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4 Rating: 4, Useful: 24 / 25
Date: November 12, 2003
Author: Amazon User

First off, I know a lot of people are sort of trashing this game. Yes, the people who made this game apparently didnt know diddely squat about horses; there's only four inches in a hand, therefore its impossible for a horse to be 15.7hh. Also, a Steeplechase is actually a race against other horses with jumps, not just jump course. For the other stuff, what can you really expect? It's a COMPUTER game! It's NOT real life so it's not going to be extremely realistic. I live on a ranch and own five horses. Younger kids and those who dont own horses will probably love this game. But of course after you beat it it's going to get boring. It's like watching a movie you've already seen. And the reason you cant practice on the other courses except for on the main page when you click on 'practice' is because all the other competitions except for the first one are at different stables. And really, how are they suppose to give COMPUTERIZED horses personalities? Also, who cares if you can only have three horses? More than that is a LOT of work if you ask me, both on the computer AND in real life.

Second, Ive never had ANY problems with this game. Annie and the horses are easy to control, everything loads quickly, and it hasnt froze. Also, I've placed first in all the competitions, so its NOT impossible to beat. Yes, the chores are repetive, but you have to keep in mind that the game is actually giving you something to do until you find all the secrets/hints/whatever in that level before you can move onto the next.

Third, although the personalites dont vary, their speeds do. Alpha is slower and has less stamina than the others.

As for the courses/competitions go, they seem fine to me. Once again, this game is more or less created for kids who DONT have horses. Therefor, they probabaly dont want to take the time to count strides, or figure out where they need to collect and extend to make the jump.

Then, usually if you walk upto John and he says something stupid like "Have you thought about grooming?" it means your horse needs groomed. Hes giving you HINTS.

Really the only thing I found disappointing is that you cant name the horses, but I'll live.

In conclusion, I thinks its a pretty cool game. Not the most realistic, but it works. I dont think you'll be disappointed.

Gets Steadily Worse...

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 13 / 15
Date: January 27, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I'm not sure exactly were to begin with what's wrong with this game so instead I'll tell you what's good. The graphics have a few small flaws but overall they're not bad. The horses are supposed to have distinct personalities (different ai) but they don't, in fact, they all have the exact same gentle temperament. The only difference between them is their speed, which is either slow or really slow. Having run the practice courses for HOURS trying to get the fastest time, Iýve only had the horse refuse when I misjudged the distance or angle. If only it were that easy in real lifeý

In a way that's a good thing because if they don't go slow you can't make the impossibly tight turns the show jumping requires. That of course raises another problem, you have to slow down to jump but you need the overall fastest time (without penalties) to win the event. Your in game rival has a catch-22 in show jumping (it's easy to beat the steeplechase and cross country). If you get 5 penalty points her time is 40 seconds. If you get 22 seconds (no penalties) she's got 19 secs. The actual competition is set up so you can take second or third in one event and still win first. For instance: I resigned myself to take second in show jumping then got first in steeplechase and cross country. Moral: I won the competition. Unfortunately, though I beat the in-game (in storyline) comp. I had to go back and take first in the PRACTICE area to get invited to the next events! Ten minutes into the endeavor you will be reduced to mumbling, or shouting, a string of violent profanities at the screen every time your computer hiccups causing a delay in the graphics that makes you knock down a rail or run into a jump.
WARNING: not recommended for those with anger management issues.

Next, the stable chores are completely dull and VERY repetitive, the third time you've mucked out a stall you'll understand. In-game you only have one set of courses to practice on, this is fine at first because they duplicate the first competition, but for all the rest you have to practice by going back to the main menu and waiting five minutes to load ONE event ONE time! Also, there are only 15 courses. Total. After youýve run all of them a dozen times and tried to see what the game would let you do, like jumping out of bounds or running down the cardboard cutout people in the crowd (your horse just stops when you hit them, by the way, and you can only go out of bounds in the show jumping areas) youýll find thereýs nothing left and youýve wasted twenty bucks on a game you never want to touch again.

The above refers to the "Legacy" portion of "Let's Ride RH", the "Competitions" portion is just plain lousy. The jumps are boring, the graphics are slow and bad, and the jumping distance varies and doesn't make a wit of sense to begin with. The "Mystery" part of the game is decent but nothing special, the clues in this one are either too easy or so abstract you don't have the slightest idea what you're supposed to do. The official site has a walkthrough and with a few hints from it I beat the mystery in about four hours (which includes a few game crashes). By the way, Alt + Tab causes an error in the game and it crashes so save before alternating windows. The dialog is usually amusing and occasionally downright funny but the plot is wafer thin. If you're looking for a good mystery try "The Longest Journey", possibly the best adventure/RPG ever made; nice general graphics, beautiful video sequences, phenomenal storyline, and lackluster ending (oh well, you canýt have everything, but the body of the game makes up for it).

