Publisher of delisted art game Horses lambasts Epic Games Store after executive claims "we love that studio"

Indie publisher Santa Ragione has publicly criticized Epic Games Store following recent statements by EGS VP and general manager Steve Allison. In a Game File interview, Allison claimed that Epic "loves that studio," but the developers say the company has effectively ghosted them after removing Horses from the storefront.

Allison explained that Santa Ragione went through the self-publishing process and filled out an International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) form, which determined *Horses* had an M-rating. However, Epic's trust and safety team conducted its own assessment and assigned the game an Adults Only (AO) rating – the ESRB's kiss of death that effectively bars distribution on most platforms. Horses was pulled from the Epic Games Store just one day before launch.

Santa Ragione disputed Allison's framing in a Bluesky post, stating that "Epic made provably incorrect statements about the game's content, refused to provide details supporting their claims, and has not shared their claimed AO IARC certificate, which normally includes a link for the developer to appeal."

They do not 'love that studio', they have effectively ghosted us.

The developers also pointed to the existence of unredacted longplays of Horses on YouTube and Twitch as evidence the AO rating was misapplied – both platforms are known for aggressive content moderation. The game remains available for purchase on GOG and the Humble Store. Horses portrays a surreal "farm" in rural Italy where hypnotized, nude human beings in horse masks are treated as livestock, though all explicit scenes are obscured with a pixelation effect.