The acclaimed indie studio Santa Ragione, the publisher behind such hit titles as Saturnalia, Mirror Moon EP, and Mediterranea Inferno, has openly accused Apple of pulling one of its titles from the App Store with no “clear justification”.
In recent public statement, Santa Ragione co-founder and director Pietro Righi Riva, has revealed that the studio’s 2016 visual novel Wheels of Aurelia will be delisted from the Apple Store on the 25th of July, following a number of unsuccessful appeals to Apple. If this is the whole story and entirely accurate, then Apple has delivered a low blow to a truly great indie studio and is sure to draw the ire of many fans.
According to Riva, Apple’s reasons for removing Wheels of Aurelia have remained pretty obscure, with the company only stating its “policy to remove apps deemed ‘obsolete’ or ‘outdated'” during some correspondence with the director of Santa Ragione. Riva further insisted that the game remains “fully functional and compliant with current technical standards” and that no “clear justification” for the removal has been revealed “despite multiple appeals and sincere efforts to seek clarification.”
Riva has also stated that the removal of the title from the App Store delivers a blow to artistic standards as a whole. He also added, “We firmly believe that removing fully functional artistic works simply due to infrequent updates undermines the value and sustainability of games as cultural and artistic products,” he went on to elaborate, “Like books, films and music albums, video games represent complete creative works that do not inherently require continual updates beyond maintaining basic functionality.”
Santa Ragione is far beyond the only developer to take issue with Apple’s approach. Many studios have stated that creating titles for the company is “like an abusive relationship.” As we know, Fortnite developer Epic Games also cited issues with Apple’s practices following a huge falling out in 2020, which led to a large-scale dispute with Epic Games being involved in a legal battle after Apple blocked Fortnite from the Apple Store following the developer making changes to get around payments in the App.
Regardless of the current state of things, players can still download Wheels of Aurelia on the App Store until the 25th of July. The title is a “narrative road trip… set in the roaring Italian 70s.” Riva is hoping to ensure that as many players as possible are able to experience this artistic and stylish game before its unfortunate impending removal.
Do you think Apple’s practices are becoming a hindrance to gaming developers? Let us know in the comments below.
