While the studio expressed “relief” at clearing their debts, they emphasized that the earnings fall short of the capital required to initiate a new production cycle. “This revenue primarily addresses the financial strain caused by a drawn-out development period,” the studio explained. “Should sales remain consistent, we might eventually prototype a new concept, but the team has already begun migrating to other roles and external projects to sustain themselves. Reassembling the original group will be a formidable task, despite our desire to do so.”
“We must also clarify that this financial outcome doesn’t mitigate the damage done,” the press release continued. “The Steam delisting and the resulting development bottlenecks forced us into a desperate search for capital, leading to debt and the loss of core team members to other work. This fragmentation is a permanent scar, even if the launch itself achieved a positive result in other respects.”
Horses arrived on GOG, the Humble Store, and Itch.io to generally praiseful reviews. However, Santa Ragione argues that a fortnight of solid performance on secondary storefronts cannot replicate the massive reach of a global Steam launch.
Steam remains the unrivaled gatekeeper of the PC market, and being barred from its ecosystem is a near-insurmountable handicap for indie developers. This hurdle was only heightened when the Epic Games Store followed suit, banning the title just 24 hours prior to its scheduled release.
In their closing remarks, Santa Ragione called for greater transparency regarding the cryptic rules and approval processes dictated by dominant digital platforms.
“We hope this situation highlights a systemic issue: the urgent need for lucid guidelines and accountability from near-monopolistic distributors,” the statement reads. “For every visible case like Horses, countless games are quietly suppressed, delisted, or trapped in perpetual review cycles for vague reasons. Many developers are simply too intimidated by the threat of platform retaliation to speak up.”
While a sudden investment from a major benefactor could theoretically save Santa Ragione, the current climate suggests a more somber conclusion for the talented team. Despite the widespread media attention, the “lasting consequence” of platform gatekeeping remains their primary legacy for now.
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Source: gamesradar.com
