The Death of Realism - A Star Stable Online Documentary

Hello everyone, it's Kitti! thank you for watching my first documentary! :) I am planning to release more in the future, all with varying topics in regards to Star Stable.
I hope this documentary will start a conversation, I am interested in hearing everyone's opinion and as well things I might have missed. ♡
all credit to the owners of the original videos used!! :)
♡ If you want to be featured in my next documentary, email me your 2012-2017 SSO videos and pictures at [e-mail] !!
thank you all for watching and listening, until next time... ☆ 、

[@lilliegould6236]

I miss the mystery and the dark undertones, it used to feel like it had a direction but now they seem to change the plot regularly

[@helIokitti]

I know right! You especially see what they were going for when you play Starshine Legacy, that game is incredibly mysterious and dark. I miss when they still had a great attachment to those games, it made SSO super unique. ♡ I'm tired of the current inconsistency of the plot, especially seeing as I used to love making fan theories back then. Thank you so much for your comment. ♡

[@itzz_meh_1485]

Exactly!! Now it’s all “happy” toned and kind of too childish? I hope you get what I mean but it was wayyy better before all the graphics updates (ESPECIALLY the horses😭😭 I miss my old starter😭😭) I also miss the tense racing music

[@scdxtlf]

Yes true

[@DIVINE_REMNANTS]

​@@helIokitti I'm super late to answer this, but I think I've reae somewhere that most people who used to work on/were in charge of most concepts for the game have left the company after SSO wasn't making enough money. The remaining ppl and the new ones did not have the knowledge about all the plans that were made for the game and ultimately just had to freestyle all this 😓 Though, I'm not 100% sure! Awesome video, by the way 🎉❤

[@maxc.7770]

Star Stable's graphics were so eerie! The acidic grass, the snowy mountaintops, the hazy tint, the fog... It left me like, "What's behind that door? What's in that cave? What's behind the Icengate? Where will this adventure take me next?"

[@unremittens]

This is so well made! I’m sick of most players saying, “the only reason you miss old sso is because of nostalgia.” This is completely false. I love SSO’s old style of graphics and all the fun interactive parts of the game. I miss the challenge, and the story dream aspect that they have now completely ruined.

[@gasolinegrrl]

yeah me too !!! i love the old graphics, it seems so colorful and happy in its own simplicity :( i dont like the new one that much

[@helIokitti]

Thank you so much for your comment!! ♡ And I totally agree, it's very tiring hearing people assume that I have just grown out of the game when that is not the case at all. I still play the game every day, but Star Stable as a company has lost their original motive for this game. It seems like they have shut out their audience and would rather listen to greedy people who only care about how much money the game makes D:

[@vanessaemcrest]

so true! i can't really remember when i first started playing sso because i was quite young, but i can remember galloping around moorland on my jorvik warmblood with the nostalgic music playing. the old graphics are so comforting to look at because it reminds me of starting to play sso. the new graphics aren't bad, and i'm not complaining, but it's so different from sso's original style. thinking about it, the only places with the old graphics are some of epona, jarlaheim +jorvik stables, dino valley and cape west. that's not much and when you look back at the old graphics, it's such a difference.

[@chaipanzu]

i love the way the old style of sso was original, stood out from the other few horse games we had at the time, the edges were sharp and "edgy" but they neutralized it with the bright colors in game. Now sso is like any other game, barely worth mentioning.

[@RimFaxxe]

So many people have called me names and a troll for saying old sso was better, even to burn alive for liking old sso more than current sso:(

[@OhhItzKitty]

I started playing star stable when I was 9 and I was OBSESSED, I remember begging my mom everyday to let me play it at my grandma's house. I'm 18 now and I can't explain how much I miss it. Yes, it is nostalgic but I also miss the graphics, the small things like Loretta having a crush on Justin, even when raptor used to perform at the mall every Thursday afternoon. Especially the main quests and the lore?! It used to be so interesting! I adored it to the point where I played all the previous games (the spring/summer/autumn/winter rider, star academy & starshine legacy), it was quite dark for a horse game. But it breaks my heart that sso changed it, it's almost like a whole new game for me. Another thing that kind of annoys me is how fast you play through the game, like i started a new account and after just 12 days i was at level 16?? When i played on my first account it literally took me at least 1.5 years to reach that level. To be completely honest this is one of the best video I've ever seen in a long while and I'm glad I watched it

[@pogpogpog7507]

OHMYGOD I FORGOT ABOUT RAPTOR i miss him so much. the og lisa peterson LMAO

[@helIokitti]

I used to carry around a giant laptop case everywhere I went irl just so I could play SSO ... it was a genuine obsession and I totally miss being that passionate about something LOL I LOVE all of the examples you used, it made me think... the people of Moorland, just by themselves have SO much character .. they are the first faction you meet and already just by everyone's personality it made me so engaged. Now they all are just a bit... watered down, compared to what they used to be. The involvement of Raptor was amazing... I played Star Academy after SSO and seeing him in SA just made me so appreciative of the old SSO, and how they were trying to include some of their history from their old games into the new SSO. It seems like they're trying to erase that history now .. I mean, they did a Raptor music video challenge in late 2016!! It's going to be hard to erase that. That's genuinely terrifying how fast you can level in SSO now ... A year after I joined the game I wasn't even at the max level for the time yet, and I did quests/dailies almost every day?? Now I walk around SSO and it seems like everyone is level 20+. D: Thank you so much for your kind words though, you are definitely my motivation to continue making documentaries. ♡

[@lonewasp]

I think part of the reason why leveling is so quick now is because there's a lot more content, and back then you'd get "stuck" at a level for a while because SSO hadn't released new quests and main quests yet. There never actually *was* that much content in Star Stable, but it felt like it was stretched out a lot more because you had to wait for new quests.

[@OhhItzKitty]

@@lonewasp I totally agree but they have also removed a lot of the reputation related quests. For example, I vividly remember having to do druid training everyday for almost 2 months after doing the quest about healing the pandoric cracks in Silverglade village, until i got to continue the story line. I did a speed run through the game and i'm currently on lvl 18 and i haven't done that specific quest?

[@lonewasp]

@@OhhItzKitty I believe that reputation quest being removed was mentioned in the video. I genuinely feel like that quest was a slog and it shouldn't have been a reputation grind, however, they should have at least kept it for consistency sake, and made it a normal quest instead of a reputation one. Don't get me wrong, Star Stable removing content is definitely a thing. I don't have the privilege of replaying the game, but I have noticed missing races and differing experiences questing that newer players have compared to what I remember. It is definitely a shame that all of this old content is being lost to time. I will miss what this game was. The old CD Star Stable games are more familiar to me now than modern Star Stable.

[@lilyfrosthearts1121]

I miss it so much. I remember spamming the barn doors to try and get on the game.. the game actually had its scary moments, the easter events, the Halloween ghost haunt, the pacman game lol. No matter what people will say sso became a money hungry company who mass produces expensive horses and tack and adapted the game for little kids, leaving behind its original community. Yes every game needs upgrades and yes every company needs money but there’s so many things they left behind, the graphics were amazing for its time and now it just looks like a mediocre game.. there’s nothing special about it anymore. Before I wanted to spend money on the game I’d beg and beg my parents but now I’d rather spend on other games

[@helIokitti]

Oh I'm so glad to hear I'm not alone lol I also spammed those barn doors during looong update downloads. I truly miss the game's creepiness, because they didn't just confine themselves to "We're a kid's horse game so we need to make the game kid-friendly" they actually stepped outside that comfort zone and made the game extremely eery in some cases, and it especially showed in the main storyline. I can't help but agree with you, I can't say I didn't see this coming because every company is kind of corrupt in one way or another .. but there was something about being apart of the community back then and watching SSO's growth from a small company funded by several other companies, to them finally becoming Star Stable Entertainment and owning all of the rights to the game. It felt like we were apart of their growth, and they actually listened to us. We helped them reach that milestone, and they rewarded us in many different ways ... the main one being they made us feel included. Thank you so much for your comment. ♡

[@Pog.anonymous]

This is amazing and so underrated, as an OG it's changed so much that it just doesn't feel the same. I could go on for hours about this topic.

[@helIokitti]

Thank you so much for your comment! ♡ I totally agree, this topic is also something that I could spend hours talking about haha.

