Launched into early access on February 20, 2026, Tobiano was not easy to fall in love with, landing with a plop instead of a splash. The feedback has been taken in stride by the developer, and over the course of months, they have been tinkering to get it somewhere good.
Described as a “sport horse simulator with realistic genetics, management, and riding,” Tobiano struggled to land well. Partly due to visual problems, partly lack of content, and a lot to do with controls.
The latest update upgraded the visuals to include better lighting and shadows, more NPCs and scenery, reactive grass, and some pretty foliage. All to create a space players want to step into.
These aren’t major additions and might not change someone’s mind overnight to pick up the game, but they show the steady and slow progress game development often is behind the scenes. It is not an overnight process.
The newest update also included riding lessons. Leaning on her experience as a riding instructor of over 15 years, the developer decided to include some of that experience into Tobiano.
“Only a few lessons have been added, but a lot more are coming! I don’t think there are a lot of game developers out there who are actively working with horses, so I feel this really sets Tobiano apart.”
Again, something small, but everything added expands the game.
Riding and UI were also updated in an earlier patch, smoothing out the response and making the UI easier to use and read. The developer does note the difficulty of refining the riding system. This is, according to them, the most “fiddly” part of development, and they’re not wrong. 3D models and environments are often the “easy” part of game development. Getting those models and environments to interact with one another logically and without game-breaking bugs is another skill entirely.
An unfortunate blemish against Tobiano is the AI code. They used AI to code the initial project during early development. At the bottom of their Steam page, it reads:
“AI was used to help with some code, before the developer became aware of the harm of using genAI. The developer does not condone the use of genAI. No AI has been used for art, animation, textures, 3D assets, or music.”
They seem to have stepped away from AI, but unfortunately, many projects suffer from AI slop code, which often creates more problems than most new developers are able to deal with. This could very well be the case for Tobiano. However, currently, the developer does not seem to be using AI anymore. It is commendable of them to be honest about their usage and experience with AI.
There are a few other updates which included quality-of-life clean-ups and a smoother experience for the player overall. All of these updates are small in isolation, but together they show a steady progression forward.
One concern that still plagues the game is its price tag. At $24.99, this is a knock to the pocket that not everyone is willing to take—especially not for the current experience the game offers. But hopefully, at the pace it’s going, it could very well grow into that price tag over time.
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