Summary
Animals play a dominant role in flagship RPGs as companions, from the all-seeing eagles of theAssassin’s Creedfranchise to Epona fromThe Legend of Zelda, and each franchise assigns varying levels of importance to these creatures. Horses are proud and majestic beings, and they form an essential component of traversal mechanics in mostopen-world games likeElden Ring. These animals typically require some form of care or upgrade as players progress through playthroughs since the companion gives the advantage of speedy travel and mounted combat in fighting titles. InThe Sims 4Horse RanchDLC, enjoyers of the pioneer life simulator finally got access to the equine majesty, and the way Maxis lets players care for their mounts is comparable to that ofRed Dead Redemption 2.
The Simshas had a great relationship with pets sinceThe Sims: Unleashedbrought them into the franchise, and the latest edition improved on players' interactions with dogs through pet training in theCats and Dogsexpansion pack. With theHorse Ranch DLC, a match made in heaven for the Cottage Living pack, Maxis has further enhanced the animal care component of its flagship title.Red Dead Redemption 2is another title that takes pride in representing animals, and caring for horses in the cowboy-inspired RPG goes beyond surface-level upgrades for traveling across its vast world.
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Horses Bring The Worlds of Sims and Arthur Morgan Together
Red Dead Redemption 2andThe Sims 4belong to distinctly different gaming categories, butThe Sims 4Horse Ranch DLC creates a common ground for the unlikely similarity. The most recent DLC brings a new World to the base game, introducing gamers to Chestnut Ridge, a region themed after theAmerican Wild Westexperience. Players have a stretch of land to themselves to forge bonds with their hooved companions, raising and training horses as customizable members of their families. New horses can also be added to the farm by rescue or breeding, and Sims can learn the Riding skill and compete for awards at the equestrian center.
Caring for horses inThe Sims 4can be overwhelming, as there’s a rather long list of things for players to consider to ensure their mounts are in great shape. Like any Sim, horses have a host of emotional moods, and responding to these unique socializations can affect the relationship between handler and steed. Sims can also feed their mounts with vegetables by hand, and this action will cause a bonding moment between the player and the horse. Feeding and cleaning after horses can be a full day’s job in Chestnut Ridge, and Maxis pulled off a stellar job of integrating the companions intoThe Sims 4’s gameplay.
WhileRed Dead Redemption 2’s horsesdon’t demand emotional support likeThe Sims 4, Rockstar gave gamers a similar dynamic to bond with their primary source of transportation. As players move around the Wild West with their mounts, they progressively earn bonding points by performing interactive actions, and there are four bond levels that unlock new controls and abilities. Riding, feeding, brushing, and a few other activities increase the bond between player and horse, and perks like calling the horse from further distances become available as the relationship progresses between bond levels.
Red Dead Redemption 2’s world-buildingprovides stables to house and manage steeds, groom them, and buy provisions like a horse reviver. This tool can come in handy traveling along the dangerous roads of the game, as horse death is permanent, and the last thing players need is to get stuck with a dying companion in unfamiliar territory. Gamers can also tame wild horses inRed Dead Redemption 2and improve their base stats by purchasing stirrups. Horses provide a bridge betweenThe Sims 4andRed Dead Redemption 2in ways most players would never have imagined, and caring for these gentle creatures is an essential task in both titles.
The Sims 4is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
