3 Years into the game, my thoughts and opinions

[StellaSim]

You'd get along with Larissa, she made the game because she is into horse genetics so much.

Genetics is one of the coolest puzzles out there

[Emlyn]

I've been on HWO for about a year now and I think it's a great thing sure there is some stuff that needs to be added (but keep on mind it takes a lot of coding and time). But the game just by itself is spectacular! I do love genetics (wanting to be a breeder/Vet)and wondering "what will my foal look like after it gives birth?".

I came across this game in July 2019 because I've basically tried almost every signup and download game I could find and I wasn't satisfied then I came across HWO I decided " yea this is me!" So I signed up. I loved it so much it was hard to get away and take a break from it XD (I spent 2020 summer just playing this game).
I can't wait for the Vet feature and the approved mare for the studs! Not so much the gelding feature due to everyone being like "ok every horse in my account is a gelding no one is going to breed any of you!" I feel it's very selfish (if I got that feature wrong please tell me xd). "If the approved mare" for the studs eventually became a thing (this is a suggestion)maybe It could be like the limited # of stud adds and you have a limited # of "approved mares". (Idk).
(Sorry went off-topic for a moment)

Other than stuff that will/needs to be added I this is the best thing I've come across! Thank you, admins!

[BlackOak2]

My history is much like StellaSim's.
I waited for it to become public, because I was hoping (and hoping I wouldn't be disappointed by yet another game promising 'real genetics' and falling short) that I had finally found something I could sink my proverbial teeth into.

It does NOT disappoint.
Although I do have a couple projects on hold (for the release of true white in some form) and I'm still sitting on pins and needles for the training release (I'm hoping it will save a LOT of training time), there is still too much to engage into. All that's needed is the thought and consideration, what could I do with...?

I don't think the dominant white genetics have been totally solved yet so we are holding off so we don't have to change it. Hopefully they sort it out.

I figured on something like that. I'll still be waiting for that unique update, when it does come into play.

[Farant]

Not so much the gelding feature due to everyone being like "ok every horse in my account is a gelding no one is going to breed any of you!" I feel it's very selfish (if I got that feature wrong please tell me xd).

Selfish?
You haven't been breeding competitively. When you'll sink dozens of hours and generations into one line for years (real life years), you will understand what I'm talking about. It's a tough job. Why should I as a breeder give my lines out for free? Especially because mares are rarely used for competing, it's primarily a stallion's job, I want geldings! I need them! I rehome hundreds of colts every month if I'm active, I'd geld them and give them away, people could use them. If we're not talking about Arabians, good lines that have at least one WR under their belt are not available to the public under any circumstances. I'm talking about this for years and nothing changes.
But who wants to compete now? Without proper rankings, you can't really tell that your stallion is the best of his breed because guess what, with enough patience you can put AC horse on 1st place in every possible ranking... Eh it's going to be a long rant and I'm not really in the mood to repeat it all over again.

[reyn]

I've played this current version for 5 years now, and before that I had played the text version of HWO. I have played this game much longer than any other horse sim, and while there are plenty of features I would like to see added or improved on what is here has kept me interested enough to continue playing.

I enjoy being able to create breeds, and my main aim alongside having stock with great stats and a good show record is having horses that look like they should do. So many horses in the game have now been mixed so much that they are nothing like the type they should be.

Mainly I would like to see some features introduced to encourage correct breed - maybe breed clubs or grading or something along those lines - and I'd like to see more emphasis on shows as at the moment it doesn't add much to a horses value. Maybe some sort of breeding bonus that can be passed on to the next generation or something like that.

But it's a complicated game with a small team, so I'm happy to see things progress slowly rather than not at all .

[Malakai10]

Updates are slow and it is disappointing that we don't have them often, so what? It doesn't change that this is likely the only good and reasonably accurate genetics game in existence. Even if it does take '50 years' for the game to be completed, better that than for the game to have been ended, never completed at all.

[Caramelapple3]

Just thought I would drop in my opinion. I have been playing for a little over a year, and this my favorite of all those competition and horse breeding games. Why? Well, first of all it's free to play. I mean, you can actually play for free without hardly any restrictions. You can invest money into it, but it's not necessary even if you are trying to get to the top. It's not "pay to win" and I love that.

