\n<\/p>\n
The debate over<\/span> Horses<\/em>\u2019 delisting is emblematic of a bigger fight that\u2019s taken place this year, when platforms such as Steam and Itch.io yanked down<\/a> \u201cNSFW\u201d and \u201cporn\u201d games in July. Developers, players, and trade organizations have continued to be vocal about developers\u2019 creative rights<\/a> to make games that deal with adult content.<\/p>\n \u201cDevelopers shouldn\u2019t have to compromise their creative vision, but we also have to acknowledge that games exist within capitalist structures where access to platforms determines livelihood,\u201d says Jakin Vela, executive director of the International Game Developers Association, a nonprofit supporting game developers. \u201cThe key is informed decisionmaking and understanding what each platform allows, what risks exist, and whether your artistic goals outweigh those risks.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Vela says, these removals have exposed the fragility of developers\u2019 economic security. \u201cWe should be concerned whenever a system allows a creator\u2019s livelihood to be cut off without transparency or recourse,\u201d he says. The video game industry is highly consolidated, with a handful of platforms controlling access to the vast majority of players. \u201cThat imbalance creates a structural issue, not necessarily because platforms enforce rules, but because there are so few viable alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n Santa Ragione\u2019s future should not hinge on its ability to exist on Steam or any other platform. A bad project should not spell the end of a developer who is, for all the criticisms I have of its game, trying to say something<\/em>. That part of this story may still yet have a happy, or at least a survivable, ending. The Streisand effect is paying off for Horses<\/em>. On the digital distribution platform GOG, where it\u2019s still available, the game is a top-seller<\/a>.<\/p>\n Horses<\/em> needs to be defended against censorship. It is also a bad game that should be examined as such. But while the conversation around Horses<\/em> is still stalling out about why<\/em> the game is allowed to exist, or how it\u2019s not that<\/em> offensive, the better question is why we really care about it at all\u2014and why, as players, we feel so reluctant to talk about its failings like any other piece of media.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n