Dec 05, 2025
3 min read
The ban comes from the horses first on Steam, then from the game store Epic games and, in a few hours, from the humble store brings many important issues that affect the entertainment industry.We discussed the disease with Piero Riehoi RIVA, founder and speaker of Santa Ragione.
The case of "horses": We spoke to Piero Rietro Riva Di Santa Ragione about it
Don't horses die like that too?
On 31st October 1975, the producer Alberland has the producer Alberland submitted Salò0 days of Sodom to the cease of the Posit of Pautom, the night between the April 1st and 2, in the night between the.His tragic nature, brings to the screenuchy and disgusting pictures of sexual perversions, who can certainly offend the manufacturer and, as it expresses all the power of the film against anarchy.From there began a long and complicated travel, while which many artists, producer and intellectuals occasions from princes, that which has finished the work of passolini, which made it finally, in 1978, successfully "
The development studio Stoelia Sanda Ragi, with a lot of film in time, is feminism, social and political mechanics, in time If you want to try it, it's easy on Steam, on PC and in the show market (App Store email balance, in the channels mentioned above and independent Milanese studio, disabled, disabled, disabled, disabled, event, developers find the opportunity for pure entertainment for enterlag participants knew.
What, however, currently only seems to be available on Itch.io, GOG, and the Humble Store, but not on highly relevant stores like Steam and the Epic Games Store, is Horses, a first-person horror adventure with clearly disturbing content created by game designer Andrea Lucco Borlera in concert with Santa Ragione.Valve in fact decided to block its distribution through its channel without complaint, causing, in recent days, an avalanche effect that forced Epic and, for a few hours, even the Humble Store to do the same.
Expected limits of video games
Well, the horse is definitely at work on purpose, as it is the farm where porn was found.'' However, although some of the products are not shown more than many readings, pornography is common in the distribution of video games: this is the second, but it is associated with dark mysticism, depending on the video game that needs to remain interactive, or an hour of imagination.
Personally, I have always had problems with such restrictions, given the career of independent authors, in which the adjective emphasizes emancipation primarily in the content sense.Having said that, I went to Pietro Righi Riva, co-founder and representative of the Santa Ragione company, to better understand how things went with the horses.Find the full interview here below.
IGN Italia: Let's start from the beginning: the project is born: the horse project of Andrea Luco;what are its sources and mechanics?
Pietro Rigi Riva: "Horses" is part of our co-production and publishing program.Over the years we have developed production skills, choosing to also use them to "help" other authors, perhaps without a technical background, to enable them to develop projects and publish them.Andrea, in particular, in 2018 attended a master's at IULM, where I taught, and there I saw his prototype, the prologue of horses.He later took this work to the Labyrinth Festival in Berlin, where it was also a finalist, and then he and I decided to turn it into a real game.Andrea comes from a film-related education, and his project is part of a reality line that works in Ciprì and maresco styles, and is influenced by Mediterranean and Greek cinema.
A n sọrọ nipa iwadi sinu grotesque ati lilo ede ti awọn ere fidio lati ba sọrọ nipa eru, eka, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira, nira,difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult, difficult The same is between horses.In the experience of many elements from the related language used in the entertainment method, such as full scripts, and self-experiments, and self-image-in-picture;To give an example, in which many classic games a sound or an element of feeling is usually shown by light, using horses instead of a change of shot.
IGN Italia: Given the frequent scope of your production policies and the games you publish, how has your relationship with Steam and other distribution platforms been in the past?
Pietro Righ riva: I can say well in the sense that we get better support from well-maintained platforms, be it the PlayStation Store, the Microsoft Store or social media.I can complain about Valve up to a certain point because we enjoyed the right position to get close to an agreement before we had an open platform and we had a consultant from the beginning.It is also true that we have never been able to organize some specifications or contracts with them, despite our requests this time we are getting policies, the opacity reached its peak with the story of horses never seen;In the past, doubt or any change related to content was always handled through two discussions.
IN IN INILIA: Do you want to tell us everything at this time, to the new situation?If so, can you go into the benefits of what, in your opinion, is the condition of the building considered problematic?
