For those who aren't aware, Subverse is an h-game inspired by Mass Effect, with the gameplay of a SCHMUP for space combat and XCOM for ground combat. It recently finished its Kickstarter campaign and managed to amass over £1.6 million in funds. Well over its initial goal of £100,000. They already have a Steam page up with plans to release a large batch of the game into Early Access within the next few months.

Anyway, thedevs behind Subverse recently gave an interview with PC Gamer where they divulged that they attempted to contact GOG about possibly releasing their game here and apparently they weren't given a response whatsoever. Section from the article:

"I ask DC if he thinks it's important games like Subverse are sold on Steam—it's listed as 'adult only' when you visit the game's page. "I think Steam and Valve need to be commended more for their open approach to their storefront. In contrast, GOG love to champion themselves on social media as gamer-friendly and paragons of free speech, but they wouldn't even return our emails," I've reached out to GOG for a response to that claim and will update if it replies. "Meanwhile we've had zero problems with Valve even when we used their Source Engine for some of our previous movies. Sure there is a lot of shovelware on Steam as a result of the 'anything-goes' policy but there are filters and tools in place for consumers to make informed decisions on what they are buying."

https://www.pcgamer.com/we-just-wanted-to-make-dick-lasers-and-big-bouncy-anime-titties-says-creators-of-latest-kickstarter-hit/

Community Wishlist entry:
https://www.gog.com/wishlist/games/subverse

Imo, IF(and I mean if) GOG is not accepting their emails/etc and turning this down(basically) due to adult content then I can't see why they'd do so and allow games like Duke3d/etc on GOG(which are also quite racy in ways) along with games packed full of violent content.

As the interview states, consumers can filter titles for ratings & we all know GOG is mostly adults buying games(or perhaps a few teens buying games with prepaid cards/parent's info). They could also be turning it down to save their image as a "family friendly" store(fwiw), but then again they could make all sorts of GOOD PR by promoting it/free speech in gaming. As such, I see no reason GOG should turn this down.

Heck, if they do so(imo) it'll be a big mistake when/if this turns out to be a sleeper hit and they lose out on the missed sales.

Oh well, to each their own. If GOG turns it down I guess I can buy it elsewhere and give my money to someone else.

(And before anyone complains about mine/OP's "tastes" in gaming[or lack thereof] know this: Men are attracted to this sort of stuff.....to put it bluntly, SEX SELLS. To deny this inbuilt attraction in a good number of men and not take advantage of it by selling this game seems foolish on GOG's part(if that is what they're doing here)....especially if they want to become a serious contender(saleswise/userwise) to steam/epic/etc.

Edit/addition: Also, if GOG is allowing more progressive games like VTMB2(with it's supposed planned less catering to men/men's desires) I see it as hypocritical if they allow that and not this game.

As for the wishlist, I already voted but here's a +1 and a bump for OP's troubles.

Just from reading a base description this sounds like a tryhard game.

But perhaps rather than a PC gamer article, you might want to give some actual data about the game and the developers.

"Inspired by Mass Effect" doesn't exactly inspire confidence, and these three points of data do not appear to overlap into a mesh. Look, GOG is actively selling Huniepop. The way to uncensor that is a simple keyed in filename. And Postal. GOG doesn't have an adult content problem.

Update: Accounting for the fistfight now actively occurring in this thread, I have to agree with the posters saying that GOG is correct to be skeptical of the kickstarter page; not only could the game change radically into some unwanted form (IE, Agony) but also the writing and visuals leave one wondering if the authors of the game haven't heard of imageboard websites.

Huniepop still isn't uncensored by default, and postal(afaik) is more violent content related(adult wise) than lewd content related. In fact, i'm willing to bet that the amount of games on GOG with BLATANT sexual themes/content such as Subverse is pushing can be counted on one's hands and feet.

It's all speculation on my/our parts, but imo this could very well be a factor.

(If it isn't the case, then what could it be? The devs seem to be honest enough, and it's becoming more and more popular so the too niche excuse is right out.)

While I wouldn't mind seeing Subverse here, I can understand why they would want to avoid adult content as such. That said, GoG should at least respond to emails from an inquiring dev even of they don't plan to host such content here - basic business etiqutte.

THIS

If they don't give a reason why they're turning it down and if it takes off later on it just makes them look incompetent(to some) or sneaky(by hiding too much stuff from it's userbase).

what is h-game? At first I thought it was a typo, but upon further inspection, it sees intentional.

It's shorthand for hent*i game, adult games made popular as a genre originally(iirc/afaik) by the asian markets.

Oh, thanks. Not my cuppa. Bye.

No problem....everyone has different taste, after all.

To be clear, though, the game isn't all adult/sex oriented.....it is mainly a space fighting game/xcom/etc clone with adult elements/romances/etc.

Then why i don't see any of those visual novels that are in the Gog catalog on the top sellers list ?

Maybe their too-niche-mail generator was broken that day.

Well I never said it all sold WELL. ;p

Seriously though, the titles here(VNs) are probably tame/lackluster or the games are lacking in other departments(story/mechanics/art style/tropes/etc). Also, some might already have bought them for cheaper elsewhere.

Or the GOG Bears and Goblins ate the mails. 0.o

Here gog, I did your """""curation"""""" AI's work. Just copypaste this letter and send it off to the devs!

Hello,

I'm sorry for late reply.

Thanks a lot for your submission and your interest in GOG.

We’ve taken a look at Subverse, it looks like a kinky new Sci-Fi RPG game mashup, with plot-driven SHMUP missions, rich turn-based combat and hot alien babes.

Unfortunately, however, we feel that the game would not be a good fit for GOG, as we think that it appears to be too niche and a bit too small in scale in terms of production value for our users, which means that we aren’t confident in its release potential on our site.

For these reasons I’m afraid we will have to pass on Subverse.

If you have any other games in the future that might be a better fit for GOG, please let us know, and hopefully we’ll be able to work together.

Regards,
Some gog staffer