[@queenperrytheplatypus458]

I miss the old SSO so much. I loved how everything looked. Now all the trees, buildings, etc, are all so cartoonish (perhaps a bit too cartoonish) and.. ah.. it just looked better before. I wish SSO could let some of us have an option or button to see the old graphics over the new ones so everyone could enjoy both worlds

[@granattowanna1953]

This really made me feel that I'm finally not alone. You usually see the "big starstable" youtubers speaking about how the old game was ugly and horses were janky in comparison to the new sso etc. For me, this new graphical change is for the worst as the environments became bland, boring and forgettable. I vividly remember recording the older ghv one day before the update. Next day when I saw modern ghv, I didn't really feel anything. I wasn't woven, just disappointed. Now I can't even recall how the modern ghv looks, the memorable parts are only the old untouched ones. Also the mayor problem with these new horses is the lack of any creator's stamp. Like they are just realistic, nothing about these newer breeds makes them rememberable or iconic. (exception being jorvik wilds and pre-new Friesian horses). Quests also got boring. (Not to mention that they rewrote the whole story removing a good chunk of it.) Rather than being invested in the story I just laugh about how stupid some lines are. The problem is also modern sso takes a lot of inspiration from Harry Potter and it shows in their never quests. I remember how old star stable used to portray mystery and players theorizing and speculating about its lore or objects. I also fondly remember this gossip where if you've reached level 11 and got a quest all the clues where you had to place the items or who to talk to would disappear, making it rewarding to actually listen to the dialogue. Alas, modern sso is a poor excuse for a fun, mesmerizing game. It got very easy to play and not remotely rewarding to do any quest. Many features of old star stable (such as the logbook where you could read the quest again or retake it if failed) got removed, others that didn't suffer the same fate got terribly barebone. In the end its very refreshing to see people share my perspective!

[@helIokitti]

All of this is extremely understandable and relatable, I think the only place I actively choose to go to when I want to feel some autumn vibes in GHV is Scarecrow Hill and Pi's house .. because they are (for the most part) untouched haha. Not to be blunt ... but they really ruined the most special area in the game, Golden Hills Valley ... Might as well not even call it Golden anymore. When you mentioned the horses lacking the creator's stamp, I literally gasped because you're so right ... That's exactly what I've been trying to say for YEARS!! The old starter model back in the day was literally just a 3D replica of their original art style, and that is SO unique!! Wow... you bringing up the level 11 rule... It was genuinely something that I had almost forgotten, I remember it distinctly!!! Once you reached level 11, you would get a pop up that said "in an active quest, there will no longer be orange blurs telling you where the objective is" I miss that so much. And you're right!! It made you have to pay extra attention to the dialogue! I miss when there was an option in the quest log to discard a quest, kind of off subject but I really wish they had kept it. I don't even know why they decided to remove the option in the first place. I'm so glad you shared your perspective, you should be so proud of what you have written because it has greatly helped me wrap my head around some forgotten aspects of this game that will help me tremendously in my next writings. ♡ Thank you so so much!!

[@kiwiofoof]

I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been playing this game since 2014ish, and I feel like I’ve just been watching the game become more and more decrepit, especially in the past couple of years. I’m just sitting here, watching SSO remove all the realism and novelties that make the game itself, and replace it with some watered-down version for ease of comfort. I mean, now how am I going to explain why I spam the W key when racing, since our horses apparently have endless energy! It’s sad, since the more they remove, the more I myself feel removed, and it’s a whole different gaming experience now than it was 5 years ago. I feel like SSO has been doing some things right, like adding snow back, but at the same time, that’s equivalent to a drop of water in the ocean. But yea, don’t mind me ranting, really good point, and very well said, definitely glad I stumbled upon your channel :)

[@helIokitti]

You made such great points with this comment, the analogies that you used were so accurate and I could not agree more with what you said! i'm so glad you found my channel as well, because this comment certainly gave me a sense of validation to what i have been feeling about this game.. from one SSO veteran to another haha! This made my day :)

[@montanamountaingarden476]

The horses always had endless energy

[@catdotcom]

​@@montanamountaingarden476 They didn't. You had to keep pressing W to keep your horses moving, otherwise they would slow down, and they would get tired as you rode them. Their needs would decay, and you'd need to feed, brush, water and/or pick their hooves as the day went on.

[@chaipanzu]

the habit of spamming W won't ever leave me-

[@sav2823]

I totally agree with everything except the spamming W. That was removed for accessibility reasons and honestly, I'm glad it was. It seriously messed with my OCD and made playing the game stressful sometimes. They should have made it so you could turn it on or off in the settings.

[@snickerdoodle9267]

One thing I don't think a lot of people pay mind to is the art style. I'm not talking about the upgraded graphics here -- but rather the colors chosen when upgrading said graphics. If you look at older videos, you'll see the grass and nature around you was much more yellowish in tint compared to now. This mimicked the idyllic Swedish summer landscape (which Jorvik was largely based of off), a moment of endless summer and fun. It also provided that realism you are speaking off. Colors -- and in extension: sounds -- do so much to provide the player with a feeling. Looking at these old clips, I truly realize just how much I miss that bright green grass. It brought happiness and "easygoingness" whereas the new blue-tinted grass brings mystery... which I suppose is on brand for what Starstable is focusing on more these days. Funny isn't it? How Starstable's journey from a challenging, realistic, comforting game to a mystical, magical, dreamy sort of deal can be summarized by just looking at the color of the grass. Here's hoping Astride will bring me back to that endless summer of our childhood.

[@snickerdoodle9267]

I just heard you spoke some of the colors, apologies cx Anyway, there are my thoughts on it as well.

[@catdotcom]

I feel this so much! I feel like Star Stable lacks in the environment department now. Why did they remove most of the ambient sounds? Why did they make the grass, dirt, everything, so dark and blueish now? The old night sky was way darker and full of stars, the old lightning during the dawn and dusk...the new graphics are prettier, yes, but they lack harmony and life.

[@helIokitti]

You're literally so right, it's crazy to see how different the color scheme was back then .. to how it is now. You made a great point on how the second largest aspect of the graphics (the grass, next to the largest aspect .. the sky!) really set the tone for the game. I love your observation on how the devs drew from their own landscape in Sweden and implemented it into the game. This makes the game truly unique, I always loved how they included elements from their heritage. Like Midsummer! ♡ Thank you so much for this informative comment. :)

[@soleil4722]

I wouldn't agree that the new sso is magical or mysterious (it USED to be) but you're right about the grass. The thing that bothers me SO much is that the grass is the same color everywhere. I remember how in one place it was light green, in one yellowish, and in one dark, now it's all the same everywhere

[@donnat4668]

This is the biggest thing I dislike about the current SSO. Of course the details of the buildings, trees, hills, and other features are more fine and detailed, but I really, really miss the more yellow and spring-green tones. Looking at vistas from hill- and mountaintops was so, so pretty originally, and actually kind of looked more realistic because of the blurred outlines of distance views.

[@VeinInthings]

The progress bar is the exact same as the smilies. They just removed it for aesthetics. Dino was removed so players wouldn’t have to buy a certain breed to go fast there. I miss old Dino :(

[@helIokitti]

I see! I was wondering if the actual progression was buffed or something, it's still a little confusing but I understand if it's for their new aesthetic ... I wish they kept cold tolerance but made your starter horse cold tolerant, so that players who couldn't get a fluffy horse could still enjoy Dino to its full capacity. :) Thank you for your kind comment. ♡

[@KristinaMistmore]

It's sort of ironic how they removed the cold tolerance so people "don't have to get a specific horse to go there" but in literally every other aspect of the game it's all about us buying horses, since that's all they're focusing on nowadays.

[@Imhungry-ug7ke]

I agree with you. I would die to log in the old crusty sso again. I wish they would listen to the sso community

[@helIokitti]

All of these international servers they pay to keep up and running... It would be crazy if they would open maybe just one or two servers in a 2013 version of the game. I doubt any of the devs have the old models and source code, but seeing as they still use the same game engine... it wouldn't be impossible. ♡ Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@mariiie902]

The Star Stable Company needs to see this video to understand us older players!!

[@helIokitti]

wow :3 Thank you so much, this is such a genuine compliment. ♡ I really hope one day SSO can see this video too.. or at least what I spoke about gets spread around the game.