In conclusion: The "Legacy" part is challenging (sometimes), tedious, and frustrating, the "Competitions" portion isn't worth installing, and the "Mystery" is not mysterious.
I should only have given this game one star but because it has a more realistic stable area than any other game Iýve played I threw it a bonus star. If I could rate all three...

"Legacy" ... * *
"Competitions" ... * (I feel generous)
"Mystery" ... * * *
Average: * *

Without the hassle of beating the Practice area I might have given "Legacy" 4 stars, but the sheer frustration or trying to beat your rival's time detracted too much from the story and enjoyment of the game. A word of advice, save immediately before a competition because if you lose you go back to the stables and your horses (accept the one you were riding) are gone. The events themselves take a number of tries to get first place, especially show jumping, which is usually the high point of these games. By the second competition I had stopped trying for first in that event and focused on taking second because the other two events were easy to win.

My advice: if you're a horse game collector (like me), get it but don't expect too much. For the avid collector this is a mediocre addition, for a non-horse-fanatic it should probably be avoided. If youýre looking for a game with jumping prowess try ýEquestriad 2001ý, for racing ýGallop Racerý (original or 2001, theyýre pretty much identical), or for stable management ýWillowbrook Stablesý (original or preferably ýSaddle Clubý its sequel). If none of these sound good, you might try ýRiding Starý which is an easy, low stress, low frustration eventing game with dressage, cross country, and show jumping; the downside is relatively poor graphics and repetitive stable area, but overall itýs fun. I hope my advice is of some use and that you enjoy whichever game you select.

Not Reality

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: February 08, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I exercise racehorses and from time to time take a month or two off to recoop. I bought this game because I missed the horses and wanted something to keep me occupied.

Considering the nature of most horse games in the past, this game has very good points and some not-so-good points. I think the technical information about the horses has been an issue with most horse people writing a review. The temperments are more of a "pretend" story than they are simulated. If these horses were real, this is what they would be like. But they are not real, they are digital recreations.

The chores are okay, except the order in which they are done boggles me. You don't even groom your horse (let alone bathe) after you ride! I was always taught to groom before and after you ride. The mucking gets annoying because the door to the manure pile is really narrow and it's hard to position Annie with the wheelbarrow to get them back in the stable.

I wish this game and the Let's Ride Championship Season could be combined. In this other game, the tack was actually kept in a tack room, you could custom-mix your feed, you gave the horse water, you needed a halter to take the horse to the cross-ties, you got to brush off "dirt" from your horse, and you tacked up bit by bit. However, the graphics of Championship Season were not the best, the jump course was lame, the dressage tests were laughable, and it didn't seem to matter whether you competed or not. I think if you could somehow combine the good points between these two games, you would come up with a pretty cool horse game.

But overall, Legacy of Rosemond Hill is not terrible and I would recommend it to someone who likes horses and wants to enjoy a digital reality. At least in this game you can't get thrown off or your horse run away with you! That would be realistic! One thing, I have not yet figured out how to get all 100 point thingies in the very last level before the championship. Note to all the frustrated players out there: you cannot get first place in stadium jumping without getting the 100 points and all the check marks of stuff you need to do. No matter how fast you jump the course, Melissa will always be faster if you do not.

The Competitions at Rosemond Hill I found very confusing and illogical. The flags on the jumps are sometimes on the wrong side, it's difficult to navigate through the courses (the paths are not clearly marked) and there is nothing to gain even if you do. You can't really design your own jump course, they give you a track and they let you pick out what jumps to put on it (I was hoping to design the landscape and the turns and jumps).

So, forgiving the technical fallicies, this game is pretty fun and may help if your having horse-withdrawal symptoms.

Ehem.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: November 18, 2004
Author: Amazon User

First note; I got this game for Christmas. I am more into racing games, but okay-Let's give this a try, shall we?
So I did. There is no details in the guide. You can't go beyond a canter. Unless you're using Cocktail or Darling, You simply cannot beat Comet. Note. At one point in the game Melissa has Chess in the pasture instead of Comet. Weird, if you ask me.

