Astride

About

Astride is a single player and multiplayer open world role playing game. It was developed by Raidho Games and was released on June 2, 2023. It received neutral reviews from players.

Astride In Early AccessBe a part of the early development of Astride by joining the early access program. As our team continues to work on the game, we will be releasing frequent updates and collaborating with our community to shape the ultimate horse-riding experience. Be sure to read up on the currently available game features before purchasing, so you know exactly what to expect from the game. …

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52%Audience ScoreBased on 359 reviews

gameplay9 positive mentions

stability40 negative mentions

Impressive and smooth horse animations and realistic gaits that surpass other horse games.
Highly customizable horse creator with vast options for coat colors, markings, and genetics.
Open and inviting world to explore with appealing stable designs and breeding features.
Dedicated and transparent development team providing regular updates and community involvement.
Fun for roleplaying and social interaction on multiplayer servers (pending more content).

Currently extremely limited gameplay and content: mainly horse creator and basic jumping/dressage arenas with no meaningful progression or quests.
Prices perceived as too high for the current state, many consider it overpriced for an early access/pre-alpha demo.
Clunky, unintuitive, and buggy controls and animations, including stiff rider animations, problematic jumping mechanics, and poor camera control.
Game is very buggy and poorly optimized leading to crashes, lag, and long load times, even on high-end PCs.
Lack of basic game features such as player character customization, sound/music, tutorial/guidance, map, stable management, and interactive environment.
Multiplayer servers often empty and lack chat function, multiplayer gameplay underdeveloped.
Long development time with slow progress disappoints backers and early supporters.
Overall game is considered by many as unfinished, not worth the current asking price, and better to wait for further development and official release.