[@D1lxrdrxgow]

They don't worry about older players anymore. Why? they only want to attract newer, younger people so that their parents buy them star coins. It's not the children's fault of course, it's the corporation that sees nothing but money anymore.

[@svidemic]

@@D1lxrdrxgow This was so painful to read because you're right

[@pandora2307]

I started playing since November 2013 and let me tell you: Old sso was much better in every aspect. First of all the main story. Main Story in SSO back then was a continuation of Starshine Legacy, Star Academy & Star Stable CD games. The OG CEO left SSE in 2018 and that's where the entire game went downhill for good. Instead of magical land, interesting characters we get typical childish storyline with unlikeable main cast (Lisa, Linda, Anne, Alex) none of them act as they used to. They all act like some sterotypes. The writing is just painful to read, like come on! I could do a better job. But thats not all. Next we have horses. I remember back in 2014/15 new horses were really rare and exciting. NOT ANYMORE lmao. They keep throwing new horses from left to right. Some of them are polished and finished, and some aren't. They claim, they'll take our feedback, but they never do (maybe in rare cases). Back to the quests, it's not only main story that suffers from that "4 kids stories" all side quests are as bad. I quit the game in 2020 cuz I just couldn't bare it anymore. It was too much changed for kids. No more challenge, nothing. Just buy new horse simulator and if you complain, then white knights will come for you and call you ungrateful :). I look back at those old videos and miss old sso. But what can you do? Nothing really.

[@helIokitti]

I love the analogies you used, they made me giggle and you're so right. ♡ It's like the entire company got flipped on its head, I wish that the management got passed down to someone who actually cared about what the original game stood for. Instead it seems like their only objective is to reel everyone into buying their newest product, whether it be a new horse or new overpriced clothes or shiny crystal cats that cost the equivalent of $14. When SSO was originally created they used a lot (and I mean A LOT) of the assets from SSL, SA, and SS .. probably because since they were a small company owned by many other companies they had limited rights and limited budget. But it worked?? It made sense and it made the game so delightful even if the assets were hand-me-down. Now that they have creative freedom because Star Stable owns all of the rights to everything they are throwing the potential away. It's so disappointing. I also miss when horses only came out 3 or 4 times a year, it was an actual event! It was widely celebrated for weeks, I was actually excited and willing to fork up $30 to buy the new horses. Now I literally cannot tell the Belgian Warmblood apart from the Tennessee Walker because they were released basically a week apart. Have you noticed that they've decided to drop all of the colors of the horses instead of waiting a couple of weeks, too? Soooo tiring. Thank you for your comment, I'm so sorry that SSO pushed you to the point of quitting. It's been nearly 10 years for you too, you really deserve better. ♡

[@christinescorner1858]

One of the things I miss most is the old trailering system when they were separated by counties and could only go to corresponding colours. It made sense that a trailering service wouldn't take you clear across the map, and it also made you utilize the ferry system to go between counties. Now any trailer can go to any location, which yes is more convenient but it's less fun. Nowadays I purposefully don't trailer at all or practice the old county limits; it forces me to run, explore, and appreciate the map again. A lot of players started to complain about the map feeling small, and I think that was larely due to the trailering system change.

[@BreakTheL0CK]

Any older graphics are somehow so cute and innocent... I'm also scared of the avatar change in SSO theyre preparing :(( also the bloom effect is really cool! I wish i could play w/ it

[@cutmyself]

this actually made me so sad

[@helIokitti]

I know right, it's a very depressing topic. :( I hope it will become a little less bittersweet for us all.

[@evuii9685]

This video made me actually want to cry! I miss the feeling I got growing up on this game 😞

[@helIokitti]

Aww.. I'm so sorry! I wish it weren't so bittersweet nowadays, I hope it won't feel empty for much longer. ♡ Thank you for your comment, I hope you have a lovely day!

[@somefool319]

i play sso since 2015 and played the star stable seasons and starshine legacy games as well. Music and visuals are everything when you're trying to convey a feeling, and the past 2-3 years sso have been changing visuals to be differently stylised, colored more bright and warm, as well as the music seeing a more orchestral and upbeat change. old sso has a distinct somewhat misterious vibe. The art style was akin to the comics, with exaggarated characters in an oddly proportioned landscape, full of sharp edges, dark contrasts, more common use of dull colors and rough textures and it was sometimes wacky sometimes quite realistic! Then all those visulas mixed together with music motifs that are calming but also foreboding, the game's older version had a very different sort of "direction". new sso's art style is soft, rounded and smoothened out, colors are bright and pop with all the colors of the rainbow creating an overall happy and whimsical atmosphere which is also supported by the newer soundtracks that also have more "happy harmonies". you mentioned the trailer changes which really do destroy immersion. traveling "on foot" in a game is the best way to give a sense of scale to the player. because if you have to run from one end of the map to the other your only factor isnt only the distance but also the time it takes. if you add fast travel you completely obliterate this aspect of worldbuilding! it also takes away the "novelty" of boarding a boat or missing the bus or figuring out how on earth will you fit your horse in the hot air balloon! restricted trailers didnt just give a sense of scale but also made traveling more diverse. all n all -audiovisalwise- old SSO felt like "a place" with mysteries, beauty, intrigue and danger - and new sso feels like "a safe place" with whimsy, magic and idyllic convenience. I grown to like new sso too (reminds me of the art direction World of Warcraft took after the Mists of Pandaria expansion), but can't deny since about 2018, it's almost a whole different game!

[@helIokitti]

I totally wish I could've read this comment while I was writing my script. You explained the two eras of SSO so well, I'm so shocked. It all makes so much sense. Thank you so much for taking the time to listen, and even add onto my points. You really proved that you saw eye to eye with what I was saying in the documentary, and I'm so grateful!! ♡ The comments about worldbuilding and the music comparisons, I never realized it but you're right! The new music is way most orchestral, I feel like the old music was electronic with hints of orchestra. I don't even see GED or Dark Core as a threat anymore, Garnok isn't even real at this point. It's been 12 years and we still really haven't been faced with our biggest threat that has been building since 2005. It's so disappointing where they have taken the story, I feel like they're touching more on the "bond" and "friendship" between the keepers of Aideen and the soul riders aspect, but it all just feels lifeless. Our character is just a message man at this point, a retriever. They have added in conversational choices lately, pieces of dialogue we can choose... But it's not enough! It doesn't make me feel immersed ): I'm glad I got to speak with you though, as you absolutely know what you are talking about and have taken the time to explore the CD games as well :) Thank you so much for this eye-opening comment. ♡

[@Ferindel]

Ah yes, my beautiful old crusty pixelated world with a horse that has frog eyes and a moose snout. Riveting gameplay.

[@helIokitti]

And to top it all off .. doing races at 20 fps. ♡ I've genuinely never felt more alive

[@zixea3318]

I’m going into game design and development for college, and my main hobby project is gonna be to make a (single player) old star stable ‘clone’ (obvs not copied assets or anything, a new game, just with the feel of old sso)

[@helIokitti]

OMG I wish you so much luck in your journey. ♡ This sounds so interesting, and I 10000% believe that you can achieve this. Let me know if you ever need to reference any of the old assets though, I have data from early 2016 SSO that I sometimes play around with in 3D Object Converter haha. ♡ Thank you for your hopeful comment :)

[@amillasyra8168]

Uhhh, that sounds cool ❤️ I hope you are going to have success with this idea 👍

[@zixea3318]

@@helIokittiI have all of those actually LOL. I’m really invested in it still (surprisingly)

[@chaleksandra6278]

What I always mean by "I miss old sso" is that i miss the little challenges it had, they we're the fun part of playing sso for me. Being so impatient to get the quest for jumping from justin, buying a North Swedish horse just so i could run around HDV, doing reputation to get my own Fjord or just waiting for the ferry and the bus. I also miss when ingame events and the horse market would take place in different places around Jorvik and they weren't glued to Moorland just so new players can access them. These little things made the game much more special and alive for me and it makes me kinda sad that the challenge is now gone.

[@gasolinegrrl]

i love this video, so happy that there's still bunch of people who miss the old things and look back in time just to talk about how things used to be. :( you're getting a sub and i can tell that you're definitely gonna be one of my favorite sso creators !!

