Horses of Hoofprint Bay Beginner Guide

How the game starts

From the Steam description: you have finally saved enough money for a plot of land with "a run-down shack of a stable." You and your trusted mare start training so you can enter tournaments in the nearby town, with the goal of growing the yard into a stud farm. The publisher notes that a humble rusty trailer is your home at the start, which you can eventually build into a mansion.

The core loop

1. Care — groom with brush and hoofpick, and treat scrapes and injuries (Horse care).
2. Train — complete training exercises to raise your horse's strength and confidence (Training and competitions).
3. Compete — win prize money in competitions in town.
4. Grow — spend money on building upgrades, staff, and better horses (Stable upgrades and staff).
5. Breed — pair stallions and mares to improve your horses over time (Breeding).

Beginner tips from official sources

• Expect a weak starter horse. In May 2026 the team rebalanced starter horses to "start with much lower stats" so breeding for top stats is a long-term goal. The October demo note repeats that you start with a horse with much lower stats.
• Start with Caprilli tests. Because the first show jumping event is beyond a fully trained starter horse, the team added a Caprilli-style test (precise gait transitions with low jumps) as the first step.
• Protect your Prestige. Prestige goes up from upgrades, wins, boarders and good horses. It goes down if you fail competitions, compete on a dirty horse or without appropriate clothing, or let horses get seriously ill. Higher Prestige improves the horses the breeder offers, the tack in the shop, and which trail rides you can unlock.
• Watch for gait-change warnings. A small warning icon appears before an unprompted gait change, so you can correct your horse before it speeds up or slows down.
• Use the in-game library. The Steam page says it holds equestrian knowledge about both in-game and real horses.
• Demo saves: saves from the October 2026 demo carry over to the full game; saves from the February demo do not.

Related

• Horse care
• Training and competitions
• Free demo