I play another game called MyStable.co.uk and that's a whole other story. The game uses something called credits as their premium currency, similar to pony tokens here. And literally just about everything is credits, credits, credits. For the owners, it's money, money, money. I have played that game for almost as long as HWO, but I left at one point. They also claim to be based on real genetics. Well, (ahem) can anyone tell me how palomino bred to a grey (and they horses are born grey, they don't grey out. So grey is basically it's own base color) can produce a black leopard spot foal when there is no Lp in the bloodline and neither parents are black based? The ONLY reason why I returned and I am still going on with it is because of the few people I met that I have developed a sort of "friendship" with. So, yeah, HWO is waaay better.

My favorite part of this game is definitely the breeding and the community. I love the genetics on HorseWorldOnline. They are very realistic and it's fun to be able to more or less accurately guess your foal's coat color. And the community is awesome! The players are so kind here and I think most of us are willing to lend a helping hand to newer players or just those that need it.
The admins are also great, they are the ones that keep it free to play after all. The game is pretty diverse, and even though updates are slow I personally think this in one of the best horse games out there.

[Tjigra]

You'd get along with Larissa, she made the game because she is into horse genetics so much.

Genetics is one of the coolest puzzles out there

Most certainly And not only coat colours, but all the other stuff too - feathers, no feathers, height, bulk etc - love to try to figure it out

The only thing here that really frustrates me in the gameplay is the lack of an easy way to find something you need - be it your own horse you can't remember which pasture you put it in ages ago and haven't seen since, or that perfect only one bulky enough Arab stallion at stud you know was there but don't remember its name. You could waste hours at a time just searching through hundreds of horses because there are no search filters for studs and sales, and no overview of your whole ranch. That is frustrating. Waiting for updates on the other hand - exciting

My two cents about keeping ones lines to themselves - this is probably the point where game deviates from real life a lot. In real life you breed top horses to capitalize on your success - if you've bred the most successful horse, you sell it's offspring for lots and lots of money. You get most of the income from foal sales and stud services, not competitions alone. That is not seen as "giving you lines away", that's profiting from you hard work. In game, when you have enough money to buy what you need game-wise, earning money loses it's appeal and you just stop working for that, choosing instead to keep your success to yourself, and since there is virtually no limit to the number of shows for that top horse you have, there is virtually no limit to how much it can earn, unlike sales and studs where you only get money, however big, once and that's it.

[Silverine]

My two cents about keeping ones lines to themselves - this is probably the point where game deviates from real life a lot. In real life you breed top horses to capitalize on your success - if you've bred the most successful horse, you sell it's offspring for lots and lots of money. You get most of the income from foal sales and stud services, not competitions alone. That is not seen as "giving you lines away", that's profiting from you hard work. In game, when you have enough money to buy what you need game-wise, earning money loses it's appeal and you just stop working for that, choosing instead to keep your success to yourself, and since there is virtually no limit to the number of shows for that top horse you have, there is virtually no limit to how much it can earn, unlike sales and studs where you only get money, however big, once and that's it.

A big difference here is that geldings exist in real-life, registries and their rules determine which offspring are 'recognized', and you can control who breeds to your stallion without needing to keep an eye on him every second when he's at stud. If I could geld my colts I would happily spread them around for people to show. As it is, I don't want people taking my horses and using them to try to "pump up" a weaker line - which could devalue my line as other players may see them in the pedigree of a sub-par horse and therefore not think as highly of my work as a breeder. Lines and their reputations are a big part of this game and the only real way to guard that is to keep your horses close.

[Mlloftus]

Wow, sure the game doesn't update a lot. It doesn't need too because it's great as it is. Would I like to see some updates? Yes, of course. But the game is still very interesting while we are waiting. This game is being run by two people who have lives of their own. They don't have the money to pay for a whole team of people without making this game completely pay-to-win. Which is one of the reasons I like this game so much. They could make it cost tens, even hundreds , to "win" but they didn't. They focused on making the game so interesting. The genetics? That could not have been easy to make. I love the fact that the foals colors make actual sense. I also love how active the community is. You could make a post asking for practically any horse, and someone will sell it to you, or breed one for you, or tell you who can breed one for you. My bottom line? I will keep playing even if it takes "50 years" for another update to come out.