[@helIokitti]

Aww, I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed this video!! ♡ Thank you so much for the comment, I am glad people like you have found my channel.. this will always be a safe place to vent out about how lovely and immersive the old game used to be! ♡ and TYSM for letting me know about the dino valley race!!!! LITERALLY MADE MY DAY I HAVE TO GO TRY IT NOW

[@Minatozy]

Wow, that video was awesome! I've been thinking about some of those things for ages, but never managed to put them all together like that. It's a shame the game turned out as it did. I wish they would change some of it back even though they won't. Anyway, loved the video! It was so well done, and I hope you keep making more stuff like that!

[@feliciacatborn3310]

I agree, I just wish sso would listen to their old players because they know the game so well and it's not just a coincidence that so many people would agree with this video and relate. If the Star stable team would just take that into concideration I feel like the game could go back at least a little bit to how it used to be. Btw, I watch a lot of your videos you're awesome!!

[@helIokitti]

WOOOWW Super super sorry for the late reply but wow when I woke up to your comment I was so happy, you have been my go to source for all Star Stable news for the past 5 years, I love your videos and it's been amazing seeing your growth!! ♡ I agree, I wish they didn't make the choices they made. I understand that everything they do is in the business' best interest but I wish they would at least try to keep parts of the game that made it stand out. It has always been a kid's horse game, but now it REALLY feels like a kid's horse game, if that makes sense haha. Thank you for your comment, I promise I will work hard to make more documentaries for you! ♡

[@queenheartc]

To this day, I am devastated about the loss of potential of the whole game. I started playing just when it came out and I can not believe it's development. I was so immerged in my identity as a soulrider, so excited for every new day and how the story will continue and always wondered, what would happen next. Nowadays, StarStable feels useless, worthless of my time. Not only because the story had a really weird turn since Pandoria and before but because it seems to be all about economy, not the people who enjoy playing it. We all miss old StarStable and StarStable does not seem to care at all. Old horses being removed breaks my heart and I am trying to grasp every single straw that reminds me of my childhood since as I am getting older, some of the memories start to fade and other things are more important. I feel like my only escape from reality which made me feel warm and safe gets erased. My whole childhood, all the hours I spent playing are getting erased. A part of my soul feels like being exiled into eternity and it just does not feel right. The first real shock was the removal of the Kalter. And that's when I felt a part of me dying.

[@Juniperberrii]

Ngl I was happy for the smily being removed because it made me insanely guilty when they were all depressed but I do miss when the horses made noises and would slow down on their own and tbh I wish they added more unique characteristics to the horses as well like some slow down faster or some turn better. Also the fact not every horse can wear the new tack including my jorvik wild horse make me so upset (like I can get the older models but some of the new ones can't wear the tack!) I also wish I could have experienced having the bus (They also need to update more areas, focus on quests more and add more stuff to do bc ngl kinda sick of getting horses every month..)(also also love the ferries)

[@violetbunn6455]

I started playing this game when I was 10 in 2015. I remember logging on every day and having so much fun riding around, all the friends I've made in the game and everytime I hear the old soundtrack I almost start to cry, because today, Startstable isn't what it used to be anymore at all. I agree with all the points you've made, it's an amazing compilation of all the reasons I have for wishing for the past to return. SSE is changing everythng about Jorvic and I wish they wouldn't because it is such an imortant part of my childhood that I don't want to have to miss. Edit: Another thing the "added" is for non star riders to be able to jump from the get go! having Justin teach us makes so much more sense, bausause jumping is something very advanced irl. When I heard that was possible I was a bit angry to be honest becuase the ability to jump was one of the reasons I wanted to become lifetime star rider, and now it's just a basic feature (good for the new players, but hopefully its understandable where I'm coming from).

[@helIokitti]

Oh absolutely, the soundtracks really are what make the game. ♡ It is something that me and my friends who quit SSO connect with, for a once independent company the music they made for the game was beyond spectacular. The music nowadays doesn't carry the same weight ): And it's so frustrating that they were and are trying to get rid of them. The music is perfect, and shouldn't be changed in my opinion. It should remain as a staple, a trophy that says "This game has been living for the better half of 12 years" which IS an accomplishment itself. But alas, they try to suck the soul out of every corner of the game. When they first made jumping accessible for everyone (what was it like... 2018 or 2019?) I didn't know how to feel at first. In all honesty I was quite bitter because like you said, I paaaid for this feature helloooo? But as time goes on I am for the idea of making a special feature like that available to kids who can't afford star rider. :) I thought about including it in the video though, because you're SO right!!! Jumping IS something that is advanced. I used to take horse lessons and it took me a whole year before I was able to jump, it was very special. Not to mention the quest with Justin was such a cute and immersive detail. He met us at Steve's Farm, which was in a way him passing the torch to Silverglade because we spent so long with him and his family in Moorland and now we are on to exploring the Silverglade side of the map. But he wants to give us one last gift before we go... the ability to jump :) Ah.. such a lovely questline, I'm so beyond sad that they got rid of it. They could've at least kept it and instead he could've given us jumping tips. Thank you so much for your comment. ♡ I can tell you really listened to what I said in the video and I appreciate you seeing eye to eye with me. ♡

[@zuzia4750]

i wish sso could see this i really miss old graphics, way more realistic game. i just come back to buy all old generations horses before they will be gone for good 😭😭😭 really good video 📷

[@Shyieko]

Can we all agree on mass sendind this video to sso? T-T this is exactly what I've been trying to explain for years!

[@kallyywallyy]

They won't care... but who said we shouldn't give it a try? :D I'M IN!

[@Shyieko]

@@kallyywallyy let the revolution start 🤝🏻

[@m4tta]

yes!

[@feliciacatborn3310]

@@Shyieko Mee tooO!!!!

[@AngelicBxbex]

Im all in for that

[@ghost_noetic]

i had a dream a while back that a group of passionate players managed to revert the game back to a 2015 state. Some parts were broken, some didn't work, quests weren't available neither were shops, but it was the first version of the project after all. People had to register new accounts to play, so it was just like playing star stable for the first time. The old character editor, the old intro, the low quality sounds,, it was all so familiar anyways, I woke up feeling completely euphoric lmao. for a second I actually thought it was real. i know there were attempts at creating an "old graphics" shader but as far as I know the project is cancelled due to files becoming corrupted or smt... oh well, thank you for this video. as an "old" player myself, there are features and little details that I can't even remember if they were real or not which is kinda sad, but at least now I know I'm not imagining things lol I haven't been playing for about 3-4 years now, I've completely lost interest in the game sometime after the release of Mistfall (me and my friend were absolutely thrilled about it! we got on every single day just to check if anything has changed at the building site, trying to look for possible places to glitch through the wall). It was the last time I had fun with the game, even though at one point I would've died for this game. (I resonate deeply with that section of the video where you talk about this)

[@JWade-pe6td]

Oh wow, this is such a great video. You really went in depth on what a lot of people have been feeling and saying lately. Thanks so much!

[@helIokitti]

Thank you so much for your comment!! ♡

[@Bmetje]

As a late 2014/early 2015 player I am so happy that I was able to play the game before the major changes started happening. Watching this video really gave me a change to relive all those memories I had and remember how comforting the game was to little me. The game felt so surreal and magical. It still hurts to see the changes SSO is making. Yes the horses and gameplay may be better right now, but all the little details SSO has removed made it feel ''less''. This video is amazing, thank you so much!

[@helIokitti]

I'm so glad the game gave you a sense of comfort when you were a kid, I can totally relate and say it was the greatest gift to me as a child. ♡ And on the opposite side, it is bittersweet to have to wake up every other Wednesday morning and see that they are erasing a gen 1 horse .. or worse. ): Thank you for watching the video, I'm so grateful. ♡

[@SalemIarna]

I very much agree that many of the things SSO took out don't make sense, especially the cold temperate horses. One change that would have been more reasonable with that is if they made the starter horses cold tolerant simply so that players wouldn't be forced to spend money on a horse in order to enjoy the valley. Something I disagree with a little bit is the bus. I don't see waiting for a bus as a challenge, I just see it as a time sink. At the end of the day, I'm playing the game to enjoy myself, and there are certain aspects of real life that I don't mind being made easier. There's a balance that needs to be struck because immersion is important, as you've said, but not every feature needs to mimic reality. Star Stable seems to be struggling with that balance. I'm also so used to pressing the w key at frequent intervals that I still do it. It's muscle memory that will never go away lol. I'm sure they did it to make mobile better, but mobile is already pretty hard to control, so I only use it to feed my horses and do certain event/holiday quests if I can't get to my computer.

