TheRetroArcade
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Joined: Feb 2026
Horse fans have been burned by bad horse games often enough, but The Legend of Khiimori shows promise if it can hurdle a lot of bug fixes.
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Horse games have a reputation—a fairly earned one, I'm sad to say—for being bad. If they're horse-accurate, they're ugly. If they're pretty, they're boring. If they're highly anticipated, they're buggy and unsupported. Horse enthusiast gamers have been burned before and often left half-fulfilled by the latest horse games. Horse courier sim The Legend of Khiimori launched in early access this week and this might finally be the equine experience that horse gamers deserve.
Normally I'd go to developer and critic Alice Ruppert, known horse gamer spokesperson, for an expert opinion. She's done consulting on Khiimori though, so for a more neutral view I've instead called upon another equestrian correspondent: livestreamer, Red Dead Redemption 2 horse posse wrangler, and professional horse photographer Chelsea Farace.
Farace estimates that she's played upwards of 30 horse games over the years in search of the perfect one. She agrees that so many of them wind up being just "good enough" to sate the hunger of horse-lovers. "They scratch the itch but always leave something important missing, whether it’s depth, realism, or soul," she says.
The Legend of Khiimori looked like it had an answer to all three: beautiful, realistic horses, deep training and breeding systems, and a soulful depiction of historical Mongolia. Its demo was so popular last year that developer Aesir Interactive delayed the launch that had been planned for 2025. Now that it's actually launched, how are the horse gamers feeling about the first few days with Khiimori?
"Khiimori, right now, feels like it’s well above that 'good enough' line," Farace says. "There is a beautiful sense of realism I haven't felt since RDR2 and I adore it."
She praises all the visual horse accuracy like the "flehmen response" when they show their teeth, how they swim, and the little stretches and fidgets they do when not being ridden. These are the kinds of things players loved about RDR2 but wanted more actual horse things to do, which Khiimori's got too.
Khiimori makes you go through the different horse gaits like trotting and cantering instead of RDR2's 'horse slow' or 'horse sprint' speeds. It accounts for terrain while riding, weight distribution, and even horse ge...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
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GamesRadar+
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Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
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From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
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Once a month
SFX
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Horse games have a reputation—a fairly earned one, I'm sad to say—for being bad. If they're horse-accurate, they're ugly. If they're pretty, they're boring. If they're highly anticipated, they're buggy and unsupported. Horse enthusiast gamers have been burned before and often left half-fulfilled by the latest horse games. Horse courier sim The Legend of Khiimori launched in early access this week and this might finally be the equine experience that horse gamers deserve.
Normally I'd go to developer and critic Alice Ruppert, known horse gamer spokesperson, for an expert opinion. She's done consulting on Khiimori though, so for a more neutral view I've instead called upon another equestrian correspondent: livestreamer, Red Dead Redemption 2 horse posse wrangler, and professional horse photographer Chelsea Farace.
Farace estimates that she's played upwards of 30 horse games over the years in search of the perfect one. She agrees that so many of them wind up being just "good enough" to sate the hunger of horse-lovers. "They scratch the itch but always leave something important missing, whether it’s depth, realism, or soul," she says.
The Legend of Khiimori looked like it had an answer to all three: beautiful, realistic horses, deep training and breeding systems, and a soulful depiction of historical Mongolia. Its demo was so popular last year that developer Aesir Interactive delayed the launch that had been planned for 2025. Now that it's actually launched, how are the horse gamers feeling about the first few days with Khiimori?
"Khiimori, right now, feels like it’s well above that 'good enough' line," Farace says. "There is a beautiful sense of realism I haven't felt since RDR2 and I adore it."
She praises all the visual horse accuracy like the "flehmen response" when they show their teeth, how they swim, and the little stretches and fidgets they do when not being ridden. These are the kinds of things players loved about RDR2 but wanted more actual horse things to do, which Khiimori's got too.
Khiimori makes you go through the different horse gaits like trotting and cantering instead of RDR2's 'horse slow' or 'horse sprint' speeds. It accounts for terrain while riding, weight distribution, and even horse ge...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?