After Platform Rejections, Horses Finds Buyers but No Clear Future

Horses sells 18,000 copies despite being shut out of two of the largest PC storefronts. The horror game, developed by Italian indie studio Santa Ragione, launched earlier this month after a long and uneven path to release. Sales were enough to cover loans and royalty obligations accumulated during development, but not enough to finance production of a new game. The studio says future work remains uncertain, with its team now scattered across other projects.

The game was banned from Steam two years before release and removed from Epic Games Store just one day before launch. Both platforms cited concerns tied to content. Horses is an arthouse horror title set on a rural farm populated by naked figures wearing horse masks. Its themes include sexuality, violence, and enslavement. One scene in particular drew scrutiny: a depiction of a child riding on the back of a naked, horse-headed captive. That sequence was altered before release, but the earlier decisions by Steam and Epic remained in place.

With those doors closed, Horses launched on GOG, with Humble Store also carrying the game after an initial delay. GOG publicly backed the release, framing its decision as support for creative freedom. The studio credits that stance, along with attention generated by the bans, for helping the game reach an audience. Santa Ragione reported that coverage surrounding the controversy played a direct role in sales momentum during launch.

In a press release, the studio said the numbers were meaningful but limited in scope.

“The money primarily covers obligations created by a prolonged end of development. If sales remain steady, we may be able to fund a new prototype in the future, but the team has had to, and will continue to, take on other jobs and projects in the meantime. Reuniting everyone will not be easy, even if it is something we would love.”— Santa Ragione

The studio emphasized that the outcome should not be mistaken for a clean recovery. Development delays tied to the Steam ban forced the team into what it described as a prolonged scramble for funding. Members took on outside work. Momentum was lost. Debt accumulated. Those effects did not disappear once the game reached players.

“We also want to be clear about why this success does not erase the impact of what happened. The Steam ban, and the development delays that followed, forced us into a prolonged scramble for funding, with debt, opportunity cost, and team members taking on other work. That fragmentation is a lasting consequence, even if the launch outcome has been meaningful and positive in important ways.”— Santa Ragione

Santa Ragione also pointed to the absence of Steam as a structural limitation. Steam remains the dominant PC marketplace, and performance on smaller storefronts cannot easily be extrapolated into what might have happened with a full release across all major platforms.

“A strong two-week result on smaller storefronts does not tell us what a full Steam release could have looked like.”— Santa Ragione

Beyond the studio’s own situation, the developers framed Horses as part of a broader pattern affecting independent creators. They argued that unclear standards and opaque review processes leave developers exposed to sudden reversals, often without explanation or recourse.

“This should not distract from the broader issue at stake: the need for clearer rules, transparent processes, and meaningful accountability from near monopolistic distribution platforms and the systems they enforce.”— Santa Ragione

The statement went further, suggesting that Horses is unusual only in its visibility.

“For every case like Horses that becomes visible, there are many more games that are quietly banned, delisted, or trapped in indefinite review for unclear reasons, with developers too worried about retaliation or future approval to speak publicly.”— Santa Ragione

The situation carries its own contradictions. GOG, now praised for hosting Horses, previously removed Red Candle Games’ Devotion in 2020 after a separate controversy. The pattern across platforms suggests caution toward games that challenge norms around sexuality, politics, or religion. Payment processors and platform holders both exert influence over what reaches storefronts, adding layers of risk for small studios already operating on thin margins.

For Santa Ragione, the immediate future remains unsettled. Horses exists, it sold, and it paid its debts. What it did not do was restore the studio to a position where it can easily move forward. The team remains fragmented, and any new prototype depends on sustained sales that are far from guaranteed.

Read also a critical look at Santa Ragione’s Horses that focuses on how the game frames power, coercion, and moral pressure through its stark black-and-white design. Drawing on Sarah Thwaites’s IGN review, the piece examines how the experience builds psychological strain and tests player agency, while also situating the game’s reception within its unusual release path after rejection by Steam and Epic and eventual launch on GOG.