As Fallout: New Vegas horse modder gets seal of approval from an OG dev, he says he's "constantly" comparing his work to Red Dead Redemption 2

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The mod has cost him his "sanity"

Red Dead Redemption 2 screenshot showing the silhouette of a man with a cowboy hat on horseback, a glowing sun seen behind him
(Image credit: Rockstar Games)

One mastermind Fallout: New Vegas modder is tackling the seemingly impossible - trying to add rideable horses to Obsidian's epic Western RPG.

New Vegas' monumental 2010 release was well over a decade ago now, but players are still finding ways to spice the post-apocalyptic game up today. One such fan is Xїlandro Axeuora, a modder hoping to integrate fully functional horses and horseback riding into the Fallout series' most iconic spin-off. Speaking in an interview with Aftermath, Axeuora provides a more in-depth look at his approach and the lengthy development process underway.

"In my head, I constantly compare what Rockstar developers created," he explains, alluding to Red Dead Redemption 2 and its own impressive horses. "Animations aside, of course - I don't have a horse and a mocap studio." Axeuora, who says his mod has cost him his "sanity," states that he keeps reworking things to meet the standards he's envisioning: "I keep rewriting code over and over again, looking for that 'OK, this feels close enough' moment."

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As for replicating horses akin to Red Dead's stunning four-legged beasts, Axeuora is doing everything he can to nail "the overall feel of natural horse movement without sacrificing responsiveness of controls." He wants something "natural" rather than hyper-realistic: "It's a living, breathing creature. It can't move and turn like an arcadey tank." Judging by reactions from actual former New Vegas developers themselves - Axeuora is doing a great job.

In a post directed toward the modder, New Vegas gameplay programmer Jonathan Burke praises the work put in by Axeuroa so far: "As a programmer on New Vegas, can confirm, this is impressive as hell and everyone should applaud you for it." Fans of the game agree just as much, too - countless comments celebrate the mod as "fantastic," and I'm inclined to agree myself as both a Fallout stan and a dedicated equestrian.

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Anna Koselke
Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.