Pietro Righi Riva: Horses began a third of development when we proposed to IGN USA to announce the game exclusively during the Summer Game Fest, complete with a trailer;The magazine showed enthusiasm, and as a result we started working on the Steam page to also put wishlist feedback, which is very important for Valve.After submitting the page months ago, we requested a full build of the game, complete with a guide.supplemented so that we can enjoy it from beginning to end;Although we were still in full development, we tried to create a playable version and were waiting for approval.However, time passed and reactions slowed down.We obviously asked because the exclusivity with IGN was a huge marketing opportunity;The day before the announcement, we received an automated email that basically said the game was banned without appeal because the demo - according to Valve - contained a scene in which a minor was presented in a sexual context.
To be honest, we couldn't understand the reference at first; then, with that in mind, we created the scene where her father walks up to the adults in masks and unequal clothing.This repetition is not sexual or sexual in any way, as a sequence that speaks to submission and power dynamics.In short, it talks about horse society, explaining for the first time the perspective of a character who realizes this absurd situation.We later chose to give the story a different narrative and action, replacing the little girl with a twenty-five-year-old girl.
We're sure it's an event that causes a problem, but it's still the best guess since it's the only minor character in the game.Blocking is almost always in contact with the value, so find the reason and send a new build, which may not happen every time.Vale's response to our comments was always clear: "This decision will not change."
All this caused us problems at the development level: the announcement happened anyway and we would have liked to release the game before 2025, but the budget we had was not enough as we thought we would raise it through publishers, financiers and a large package related to Saturnalia.In this sense, an important partner presented us with an excellent opportunity, except that Steam - during the same period, but completely independently of Horses - stopped automatically distributing keys of a site of its products to developers.We were unable to increase sales of our previous game, but on the other hand it was impossible to find financing for the new one, so development remained stalled until the beginning of this year, when I managed to find money through loans to release it on other platforms, always hoping that Valve would get back on track.
IGN Italia: Would you like to better define the issue of pair keys?
RIVI PIETRO RIVA: In terms of key distribution and other aspects of the policy, even from 2013 until now, but as a result, we had the opportunity to sell hundreds of thousands of copies.Starting last year, Steam decided to limit the distribution of keys for titles to at least 50,000 copies, or at least, that's what we learned when talking to us.We are treated.The decision was to "kill" small studios like us, and close the sales channel and limit the possibility of finding games through collections outside of steam.In fact, I believe that Valve's goal is precisely to ensure that the experience is recognized, bought through the channel: That's why the various steam festivals and steam awards were born.
IGN Italy: You've already answered some of it, but just to clarify, what are the consequences of a ban like this for studios like yours and others like it?
Pietro Righi Riva: Steam represents 75% of the PC market, but in reality for a studio like Santa Ragione we are talking about over 95% of the turnover (always PC, n.d.).Consequently, a ban implies the impossibility of covering development costs and eventual closure: our business model actually ensures that the profits from each game are invested in the next, and we do not have a Hades-like blow behind us that would allow us to be relatively calm for maybe three or four development cycles.
IS IGNEA: What tools do studios have to deal with this situation, maybe at the level of cultural heritage.
Pietro Righi Riva: Basically, nothing.There are solutions for international development support as in the case of Arte, in France, which has invested in local artistic experience, or European tenders linked to prototype funding or tax credits in Italy.We talk about funds that can lend a hand, make things easier, but they are never organized and sufficient to ensure the survival of a business like ours.In general, I believe that institutions should be pressed to control the larger distribution channels, such as in cinemas, and because the biggest problem is what has been found in games.
It will be important to "distribute" worthy works so that people come into contact with them, and for the European Union to control the regulation of distribution by essentially monopolistic entities.Some also argue that video games should be included in school curricula like cinema and theater;I personally never explored it too much, I "justified myself" through the direction of my work, believing it would help the public recognize the medium's expressiveness.Today, looking back on this experience, I would say that I would have liked to reach a larger group of people.
IGN Italia: Nees has already met all the laws for digital distribution in many countries, which made the decision.It's a private site, but while its market performance is very strong, it doesn't seem to have any help with issue-to-issue rights.
Pietro Righi Riva: Of course, the point of Valve is precisely not to accept any kind of external regulation.Epic and GOG use the IARC (International Age Rating Coalition), which brings together all the international age rating systems that allow developers to answer a quiz.On the other hand, Steam is an opaque reality, it does not communicate clear rules, which creates a total unpredictability that, perhaps, would be acceptable in many small distribution channels, while here we are at the limit of the public service: there is clearly a problem.
