Steam's (two-year-early!) rejection of developer Santa Ragione's new art horror game, Horses, and Valve's subsequent refusal to clarify what triggered the ban or allow Santa Ragione to submit an updated build, has unfortunately overshadowed what's interesting about the actual game.
By provoking controversy, Horses has clearly done part of its job as a work of art, although after playing it, I was disappointed that it didn't fully take advantage of its potential as a game. It's visually strong and thematically coherent, and a fascinating attempt to explore topics and tones in games that have often been reserved for film, but it struggles to integrate the experience of the player in a way that doesn't distract from its point.
