Ban of Horses
Plus check out these new game announcements
A horror game is creating quite a stir, being banned from multiple digital storefronts. Find out the details below. Also, some publishers are getting a jump on announcing their latest games. All this and more. Let’s go!
Horses removed from multiple storefronts
We mentioned in last week’s Side Quests that a little-known indie horror game was being banned from the digital storefront Steam. Since then, the saga of Horses has gotten even more complicated.
After being removed from Steam with a very limited explanation, the studio behind Horses said it was at risk of closing if the game did not do well. 24 hours before the game was set to launch, digital storefront Epic Games also banned the game, despite approving it weeks earlier. Santa Ragione Games posted the response they received from Epic:
We are unable to distribute Horses on the Epic Games Store because our review found violations of the Epic Games Store Content Guidelines, specifically the 'Inappropriate Content' and 'Hateful or Abusive Content' policies. The 'Inappropriate Content' policy prohibits content which 'contains explicit or frequent depictions of sexual behavior or not appropriately labeled, rated, or age-gated.' The 'Hateful or Abusive Content' policy prohibits content that promotes abuse and animal abuse…
[W]hen we [Epic] filled out the IARC Questionnaire based on the content that we reviewed, it received an Adult Only (AO) rating. Products with AO ratings cannot be distributed on the Epic Games Store (the only exception is for products in cases where an AO rating was applied solely due to the usage of blockchain or NFT technology).
Finally, Humble Games pulled and later relisted keys for Horses. The game is still available on Itch.io and GOG.
So why is Horses so controversial that multiple storefronts have banned it? The Guardian has a breakdown of the game:
The plot is fairly simple, though it turns dark fast. You play as Anselmo, a 20-year-old Italian man sent to spend the summer working on a farm to build character. It’s revealed almost immediately (so fast in fact, that I let out a surprised “Ha!”) that the farm Anselmo has been sent to is not a normal one. The “horses” held there are not actually horses, but nude humans wearing horse heads that appear to be permanently affixed.
The article also points out that any nudity in the game is blurred out. Multiple outlets have reviewed the game, using terms like “tame” and “unsettling.” Here are a few of those reviews:
- IGN says Horses is an “unsettling horror game that tells a harrowing story you won’t soon forget.”
- The Verge says “Horses deserves to be played, even if it’s not very good.”
- Aftermath says “Horses is tame.”
- Polygon says the game “isn't as scandalous as you'd think.”
Will you play Horses? Do you think it should be banned by digital storefronts? Let us know in the comments or on Bluesky.
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Let the game announcements begin
A week before The Game Awards show off a bunch of new game trailers, a number of companies announced their latest titles coming out in 2026 and beyond. Here are some of those upcoming releases.
Total War: Medieval 3
In a blog on the developer’s website, Total War: Medieval 3 was announced to be in development.
Romeo is a Dead Man
Romeo is a Dead Man showed off a new trailer and announced a release date of Feb. 11, 2026.
Springs, Eternal
The designer behind Gone Home announced their next game, Springs, Eternal.
Samson: A Tyndalston Story
In Samson: A Tyndalston Story, you play as a man working to pay off crushing debt. What will you do to be free?
A couple of other announcements include Cast Out, a fantasy action co-op game coming in 2027 and Neath, a roguelike tactical RPG.
Side Quests (more stories worth reading)
💰 Netflix is purchasing Warner Bros, which includes the game studios behind Mortal Kombat, Hogwarts Legacy and more.
🇷🇺 Russia banned the game platform Roblox over “LGBT propaganda” and “extremist” content.
📉 After losing more than $77 billion, Meta plans massive cuts for its virtual reality metaverse.
🇸🇦 Once EA goes private, Saudi Arabia will own 93.4% of the company.
🖴 In an upcoming update, the install size for Helldivers 2 on PC will drop from 154 GB to roughly 23 GB.
🏪 In Black Friday sales, the Nex Playground, a new motion-tracking gaming cube, outsold the Xbox, and nearly outsold the PlayeStation 5.
📅 CD Projekt Red says they plan to release three Witcher games within a six-year span.
💴 Japanese developers are facing a delima, as their yearly font licensing fees are going up from $380 to $20,000.
🤖 Sony plans to produce and publish the next game from Bad Robots Games, the video game division of J.J. Abrams' production company.
🔫 IO Interactive says that once they finish work on the James Bond game 007 First Light, they plan to return to the Hitman franchise.
📱 Harry Potter characters are coming to the mobile game Monopoly Go.
The future of Shovel Knight creator Yache Club depends on the success of their next game, Mina the Hollower.
🎴 GameStop paid out a record $30,000 for an ultra-rare Pokémon card.
🏢 Tim Cain, the lead behind the original 1997 Fallout game, announced he rejoined Obsidian Entertainment.
🐉 Percy Jackson is coming to Fortnite starting Dec. 9.
New Releases this week:
Check out our article on 10 New Games to Play in December.
12/8: Skate Story (PlayStation, Switch and PC)
12/9: Unbeatable (PC)
12/9: Ultimate Sheep Raccoon (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
12/11: Ashes of Creation (PC)
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