IGN Italia: Speaking of freedom of expression, there is a paradox in video games: conflicts, the use of weapons and the use of violence in general are often based on their mechanics, even in seemingly more innocent genres such as platformers.Nevertheless, the possibility of conveying mature or political content is constantly debated and many studies openly avoid it or hide behind metaphorical, attractive and fantastical representations.
Pietro Righi Riva: There is a wonderful game by Major Bueno called The Visit that is very eloquent on this particular feature.In fact, the experience begins as a Super Mario-style platformer, but after the protagonist kills a crab, he is arrested and put on trial.In any case, the concept you describe describes a fantasy that is now taken for granted, and it also shows how vague the rules are on platforms like Steam, where - I quote - games that are "boring for the sake of being boring" are banned, while they seamlessly distribute various Mortal Kombat games, which I love, but which are based on violent aspects.The feeling is that there is a subtext that anything goes, anything can be shown, as long as it's for pure entertainment.However, if we talk about complex issues, we must be very careful.
IGN Italia: Also, as I said in a talk a few years ago, despite these limitations, it's very difficult for a medium like video games to get a handle on things and get into reality, because it's often associated with long development times.
Pietro Righi Riva: Instruction is worrying, and the fact that that talk still shows how much the situation is caused, among other things, by the centralized location of the distribution channels that affect what Univocal Games can and what you can't.Personally, I find it right to believe that these companies have a vision, a vision or a moral;contradictory or divisive.If it pushes the subject like horses, which is inevitable with a certain user base, it can take away the space from Call of Duty and other games that are easy to sell;On the one hand we have, in short, a sour taste, on the other hand "Sugarrary Donut".
IGN Italia: According to your skills, would an experience like Horses be treated the same in another market, like cinema?
Pietro Rigi Riva: Absolutely not.Perhaps, if fifty years ago I had made a film with the same content of horses, I would probably have experienced state censorship, which if I didn't want it would be a thousand times worse, but there were no private parties so powerful and with the possibility to decide instead of the public.
IGN Italia: Finally, do you think that the video game market could represent a kind of dark vanguard in terms of freedom of expression, at a moment in history when distribution platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, Netflix or Disney+ are recognized and many people "skip" or postpone watching movies or series if they are not easily available on streaming?
Photro righti Riva: Unfortunately, and there is nothing new, special video of a kind of "Caliary in MIN";That was as true for Blockchain technology as it was for gamergate.It is very good to see the videos to learn about the future of politics and entertainment.
While I was transcribing this interview, news of the Epic Games ban broke.Santa Ragan comments on the latest developments live on the official horse websiteWe report the post in full
"At 5 pm Cet on December 1, about 24 hours before we received an email from the epic game with the following content that violates the epic. The policy of "inappropriate content" protects content that contains "clearly or often shows sexual behavior or is inappropriate or limited".to the items we reviewed.The AO BEWS has several options for how to proceed: 1. You can make changes to the product for review "epic game store" is the subject 3. You can not change the title or content for another game.
We immediately appealed their decision through all suggested channels, clearly stating that the game does NOT contain explicit or frequent depictions of sexual behavior.All nudity in the game is completely pixel censored.There is never a visible sexual act involving the genitals, and all animations are stylized and unrealistic.Furthermore, in the three hours of play, there are only four short censored sexual sequences, two of which occur mainly off-screen.Finally, we explained that the content shown does not promote abuse (including animal abuse) in any way.The game strongly criticizes violence and abuse in general.We also reminded Epic that we completed and completed the IARC (certificate cf205b42-5a1f-458b-bf3b-9a372bcee8f0) as part of the submission process more than five weeks prior to release and did NOT receive an AO rating.We have received a PEGI 18 and ESRB M rating, as currently shown on Epic Games' HORSES page, available soon in the Store.After the appeal, we contacted our representative at Epic Games to ask them to reconsider this last minute decision and to point out that their team has been submitting and reviewing versions of HORSES for the last two months and the final version ready for distribution was approved 18 days before launch.We received no response from our contact, only the following automated message 12 hours after the appeal: “We are writing to let you know what's new regarding your appeal. We conducted a thorough review prior to the initial communication and found that your content is prohibited by our guidelines and may not be distributed on the Epic Games Store. We have reviewed your complaint and found that the original decision was enforced appropriately and will remain in effect. Again, no specific indication of the game's problematic content was made.Epic's initial communication stated that we may "make updates to [our] product to ensure compliance," the email did not include any information about what would need to be changed, and it would still be impossible to make significant changes within one day of launch."
