Hulu Comedy For New Disney+ Series