I will mention this. They're using actual decimals-15.7hh would be like saying 16.3hh. Uhm. Yeah. A hand is four inches, guys. Not ten. Those would be some tall horses. o.o;

Now. Alpha? You must admit, nobody really wants to keep riding him. He's slow, little stamina, and knocks down poles in show jumping. I'd suggest you go for Cocktail(My favorite), Barbie, or Darling given the chance. I think those three horses make Comet look like a donkey. Yeah. That's right. I'm dissing the donkey.

Yo. Steeple chase. It doesn't work, man! Steeplechase is on an actual racetrack with actual gates and is not on a trail in the woods. It's not a one-horse thing, either. >>; I should know. I'm obsessive with racing.

Tell me it isn't so. A horse going too fast in a canter? Puh-lease. He'd break pace before he goes 'too fast.' I'd prefer if you could gallop, but apparently not. No more comments on this.

Something I must hit upon. Isn't crross country with natural obsticles? No ramps and such? Thought so.

And how about this. Can we tell what breeds the horses are, that way we can get a general idea of speed and stamina? No?

Overall Pretty Good

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: October 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Pros on Legacy-
~You can turn your horse out to pasture, and they canter around and stuff.
~The trails(cross-country course) are pretty, especially the beach.
~You can interact with the other two characters at the stable.
~You don't have to spend money on tack. ;)
~You can make the other characters mad. Fun fun.

Cons-
Here we go.
~When your horse goes out to pasture, you can't take the bridle off. There are no halters, your horse just runs around in bit and bridle.
~HINT: When you take the wheelbarrow out, go into the stable BACKWARDS. Here you can take advantage of the whole *dumping feed into the feed box 3 feet away thing.* Just turn a little, hit the Spacebar, turn back a little bit, and back up. I always save before I leave the stable, because sometimes Anni gets stuck in between stalls and the game freezes.
~Cocktail is the fastest, but besides speed the only difference between horses is the color.
~Okay, Happy Cloud? Come on.
~15.7 hands? Uh-uh.
~There are no reins or saddle pad. The helmet magically appears when Anni mounts.
~Only one brush, one stroke on one side, and your horse is squeaky clean. *cough*
~After a shower, your horse isn't even wet.
~Uninhabited stalls have manure in them.
~The aisle is dirty about 30 seconds after it's clean.
~Steeplechase is a race against other horses, not mini-cross-country. And don't cross-country courses have natural obstacles?
~There is no trailer to transport your horse to shows.
~No other competitor gets disqualified.
~When you are disqualified, all of your horses except Alpha magically disappear.
HINT: It IS possible to win on Alpha after Rosemond Hill Trials!
It IS possible to beat Melissa, especially on Cocktail.

On Competitions, it's not worth installing.

Overall better than similar horse games

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: June 13, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Overall, this game was better than other horse games, but it had some serious problems. As everyone else has mentioned, a horse can't be 17.5 hands because there are only four inches in a hand. The most irritating thing, however, is that often, the character, Annie, crashes through the wall and into another stall. Sometimes you get trapped this way.

The characters are anywhere from really stupid to downright brain dead. John won't say ANYTHING to me other than, "Horses like apples. There are apple trees in the orchard. You can pick apples for the horses, horses eat apples." (Yes, it's repetitive and has appalling grammar!)

It's also irritating that you often aren't able to do things that are supposedly something the horses like, such as feeding them carrots (You can't even GET a carrot!) The horses don't have different personalities; they are only SLIGHTLY different speed-wise.

As for the riding, it's all right, but it's definitely not realistic. (Three-day eventing is composed of dressage, cross-country, and showjumping, and steeplechasing is actually a race at the same time as other horses.) I tried to make my horse extend his stride because the distance was wrong, but it just went fast and then stopped and reared up.

The good thing about this game is that it doesn't JUST let you ride; it also lets you do realistic stable chores. Contrary to what most people are writing, the horses are pretty easy to control.

In conclusion, buy it if you're tired of games that won't let you satble work, but if you're interested in quality riding, buy something else.

Great Game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 6
Date: May 01, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game is great!!! The competions aren't exactly like real ones, but that is because to hard because it's a computer game!!! I read other people's reviews and they are stupid!! one said u only get 1 horse when they said u get 25!!! they meant u can PICK from 25! u get 2 more when u actually win a competion! And it is easy to control! I'm a real equestrian too and even though the feed is'nt realistic and they don't show the reins, it's pretty realstic too me!! but u have to understand, IT'S A COMPUTER GAME!! REALLY GOOD GAME DON'T LISTNEN TO OTHER REVIEWS!!!!!!!!!

