Solo game creator and TMQ Community member Éloise Laroche is officially announcing her newest project today: The Ranch of Rivershine is a horse ranch management game headed for a Steam release.

Anyone who follows Éloise’s Twitter or the gamedev channel on our community discord has already seen glimpses of the work in progress, but here is our first official trailer:

The game’s description:

Saddle up and build your own horse ranch! Raise foals, care for your horses and train them as you explore the western wilderness! Participate in cross country competitions and become your town's champion. Befriend the villagers who'll help you on your adventure at the Ranch of Rivershine!

The trailer and steam page descriptions give us our first overview of what to expect: horses in stalls and pastures, foals with their mothers, villager NPCs who will need your help, repairing and upgrading stables, exploring the wilderness, cultivating crops for your horses… Many of these features sound familiar, but we’re all unfortunately very used to seeing these aspects implemented in the most minimalistic and frustrating way possible.

What makes The Ranch of Rivershine an entirely different beast however? Éloise Laroche is an independent game developer who does not only have a passion for the subject matter but the gamedev experience to pull this off. Of that, I’ve personally been able to assure myself by playing her last game: the bakery management sim Lemon Cake.

Éloise and I have been in touch about an official announcement of her game for a few months, so naturally I had to ask her a few questions to learn more about The Ranch of Rivershine:

The Mane Quest: You’ve released three games in a bit over a year as a solo developer, and they all have Very Positive reviews on Steam. That’s quite the achievement! Any insight into how you manage that, or tips for other solo developers?

Éloise Laroche: I’ve been very focused on short development cycles to gain experience completing and releasing games. I’ve also used a lot of the same softwares for every game I’ve made, such as Unreal Engine for the game engine and Maya LT for 3D models and animations. Gamedev is a huge challenge but I think both of those things have helped me a lot! I’m always happy to see the positive reviews, and that players are having a fun time! I’m still growing a lot as a developer and even though my previous games all had their own flaws and strengths, I focus on creating niche games that are really close to my heart and I think players can feel that!

TMQ: How does The Ranch of Rivershine compare to your previous games in terms of scope?

ÉL: The Ranch of Rivershine will definitely be my biggest project yet! The game is fairly complex to make and I expect to work on it for at least two years. It will be a challenge but I’ve been looking forward to tackling a bigger project like this!

TMQ: What are the most important learnings from Alchemy Story, Bunny Park and Lemon Cake that you’re applying to Rivershine?

ÉL:The most vital part of development in my previous game has always been early and frequent player feedback. I’ve realised how important it is to get players involved and testing the game during development to make sure it’s going in the right direction, and change it if something isn’t working. It’s definitely something I’ll be doing with Rivershine too!

TMQ: What made you decide to make a horse game? How long has Rivershine been in development?
ÉL: I’ve wanted to make a horse game for almost two years now, but decided to delay it a bit and gain more gamedev experience while working on other projects first. I loved horseback riding and horse games when I was younger, and like many of us, was left a bit disappointed with the games available. I think horse games can be especially challenging to make and I wanted to be ready for it! I’ve now been working full time on The Ranch of Rivershine since May 2021.

TMQ: You’re a regular in the TMQ Community, so I assume you’re familiar with other horse games: What games do you consider competitors or inspirations?

ÉL: I currently don’t consider any other horse game a direct competitor, but I wouldn’t be surprised if one was released during the development of Rivershine, and honestly, I’m hoping to see it! I’d love to be able to play another equestrian RPG for inspiration, and see what the community thinks of it. For now, I’m mostly inspired by other non-horse simulation games such as Nintendogs and Harvest Moon, along with my own real-life experience with horses!

TMQ: You haven’t announced a release date yet, but can you share anything about what stage of development Rivershine is in?

ÉL: It’s still very early in development! However, I’m planning on getting the game in player’s hands during development, either as an alpha access or a demo. My goal is to get the game’s core loop done so that players can start testing it, and add more content to it over time. This will help me ensure the game is fun during development and lead to a smoother release, whenever that will be!

You’ll be able to raise your own foals in Rivershine. — *You’ll be able to raise your own foals in* Rivershine.

TMQ: What differentiates The Ranch of Rivershine from other “farm buildup” style horse games?

ÉL: I’m hoping to build on this genre by adding more depth to well-known features such as horse caring, breeding and competing, on top of adding new mechanics like an auction house, trail riding and horse shoeing! I think gameplay and control issues are also really frequent in horse games due to a lack of polish, and I’m focusing on delivering a better experience on that front with Rivershine. More specifically, having solid controls, intuitive user interfaces and quick, easily readable tutorials. Those aspects aren’t unique to horse games but I think they’ve been especially lacking in this genre and dragging down the game experience. I’m hoping this will also entice players who enjoy farming games such as Harvest Moon, but are new to horse game, to give it a try!

TMQ: What else would you like to tell the TMQ readership (or horse game fans in general?

ÉL: Thank you for being part of this community! I never realised how many horse game fans are out there and it’s been super encouraging to meet such passionate people. I will do my best to bring an exciting, new take to this genre with The Ranch of Rivershine!

Anyone who’s been paying attention to this niche for a bit knows that “a horse game, but with polish and a good user experience” is honestly revolutionary. Éloise’s observations of this genre and her intentions for Rivershine are so on point that I want to cry a little with joy. Many solo and independent devs who work on horse games have no previous game publishing experience and projects often suffer from scope creep, i.e. promising way too many features and never finishing. Éloise has demonstrated that she can make a polished, well received game from start to finish and I am incredibly excited to see her apply that skill to a horse game.

Are you intrigued too? Make sure to help Rivershine get the attention it deserves by following its social media and adding it to your Steam wishlist! Or do as I did and play Éloise’s previous games in order to support the development of this newest one.

Links:

The Ranch of Rivershine on Steam (Add it to your wishlist! That is super important for indie devs!)

Game Announcement and Developer Q&A: The Ranch of Rivershine looks like the horse farm buildup game I’ve been waiting for