gameplay
81 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
79%
10%
Gameplay in the game is currently very limited, with most users highlighting the lack of core mechanics, engaging activities, and meaningful gameplay loops beyond the horse creator and basic show jumping. While some appreciate the promising horse animations and jumping mechanics, the overall experience is seen as repetitive, unfinished, and overshadowed by cosmetic features. Players suggest the developers prioritize fleshing out gameplay content and mechanics to fulfill the game's potential.
- “The showjumping mechanics are one of the best in horse games I've seen so far.”
- “The turning isn't great; it's quite stiff, and the lack of a saddle at first is quite annoying. However, I absolutely love the jumping mechanics and the stride length adjustability. It is a little complex compared to some games but also much simpler compared to others and still gives you that realistic feel like you're really in control of the horse.”
- “If you’re looking for a completed game, you may want to wait a while, but as a tester I think it’s fun watching how the game comes together and changes from just being able to create a horse and learning the starting mechanics to getting each update and gaining another part of what looks like it could be one of the best horse games on Steam.”
- “I understand it's in early access, but it has been for a long time, and there's still almost nothing to do, with no more than 40 minutes of unique gameplay before it gets repetitive.”
- “Aside from there being hardly anything to do, the biggest disappointment for me and the reason why I can't by any means recommend that anyone buy this game for 25€ is the actual riding mechanics.”
- “There is no gameplay to be had, except the jumping course (which you have to jump in order, no making your own courses) and a small dressage arena (which sees no proper use as again, gait changes and steering are rough).”
graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
59%
7%
The game's graphics receive mixed feedback, with some praising the realistic horse models and detailed environments, while others find them outdated, laggy, or awkward, especially the horse animations. Performance issues are common, requiring high-spec PCs to run smoothly, and graphical optimization is a noted concern. Overall, while visually appealing to some, the graphics are often seen as incomplete or inconsistent given the game's early access status.
- “The developers had an idea to create a horse game with a detailed and realistic riding system, realistic horse graphics, and an amazing environment.”
- “I love the detail and how amazing the graphics are, the only really big issue I have is how long it takes to get in.”
- “That being said, the graphics are beautiful and I am looking forward to new features being added (horse care, quests, competitions, breeding?, etc).”
- “This game is horrible, I tried it out and the graphics are way worse than how they're promoted as, and why are the horses so stiff?”
- “Unfortunately, I've tried to play this game on 2 different laptops and the graphics just will not work.”
- “It starts with the graphics set to the highest level, causing extreme lag; bringing it down to the lowest level makes it run smoothly, although most of the high graphics are just shadows.”
stability
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is currently highly unstable, suffering from numerous bugs such as glitchy animations, freezing, buggy controls, and problematic jumping mechanics. Users report frequent crashes, unresponsive or awkward controls, and unfinished features, making gameplay frustrating and limited. While some see potential for future improvement, the overall stability is poor in this early, pre-alpha state.
- “At the moment, the game is extremely undeveloped and buggy, which is expected due to its early stages.”
- “The buggy animations, having to hold right click to look around, unresponsive controls, and lack of control over your horse's jumping are issues that should have been fixed before entering early access.”
- “The community may hope for a horse game but hope is all there is; the demo is buggy, lags a lot even on high-end PCs, and the controls are odd, unintuitive, and either too heavy or too floaty depending on what you ask the horse to do.”
story
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
75%
16%
The game currently lacks any meaningful story, quests, or gameplay progression, leaving players with little direction beyond wandering, jumping, and horse breeding. Many users express disappointment in the absence of NPCs, missions, or a structured gameplay loop, which were promised features and are missed opportunities for engagement. While the horse creator is well-developed, the overall experience feels incomplete and aimless without narrative elements or clear objectives.
- “The game would be doing far better had it stuck to its original roadmap and offered players some form of bare-bones storyline/gameplay, rather than doing a cosmetic overhaul of the map 2-3 times.”
- “You create your horse which is very cool but you can't do anything with your character, no quest to get you into the game and give you a feel. You're just plopped near your stable going "ehhhhh what am I to do?" You also go around looking to collect cute mini model painted ponies but not much to do yet then jumping and exploring an empty map. Great progress but I kinda expected more since it's been in my wish list for a few years.”
- “Whereas, yes, there are issues in the game currently and missing pieces (rider, storylines, etc), they still are working to make things stable and add on the stuff we would hope to see soon.”
- “It has absolutely zero indication of where you are, what you have, where you can buy stuff, where you can sell stuff, no town with NPCs, no clear indication of where/how you can start quests if they even added those yet. It lacks a lot.”
- “In two years there's been no added story, nothing to do and it seems like the devs' priorities are in all the wrong places.”
- “You create your horse which is very cool but you can't do anything with your character, no quest to get you into the game and give you a feel. You're just plopped near your stable going 'ehhhhh what am I to do?' You also go around looking to collect cute mini model painted ponies but not much to do yet then jumping and exploring an empty map. Great progress but I kinda expected more since it's been in my wishlist for a few years.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The music in the game is currently absent, with users noting a complete lack of soundtrack or ambient sounds despite earlier trailers featuring music. While some sound effects like cantering are acceptable, overall audio—including rider sounds and music—is missing, leading to a muted and less immersive experience.
- “I like the music.”
- “Horse walking sounds a little off but cantering sounds good, alright music.”
- “They've released several parts of the soundtrack since the Kickstarter trailer, but there is absolutely no sound in this early access.”
- “There is no music in the game yet.”
- “There was music in the Kickstarter trailer (and at the time three published tracks); they've released several parts of the soundtrack since, but there is absolutely no sound in this Early Access.”
- “No ambient sound, no soundtrack, just mutely riding around the jumping ring or dressage ring.”
optimization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
20%
60%
The game suffers from poor optimization, with noticeable stuttering during character movement and high initial graphics settings causing extreme lag. Despite being on the market for over a year, little improvement has been made, leaving performance issues unresolved. Lowering graphics settings improves smoothness but highlights the limited graphical enhancements.
- “This game is barely worth 5 euros due to poor optimization.”
- “I bought it for about 20 dollars, and after owning it for a year and a half, I haven't noticed much improvement or optimization.”
- “The character has stuttering issues while walking or jogging on the ground.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere receives mixed feedback, with some users finding it nostalgic and charming, especially in mountain areas, while others criticize it as generic and outdated. However, a few appreciate the game's promising and pleasant ambiance, enhanced by well-designed horses.
- “The mountain areas especially felt very nostalgic to me because I used to ride in the mountains myself, and I genuinely enjoyed that atmosphere.”
- “For only a small amount of money you get a cute, very promising game with loads of atmosphere and horses. They look so good, it makes me happy.”
- “Charging an unholy amount for a demo which looks like a 2018 simulator with very boring decals and the most basic atmosphere ever.”
- “The atmosphere feels generic, like any other game out there.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's monetization is criticized for misleading advertising and unfulfilled promises regarding in-app purchases and DLCs, leading to frustration and concerns about the developer's integrity. Releasing a limited demo as early access is seen as disappointing by fans.
- “In-app purchases (meaning you can buy things after buying the game, i.e. DLCs).”
- “The promo, advertising, TikToks/shorts, YouTube videos, streams, etc., all promising things that are not coming or do not exist.”
- “All in all, I believe that releasing this demo and calling it early access is insulting to their fans. The misleading advertising that is still present on their social media and Steam pages is making me question the team's integrity.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users appreciate that the game avoids overly realistic and tedious grinding in horsecare, preferring a stronger focus on story development over repetitive tasks.
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users found the game's replayability lacking, comparing it unfavorably to simpler horse games on mobile devices that offered more engaging and enjoyable experiences.
- “I'd downloaded horse games on my phone that were more playable than this.”