A GOOD GAME

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: June 01, 2005
Author: Amazon User

If you are a horse-lover you'll love this game!
The only things I find wrong with it is that they misspell words (they are so bad I am almost convinced they are under 10 years old...) the wheelbarrow is hard to get in ANY doors with, Annie crashes through walls, and the horses have weird names and PATHETIC-NAMED ANCESTORS!!!!!!!!!! I mean, who names a horse "Happy Cloud?" How can a CLOUD be HAPPY? "Game Boy?!" COME ON! (Another thing: Why do some horses have "xx" after their name? Does it mean, for example, "Barbie the Twentieth?") The only horse with cool ancestors is Mosaik.
The horses DO have different speeds and slightly different personalities. Some of them are SOOO great and some are SOOO pathetic (a.k.a. Alpha--pretty, calm, but SLOW and a COMPLETE LOSER! Barbie--looks JUST like Alpha but a LOT different, fast, fiery attitude, and once jumped a fence that was NOT a jump!)
Obviously these people do not know ANYTHING about horses. I mean, how dumb can you get? Putting ointment on a horse's legs somehow makes it not knock fences? And you can't even USE the ointment!
Melissa is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too rude and she's ugly. John's ugly too. So is Linda (or whoever that ugly person is standing by the other building).
ALSO: The key is weird and Annie says, "It looks like a locker key." What? Locker key? No way. It's a key to a cabinet. Here's how to use it (it's really hard):
Go to the part of the stable where the wheelbarrow, pitchfork, shovel, etc. are kept. There are two cabinets by the Clubroom door: a tall one and a small one on the wall. Go to the small one. Press "Q" on the keyboard. When one of the drawers starts to flash white (as many of the objects in the game do when you can interact with them), quickly press the "Enter" button. It takes time and LOTS of patience!
HINT: If you get 1st place, you'll have more choices of horses than if you get 2nd or 3rd.
Other characters don't take care of their horses (a.k.a. John paces around the grounds and talks repetitively; Melissa stands in her horse's stall or the pasture and talks rudely; Linda just does nothing.)
Overall this game is fun. I like it. If you like horses and want a game where you actually have to care for your horse, get this game. I loved it!

some help on the game and a review from a gamer and rider

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: August 28, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I bought this game on a whim because hey, it was only $10 at Target. I have not been dissapointed. You do however, have to go into the game not expecting it to be a) realistic, b) easy, or c) a racing game. If however, you enjoy horse sim games (as I do), and don't mind choppy graphics occasionally, odd spelling by the German creators of the game, and aren't bothered by things like the horses names, you won't be dissapointed. DOn't play "Competitions", its a waste of time, I only ever played "Legacy"

Here are a few tips I've gleaned from beating the game several times:

1. Always save right before you open the mailbox to compete. It often takes me two or three tries to get first place, and this way you can just quit in the middle of the competition as soon as you mess up, and start the competition right over again.
2. YOU CAN BEAT MELISSA!!!! It is ridiculous that no matter what you do, Melissa is always close with you, however it is very possible to beat her in the events, you just have to be prepared to do the competitions more then once, or twice, or okay, three times. I always quit as soon as I recieve any sort of penalty point, since Melissa will never have any at all.
3. The higher place you achieve, the better horse you get---and you cannot win with Alpha after the first one. Practically guaranteed.
4. If you hit the "tab" key, it will tell you what you have left to do, and what's done. THis is in the instruccions, but I didn't figure it out til later.

THe only problem I have ever had with the game is the fact that I cannot seems to get into Diamond Mystery. I can't even find it! But Legacy has been something I've enjoyed playing time and time again!

OK, but not wonderful

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 5 / 7
Date: October 09, 2003
Author: Amazon User

OK. I am a horsewoman. I take riding lessons and am trying to read every horse book available to man. I bought this game because I do not own a horse myself, and I wanted a reasonable game that I could do showjumping on.
This game is not great. For one thing, it's languistically incorrect. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A 15.9 HAND HIGH HORSE! This was obviously made by someone who doesn't know horses. There really is no difference in personalities between these horses. You don't even have to get strides right to clear a jump. You don't give your horse any water.The stable jobs are VERY repetitive. GEEZE. I hope there are better ones on the market. I think I'll look for a racing game next, though.
The computer always gives little "hiccups" at crucial times. The game has frozen my computer numerous times.
But, on the bright side, the courses are (somewhat, interesting. The showjumping courses are nice, somewhat that is. BUT YOU ONLY GET THE SAME PRACTICE COURSE TO RIDE EVERY TIME. GEEZE. BORING. You go into every competetion but the first completely blind... Never knowing what to expect. But, it's okay. Not great. I'm sure there are much better games though.

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