[@helIokitti]

Ooh I like that idea! I mean.. if our starter horses can have wings they can definitely have some sort of cold tolerance haha. I will always be behind making the game more accessible to those who cannot afford certain items or horses in this game. That is completely understandable.. I almost cannot see a reality where they would at least decrease the wait time of the bus because ever since the release of the global store the mall is practically abandoned. It definitely is a balance! :o I just recently invested in a very clicky keyboard so you can imagine during championships my room is very, very noisy LOL I will never ever be able to train myself to let go of the W key during a fast gallop. It is weird how some mobile features/changes tend to bleed into PC version... i can't really bring myself to play mobile because I can't have shaders and it is, like you said, hard to control... only when my pc is unavailable haha! :) Thank you for your comment, your points and opinions are always appreciated!!! ♡♡

[@Who_is_Toast]

Honestly, I don’t understand why sso decided to remove all of these features. They were a big part of what made the game fun and interesting, not to mention realistic. Couldn’t they just create a poll for the players to vote if they wanted the feature removed or not? Oh yeah, I remember now, sso doesn’t care about its players. They used to, but not anymore. My suspicion is that the management is to blame. I mean, the same people who created the game in the first place don’t work on it anymore. It was such a fun part of my childhood and it used to be my favorite game for years. Now, I barely log on. And whenever I do, I just buy a horse and then log off. I’ve actually started to buy horses I always wanted when I started playing, but never got to buy. The old horses just hit different. Just me who thinks they’re way more fun to ride and have way more personality than the new horses? Just me? Ok.

[@helIokitti]

youtube deleted my comment again RAAAH -_- The company has been completely flipped on it's head.. the biggest and most obvious example being Matilda. I know she was just a spokeswoman for SSO, but it makes me wonder who else must've left behind the scenes. Which is only normal for a company, people do come and go but I really wish their seats could've been filled by people who understand the game better, and the importance it serves for the players. I'm so glad I'm not alone in this one, since 2019 I've made KZbin videos on several different channels buying every new horse SSO has put out since then. I was basically lying through my teeth and you can totally hear it, I pretend to be excited but in all honesty .. every new horse they put out sends me further and further into disappointment. I find myself becoming more excited at the news that an old horse breed has been discounted, rather than news that ANOTHER new horse is dropping. I am way more attached to gen 1 and part of gen 2, I'm much more happier riding those horses. ♡ It was much more exciting 2013-2016 when a new horse was being released, because they paced themselves and it made it all worth the wait. Thank you for your support, it made me smile when you said you also ride older gen horses :D

[@karinpeh]

Unpopular opinion (maybe): global store ruined the social part of the community, I believe that if the global store was used as a catalog instead of a store, it would motivate the community to go explore Jorvik. Most areas are completely barren nowadays. And to be quite frank, it’s sad to see

[@azurih]

Thank you so much for this video Kitti, for expressing how I feel about everything Star Stable has taken away. I think for me the "togetherness" of the game is definately what has gone. The bus, the ferry and trailer areas all added that bit of challenge. It was fun to have to wait a bit and you had to think about your route and how to get somewhere. I too met many friends just waiting for the bus, searching for clothing items or even just getting help with quests/helping people who got stuck. I think the stable care was an good addition though, especially if you have many many horses. I think the need to care for the horse while playing should definately come back, but I fear it would get hate now. The events we have lost too, such as chasing the rainbows for gold and the maypole that used to be in everwind field, the old potato race etc. Those quests you talked about that are now removed is just really sad, especially the druid training as they really made you feel you had earned your place as a soul rider. The Kallters were really special and the beauty of earning the Fjord was such a happy moment. The cold breed part of DV made so much sense, but now even that doesn't matter. The game is just kinda bland now and even getting a new horse is just a collecting exercise. Nothing feels earned. It has been made even worse by Discord where the majority of the time no one even communicates with each other in chat except to have arguments or insult. I love the positives of Discord for dressage etc, but there is just so little need for players to associate together now and no real collective goal or feeling. Star stable had such a unique feel, it was it's best feature and they just removed it all.

[@sparxmaiden841]

I miss the training... the lightning and the sun circle. I miss how there was an actual animation when we used our rune wand. I miss decorating for the holidays and putting porrage out for the elves and meeting Santa. I miss being able to relax and do daily quests and actually work to achieve something. Now it feels like the rep quests for gardening are the only ones untouched, and they last forever! I miss interacting with the story and world, and not just having things pre set up for special events. I also miss when we did get new areas, you could actually do something in them! There was a working stable, and bits of lore, and quest chains and rep building and races! We haven't got a proper city/town/village since cape west tbh. Once you finish the few quests in Epona there's really nothing to do there, and no dedicated stable besides new hilcrest. Crescent moon village doesn't have anything to do in it. And once you finish the short quests in wildwoods and mistfall, there's nothing to do but a handful of never changing daily quests. Where's the magic, mystery and exploration? Having things to discover around every corner? The way we could ride randomly and suddenly the music would go creepy if we got close to something mysterious, like hidden paths and dark core bases?

[@theelementalhaven]

The spider quest, token quest and others like it. Where never meant to be completet like most of us did. They are meant to be something you progress on while playing through other quests. Together with something that encourages you to go explore the world map. Faras workshop and the horse machine are also in the catagory of “passive quests” they are not meant to be quests you focus on exclusively. Sadly this have lead to many older players getting the wrong impression about some of these quests, since we basically started them “to late”

[@felsiccanis]

When you said "convenience is the trade in for immersion" you hit the nail on the head. Though all the new features like the global store are super convenient, it completely makes stuff like the mall and shops around Jorvik pretty much obsolete. Also when they removed cold tolerance, I completely agree. Yes it makes it less frustrating when you forget your cold tolerant horse in the stable and you go into the valley, but it's just so unrealistic. A lean, shirt haired Arabian isn't going to be okay in the cold like an icelandic pony. And it makes the quests way faster to complete and barely challenging. It's nice, yes, but it's no longer unique

[@Horrorluvverr]

even though I am a newer player for abt 4 years id much prefer the old star stable it just seems calmer and just overall a. bit better than the newer star stable. I am jelly of the people who have star stable as a core memory.

[@helIokitti]

That's so interesting to hear! I really hope one day you get to experience the old SSO. ♡ The vibes cannot be easily replicated, I miss when the team were more invested in atmosphere rather than sales. ♡ Thank you for your comment

[@Horrorluvverr]

@@helIokitti I really appreciate the comment that you left♡ and hopefully I do get to experience even the slightest bit of the. old sso thank you ♡♡♡

[@Kaykaykaykaykaykaykayk]

Never be too sad now that star stable has changed. We always have our old horses, try to buy some as they leave so you have them to look back on. Riding my fresian from 2015 always makes me feel so much better about playing sso

[@lelijaab5426]

I hate the Silverglade update tbh

[@helIokitti]

If it weren't supposed to be Silverglade Village, I think I'd love it. I wish they put this much energy into their new areas rather than updating preexisting locations. I mean it's been 12 years and we're STILL on the southern half of the map, like seriously? I hate the music the most. It infuriates me every time I accidentally step into the Silverglade region, I consciously avoid it at all costs. I know it's not supposed to be that serious but like... How do you ERASE the most iconic hangout spot that is Steve's Arena entirely???? Are you dumb?? Silverglade is just an eyesore now, not to mention laggy and full of unnecessary obstacles like benches, swings, flower beds, it's all in the way! Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@carebear7342]

i think one of the things i miss the most is the old ferry music, like it was a bop

[@EsmeraldaTurtlestar]

