Valve pulls Hatred from Greenlight, calling it unpublishable

Valve has removed the game Hatred from Steam hours after Polish developer Destructive Creations launched it on Steam Greenlight, citing concerns that the game does not fit Valve's publishing standards. "We wanted you guys to know that based on what we see on Greenlight we would not publish Hatred on Steam," reads an excerpt of the message Destructive Creations says they received from Valve today. "As such we'll be taking it down." This is interesting to game developers because it sheds light on what precisely Valve will tolerate on its platform. Steam Greenlight's developer guidelines include the restriction that submissions "must not contain offensive material or violate copyright or intellectual property rights," and Hatred -- described by its creators as "an isometric shooter with disturbing atmosphere of mass killing" -- seems to cross that line. In an email detailing the delisting, a Destructive Creations representative said that the studio respects Valve's decision but intends to continue development of the game unchecked. "Even though games like Manhunt or Postal are still available on Steam we of course fully respect Valve's decision, as they have the right to do so," reads an excerpt of the email. "In the same time we want to assure you that this won't in any way impact the game's development, game's vision or gameplay features we're aiming for." Gamasutra has reached out to Valve for further comment on its guidelines for publishing games on Steam.