Thank you for this well made documentary. I've been playing since October 2014. Even though I don't have the same motivation anymore to play sso as I did back then, due to life and also I just recently turned 23, my main motivation back then and to this day is to NEVER miss out on any opportunity to get player-xp. And I am happy about that. Hearing you saying it only took you two months to reach level 20 made my jaw drop. I remember I got to level 15 after finishing the entire game after like 6-7 months and ever since I've slowly but surely leveling up as new quests and seasonal quests has been introduced. I'm now halfway to level 25, and this is for me the only way of showing others I've been around for a long time. Even though players can reach level 21-22 within a few months, NONE of them can ever reach level 24, and soon 25 which gives me comfort in the nostalgia I sometimes get when thinking about all that you discussed. Your introduction was perfect, cause that's what we all did back then, wasn't it? I miss it honestly. I see the need to change, and me being a young adult I of course realize this game is not created for me. But I do miss the old feelings, the old graphics. I like the new graphics and a lot of the new changes sso does. However the removal of certain features, blockers, and changing of older quests makes me a bit sad. I am glad I lived to play them before they were changed. Seeing the game progress, even though they've changed the main storyline to the unrecognizable, what makes me happy is that they finally are re-using old places in the game that were added but never used. The recent being Fort-Maria finally having a purpose, and also seeing that we will also finally enter the Devils Gap. I remember I used to glitch myself in there to see what was in there, because the name, it never opening was exciting! I remember I was on the moon when they finally connected all the trailers in the game, and to this day I still am. But the feeling of jumping into the ferry to get to the Jarlaheim competition, taking the trailer to Nimlers to go to Wolf Hell In (Nowdays it's Wolf Hall In) to get to Jarlaheim was also funny, I miss it in a sense, but at the same time not so much. The global store however, I was never a fan of it. I always LOVED to go to the different stores around in the game to get a certain clothing item or tack, or to search up the Jorvik database to find out where I could find this specific item. All in all, I am mostly a fan of the new changes SSO does, and them also finally realizing features players have been asking for years, but if I could go back to play sso back in 2014-2015 with the same nostalgia, feelings and excitement I had back then, I 100% would.

[@luupine]

Absolutely. I know your video was created to touch on points of immersion lost in the game, and one I would like to tack on is NPCs. Star Stable Online has dulled down EVERY NPC and tried to make their new, boring ones iconic (i.e. mean Loretta vs new, kid-friendly Loretta, NPCs rudely bossing you around in a humorous light, punk-rock Lisa who was an outcast but found her place vs born perfectly into the horse-world, unrelateable Lisa, etc.). The storyline is impossible to follow along with, and there are no exhilarating, funny, or scary quests that keep you on the edge of your seat. I used to literally freak out whenever SSO dropped the next bit of their main-storyline, but now I don’t even do them unless I’m *that* bored. The game lost every special touch it once had because the team keeps removing all its charms. There is still a chance to save the game, and I’m so happy players like you are using their voice to express this. Great video!

[@emiliasundstrom3950]

I really miss the way we had to care for out horse after running with them for a while. It was so realistic because obviously your horse becomes tired and needs water and feeding? :( I loved it and it was so cozy. When training with friends we would always stop at stables to care for our horses and then continue❤️

[@Rinzessinea]

What I noticed most was the change of halloween. The scary quest with this little girl or dark spirit ball or what it was and the two pirate dudes being scared as hell. That was so great and I was looking forward to this scary tingley quest. Many other changes I heard for the first time when watching your video. Why on earth would they remove so many great quests?? 😮😮🙁

[@jasminedeerpaw]

This is the video I've been longing for someone to make for ages. Nobody could've said it better. I agree with every single word you said whole heartedly, and you covered all of these points I've been trying to make to everyone for ages. This video left me hopeful that there are many that still view the game exactly as I do, and we're not alone. These are all the most extreme problems with the game, it's no longer a game. The old atmosphere, difficulty, presence of characters with personalities and stories, art style, and actual gameplay made this game so unique and enjoyable, especially as a child eager to explore what felt like a magical world ahead of us. The old art style had such a distinctive feel and iconic features, no matter how exaggerated some features and proportions were, it was always perfect. The game was like no other, and I never wanted to take my eyes off of it. I don't care that the new horses are extremely realistic, it adds absolutely nothing to the game and personally; takes away from what used to be a fantastical wonderland. I personally feel that the old style was actually lightyears more realistic, considering the actual grass textures, cobblestone, dirt, environment, villages- they were all actually there. Every place was unique and felt like a new town, the old soul and dark riders were absolute perfection. The character design back then was everything, and here we go, another thing that was thrown away. There was actually life in the game.. The comic-book style added to this magical atmosphere and now we're playing a cartoony, shiny rendering, run from person to person mindlessly simulator. Theres 0 fun minigames as there used to be, I used to LOVE digging for gold during St. Patricks, finding golden eggs during Easter, timed quests that put me in a panic, gosh even the April Fools horses just gave me such a burst of happiness. SSO never addresses the actual issues in this game (and there's COUNTLESS amounts) that they've created themselves, but only pretend to fix things that nobody complained about. Hidden Entertainment made this game perfection, and I really wish they could've kept it. I don't care what anyone says, "oh, if we had the game like this now it would not be the same; you were little and it was different," No. This game is a dumpster fire now, and some are just scared to address it. Although some will never understand, you gave me so much happiness by knowing that some do understand, and agree with me. This game gave me such euphoria growing up, and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. I truly admire you and I believe you'll be my new favorite youtuber. This video seriously gave me such joy and I cant wait to see your future videos. Thank you so much for this flawless creation, made my month. 💓 (Thank you for reading as well, sorry for my rant haha)

[@helIokitti]

Oh I'm so sorry for my late reply, I read this days ago and every word made me smile. ♡ I can't help but look back on old SSO videos and just sit down and immerse. It's bittersweet though, because my craving to experience old SSO cannot be quenched any longer. I just know if SSO were to release an old version of the game on an open server, they would get a lot of positive reception and also very helpful feedback. I really dislike how realistic the horses are now .. because just look at the old starter horse, it was a perfect 3D copy of their amazing and unique art style they had been working off of since 2005. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before, and even to this day there is not a game that so perfectly captures the quality that old SSO had. I wish instead of making every horse as realistic as possible, they would adapt different horse breeds into their own art style. It would make the game really stand out, as it once did. The environment/graphics were also really great for their time, I know they mostly took assets from their CD games but it was honestly perfect just the way it was. I personally didn't feel that it was outdated at all, like I look back on videos made in 2018 just before the big graphic update and think it looks fine. I'm sure the newer generation of players would agree too, I really REALLY dislike the new clouds. -_- I miss the old events, truly .. I was just thinking about it last night, they got rid of even the mini holidays that they really took into their own and made special. Growing up irl sometimes I wouldn't get to celebrate Easter, but all I had to do was log on SSO and search for all of the golden eggs with my friends! Their decision to remove these holidays are justified in some ways, but also at the same time ... why would you? D: Especially Midsummer! I'm so glad to hear that you really connected with this documentary, it is all that I could've wanted and more! Thank you so much for your support and kind words, you are my motivation to continue making documentaries and I really appreciate your feedback!!! ♡ Thank you.

[@jasminedeerpaw]

@@helIokitti Once again, I agree 100%! The game was so wonderful and uniquely itself, and not outdated to me either! The old presets were perfection and they had no reason to change them. And yes, the old clouds gave me so much life D: You deserve all of the support, so happy I could find a creator that I connect with so much! Keep your great work up :) (No worries on the reply, I'm even later haha)

[@cali480]

i am a really old sso player i have been playing for over 10 years.. This video brings me so much nostalgia. From my point of view sso changed for the worse, yes i am still getting on the game from time to time but its not the same. I remeber when i was a kid i used to be so exited when my parents agreed to buy me star rider for a week, or when i was in school or at night my mom and my dad used to build the brige. Honestly now the game dosent bring as much fun, then I was playing the bad quality pixels for fun because there was always somthin to do. Now i just get on to see the new updates every few weeks. Its just not the same...

[@nightmarecreature4489]

Wait. I'm pretty sure that the fjords were NOT the only horses that were sold with tack! I remember that, when the horse market was still travelling, there was a time when it was at steve's farm and it had horse/horses that were available to purchase with tack. I think that they were pintabians, I remember seeing one with a mint tack set? Does anyone else remember that?

[@miljasalmela_]

you’re right! i remember that in some way

[@nightmarecreature4489]

@@miljasalmela_ my friend also told me that there were connemaras with tack. i found links to both articles but i cant paste them here without my comment getting deleted

[@GreyGhostBreyers]

@@nightmarecreature4489 There was indeed! I purchased one! I remember the one chestnut morgan with the grey mane was also sold with tack at the market you were talking about

[@helIokitti]

WAIT!! In 2018 ish??? I think you are right! When they were doing that little short stunt called the travelling clothes market? I was so excited when they introduced it because they brought back those giant black glasses that were only available in a limited time quest in 2014!! Thank you for reminding me, I totally remember this now. ♡♡ I kind of wish they would bring it back with the bazaar haha :)

[@themortyest]

I am so happy to have stumbled across this video. I started playing in 2016 and i was so incredibly hooked. The game back then looked like a dream, with so much to do and to explore, and looking back at it gives me this really special happiness that the game nowadays just can’t achieve. Also, the devastation that i felt once I found out they removed the rift quests and soul rider training is unbelievable ;-; I also wanted to mention the change they did to the magic horses so that the players can toggle the coats. Yeah, I know, It’s so much more convenient, however I really loved the way these horses would only show their true colours once they were in the nature far away from the cities where they would hide them. I think that made them a lot more unique and special and tied back to the fact that they didn’t feel comfortable in cities and prefered being in the wilderness

[@deeplydepressedcat1642]

Star Stable is actually derived from Starshine original series. Lisa, Anne, Alex and Linda are coming from the game, the same as Jorvik. They made offline RPG called Star Stable until they made Star Stable online. You could get these games if you belonged to a Pony Club (not the online one, that was region specific at start). I really loved the atmosphere of Starshine games, they were scary and mysterious and I remember being scared escaping from Dark Core as Lisa after freeing Starshine. I really enjoyed the original riding soundtracks ported from Starshine, they're removing them for a new "modern" soundtracks which in my opinion are mostly horrible. I don't like that older areas are basically dead, there are never any quests. Everything is either in Valedale, Silverglade or sometimes Moorland. Since I did my story quests in Valley or Goldenleaf stables I never had to set foot there again. Which really makes me sad because they're really good maps with good soundtracks. Another thing I really don't like is how they banned all languages except English, so people can't talk to each other as they used to. I think it'll soon become like Disney Fairies, completely removing chat only with pre-made chat texts you can send to each other. The social aspect is just gone. My club members haven't logged in years, because they barely speak English so even if they were online we wouldn't have much to talk about. The reason why I kept/keep playing this game is because I was always curious about the story, until the story took a weird shift. I had no idea that they removed a part of the story... that's really sad news. I also remember people having level 19+ were veterans, because it took that long. That's even more sad. Thing is, they probably have their hands tied thanks to overly worried parents who could sue them if something happened. But it is completely acceptable to keep selling horses over and over again. I don't think we will ever get a shift for the better unless they go against what is "moral" nowadays and revert back all the changes that ruined the game. Also I like how every place you go through is lively, the game I play nowadays is a ghost town...

[@S4k0ya]

I discovered this game in early summer months of 2015. I was a huge fan of horses as a kid so finding an open world game with (by my old standards) great animations and graphics was insane. I logged on every day and played for HOURS. I'd hop on my starter horse and just walk around. I didn't have the Star Rider subscription until late 2017 so i spent two full years repeating this. Log in, get my lvl15 starter and walk around Moorland and Fort Pinta. When i eventually convinced my parents to get me SR i was beyond ecstatic. The story quests were amazing, the map was beautiful and the whole game gave me a very warm feeling. I think one of SSO's main qualities was the mysterious element that shrouded every element of the game. Be it the graphics that looked old even for its' time, or the amount of things left unsaid in the story quests, it always carried a certain enjoyable eeriness to it. It's quite apparent everyone greatly enjoyed these aspects, judging by the amount of theory videos that came out around this time. You'd get 2 new horses per year giving you plenty of time to save up enough star coins, etc. Then the game got bigger, and the company got money-hungry. Two horses a year became 5, then 10, then a new horse every two weeks. The wonderful style of the game was lost when the graphics got rewamped, the story quests lost the dark undertones they had, and the whole game just lost its' identity in a very short period of time. I stopped playing in late 2020 but i log on sometimes, for old times' sake and i can't help but feel so very disappointed with the thought of what the game could've became. It's not nostalgia, it's the death of style and the priority to appeal to younger audiences over the older players' enjoyment.

[@happvyx]

I absolutely love this video, you explained everything in such detail and extremely well. I am a new player, I have never been able to experience the joy of the old star stable, I wish I could've. I know younger me would've adored this game even though I barely knew anything about horses. Learning about the changes they have made has broken my heart, to see such a fun and unique graphic style completely take a 180 is really saddening. I have a friend who has been playing for a while and who will frequently make comments on the old game, every time it makes me wish I could've experienced it for myself instead of this fortnite looking game. I think though such a small change the biggest thing I hate is how they removed the smiley faces and replaced them with this weird system, those were adorable and made everyone want to take care of their horse to see that green smiley face. There was color and it made it so intriguing for kids and adults alike, it felt much more alive back then just from seeing the videos. I adore gen 1s and 2s with their special graphic and design styles, it shows how different star stable was from other games. Instead of expanding on this art style then completely changed it to a realistic style, which some of those horses are beautiful but not what star stable is. I love the cartoonish style and how unique it was to them, they made the game bland and it breaks my heart to see such an adorable game shift. And now they made updates to characters, for example; Mrs. Holdsworth she had such a distinct outfit with her red shoes, again they completely stripped that character of any personality and made her boring and just like Big Bonny who they also updated to strip her personality away. I don't understand why they are ruining this games personality and quirky style, they also completely ruined the challenge of the game. Also there comes a point in the story quests where they just become uninteresting and don't make sense, which is so annoying this game had such an amazing story that I love so much I love playing Starshine Legacy to see them completely rip apart such an intriguing storyline hurts. Anyways, I could go on and on about how upsetting all these things are, I really love this video and I completely agree with everything you stated.

[@ingridhk4285]

Wow. You really hit the nail on the head here. I’ve really been here thinking the game’s just gotten boring cus i’m not a kid anymore, but it’s definitely so much more to it! I don’t see how these changes are being seen as beneficiary to the game and the experience of the players. It makes me sad to realize how dead the game feels in comparison to what it used to be.

[@skybluepainter]

I literally suggested to SSO to add a gameplay feature to enable/disable all the changes they made to immersion so those of us OG players could get what we want and those lazier players could get what they want. I know it's possible, but god help us if SSO will put in that sort of effort.

[@helIokitti]

You're so right! They need to be able to give us a choice, I think part of their problem is that they don't let us players have a say in what they decide to add or remove. Maybe having options would be too risky for their engine .. idk. I wish the game was built with more stability, so we could still have our older generations of horses, more options, as well as less chances of our accounts or gameplay getting bugged. Thank you for your comments. ♡ :)

[@Lorraine_luvv]

thank you for this video. I wish they kept the old version of sso as a seperate game, not only because it changed so much in graphics, but i feel like the story changed. I cant explain what i felt when i was playing starstable as a kid. A kid, that was happy and didnt had as much problems as i do now. Old me wouldnt believe that im suffering from depression now. I had dreams about that game, i know it might sound crazy or something, but I did. And i still remember them, after all this time. I never had star rider, i bought lifetime 3 years ago, and im kind of grateful for that. I could aprecciate all the small things, that were so big for me. im a player since 2016, but i knew sso even in 2014. I loved that game so much, it made me feel things I never will again. I wish I could go back in time and experience it again. I can never explain the happiness I felt when i came home from school, and i logged into the game with a new uptade. It all changed when i got starrider in 2021, maybe because I was growing up, and I lost interest in it. But i feel like its not the cause. The whole game started changing dramatically. The gratefulness, the happiness, it all disappeared. I have new interests now, new favourite game series, but starstable will always have a special place in my heart. I wonder what would have happened if starstable never existed. Would i be the same person again? I have so much more to say about starstable, but I dont really have time. Thanks

[@liolikesgrass]

It is such a great video to watch. I am now playing Star Stable Season Riders, because I need to feel what I once felt in front of other’s videos, before my parents even allowed me to play and pay me star rider. Now, the new UI and characters made me move away. I cannot keep on logging on and being so desperate on how nothing feels nice anymore. And we keep telling people it’s not just nostalgia, but they won’t hear. Star Stable Online didn’t change in a good way. It changed in the way the video game industry is evolving, which isn’t right for every game. I could die just to buy the 2016 version. I would pay a lot of money to have access to those days again, in an MMO version or not. Riding around Jorvik just how it used to be is heartbreaking. Sometimes I want to log back on, and I do, and I’m disappointed. Always. I want to love this game again. I want to accept it as it is and move on from its golden era. But I simply can’t. When I log on, I only see fancy stuff. And I can’t see spirit inside anything. The soul of the game has left. And them removing every part of what is left of its soul will not make things better. They made a new game out of an already existing game that people loved. Slowly, like slowly boiling water and we didn’t see it right away. Now it’s there. It’s sad. We have to mourn our game and I’m gonna be honest : I really don’t want to.

[@Dressagio]

Been playing since 2012 with no photos or videos before 2018. Seeing all those old clips hits different 🥺🥺

[@natiart]

They make this game so much easier that now it's pointless to play it, recently it even makes me pissed off for no reason and I remember how excited I used to be... But maybe it's because I've grown up?

[@helIokitti]

Being older can definitely contribute to how fresh and exciting this game is to you now, I have come to acknowledge that myself .. but it isn't just you, they are purposefully getting rid of a lot of challenges from this game for various different reasons .. in my opinion, I think it is just to keep the newer generation of players attached to the game so that they don't quit because some of the quests are unclear or too hard. Thank you for your comment, I truly understand where you are coming from. ♡

[@lauraluukkonen3387]

This was amazing! If SSO won't do anything about this (as expected sadly), I think it would be cool for them to follow RuneScapes footsteps and release an oldschool sso, for the people that care about other things in the game than just the over expensive pixel horses they pump out.

[@Wallflower905]

A small note,I think they should have a global store however have it at the mall with clothes and tack in 2 separate shops which you can go into and look around like older shops. If that makes sense

[@Avolali]

I actually like this idea a lot. It keeps the benefits of the global store while also adding that bit of challenge of actually going to the mall 😊

[@catdotcom]

Yes! The actual stores encourage exploration and socialization. Just putting everything in the global store ruins the point of the "physical" shops in the game. I feel like they should've just added a list of all the tack and clothes in-game with details on where to find it, what breeds can use the tack, etc. Just like on the site StarStable Database.

[@helIokitti]

I LOVE THIS IDEA!! It would add a sense of challenge and also revive the hype around the mall, I love it. I'm all for more shops with exclusive items. ♡ Thank you for your amazing idea!!

[@merjaeger]

im a 2013 player and almost got teary eyed after the heavy wave of nostalgia i got from this video…nothing feels the same anymore, the nightclubs are empty, the global discussion is full of people asking to do rp, no funny interactions or meetings anymore…i still play the game bcz sso has a very special place in my heart, but i miss the mystery and immersion we used to have before. sso should bring back the challenge bcz it made us feel responsible. since we can take the trailer anywhere now im now lazy to ride from a place to another, back then i used to ride for minutes from a side of the map to another bcz i actually HAD to do it and it was challenging, but good! too much accessibilty can make something actually boring and it takes away all the challenge. i really hope sso staff sees this video btw i totally forgot how steve’s farm used to look like back then, it hit me a lot when i saw it again in your video

[@ellanieb_99]

(sorry for replying this old comment :')) The global chat part is so sad for me because it seems like players want to create a gameplay for themselves because there is no actual gameplay on the behalf of SSO :/ Like, rp is a great option, but imo it shouldn't be the player's responsibility to create content in the game (like this new medieval event ... uggh, don't even get me started...)

[@kallyywallyy]

I'm a 2018 player unfortunately, but the graphics back then made the game very comfortable and cozy! I started playing SSO cause I saw a girl on youtube playing it and so i gave it a try. And at that point I started to log on everytime I came back from school just to escape my abusive family. SSO helped me so much through that time, seeing it slowly dying seriously kills me... Wish I could've grown up with the non-toxic community, caring game developers and old but very sweet horses and characters. All those old videos made it look like the world is a better place...

[@helIokitti]

I'm so sorry to hear that you grew up in that environment. ♡ It can be super tough, and I'm so very glad SSO gave you that escape. And I'm really sorry that you're having to go through the downfall of SSO, it's so bittersweet to experience. Old SSO had its faults in terms of the community, but I really hope one day you get to experience the brighter parts of the old game. ♡ Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@kallyywallyy]

@@helIokitti Tysm for your kind words!

[@autumnidle5412]

I feel so sad learning they deleted the original soul rider training! I started playing in 2020, and I remember at some point in the story Elizabeth makes reference to training you've supposedly had. I was so confused--training? did I miss something? Apparently I did. It would have been really nice to have that training as part of the main storyline, since I feel like my character has never actually learned how to be a soul rider...she just somehow knows how to do magic whenever the plot demands it. Really great video analysis!

[@easeotherwise]

i have so many sso memories as someone who actively played from 2012-2016... I remember the three different trailer systems! i was and am still confused when i log back in and suddenly the entire map is open. them removing the horse sounds is one of the most heartbreaking things to me

[@easeotherwise]

definetly never forgetting the club i was in either

[@ennivirtanen9254]

I used to play the original games when I was younger. I started playing sso only few years ago and I wish they could make the online game like the old games but with the new horses and graphics. The old games kept me engaged through the whole game and the "guests" didn't feel tedious and boring to get through and buying a new horse was actually an upgrade and not just a different looking horse.

[@va6632]

Instead of a global store they could have made a fashion catalogue where you could still make an outfit you like, but instead of being able to just buy it, it would show you the location of each piece of clothing. Sort of like transfering the Star Stable Database into the game. That way we would still have the convenience of being able to create and plan outfits, but the various shops around the map would still be used and visited.

[@SabinaWatertree]

This is the best summary of star stable falls i can imagine. As i was listening i actually got so mad that had to stop the video multiple times. Couldnt agree more with what you said.

[@helIokitti]

Wow, I am so glad you really listened and understood where I am coming from. It really warms my heart to see that this video has created such reaction, it is all I could've asked for. Thank you for your kind words. ♡

[@SamI_Am]

I clicked on this video purely because I haven't seen anything about this game for a long time.. I loved this game when I was younger and haven't seen, played, or heard anything about it in a long time. Wow, what memories.

[@haileyac]

the video you used of bella ponytree! i was best friends w her back in the day!! i’m still in videos on her channel lol

[@helIokitti]

HAHHAA OMGG I LOVEDDD BELLA! She was such an inspiration for me, we both had kind of the same SSO life. We both used the same editor, we both started out on Wind Star and moved to Night Star around the same time, we had the same horses... I wish I could've known her for a bit longer!! ♡ I will forever have a lot of respect for all of the people of Storm Hunters Legacy :) Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@haileyac]

@@helIokitti no way same! started on wind star and ended on nightstar, and i was in stormies!! and no problem! good work on this video, hoping to see more! 🤍

[@alwaysvergaraa]

I’ve been playing the game since 2012, it has brought me so much comfort. but over the past few years i feel like the game has lost what made it so special. the story, the magic, how cozy it was. i know people might complain about how the old graphics looked, but i prefer then to the new ones. it looked like it gave the game life. now it feels like the whole world of star stable has just gone. i much prefer playing the old starshine legacy games, it’s so much more fun! the story is so engaging!! that’s just my opinion though 🤍 i really hope that sso listens to us and makes the game like how it used to be ☹️

[@helIokitti]

I'm so glad to hear that you also play Starshine Legacy! ♡ I love the effort they put into their quests and dialogue in the old games, it is very reminiscent of what old SSO quest lines used to be like. ♡ That's amazing that you've been playing for so long though, you have probably seen a lot!! In my opinion as well, I like the older graphics too. It just felt more magical compared to what they are going for now. ♡ Thank you for your support :)

[@spoon1245]

You NAILED it. As an OG player from the good old days, I thank you.

[@Sam.springstar]

I enjoyed watching this so much, and I agree with you I very much miss all these things they've removed.. the immersiveness is just, gone

[@helIokitti]

Thank you for your comment, I am so glad you enjoyed my documentary!! ♡♡ I could go on and on about all the changes they have made and the pieces of our childhood that they have taken away.

[@kermit246]

I miss the music, the bloom effect, the mismatch hoof patterns, the interesting story that made sense, the realism and duller colours, the lack of magic horses. I miss when you’d actually see people online, when you had to LEARN how to jump. I recently had to start a new account in order to have an account in the USA servers. And good GOD have the ruined the original story with new missions. Also edit: me and my bf who both grew up on this game still use the ferries :) we do miss the og game a lot tho.

[@KorraHDAMV]

I wish my laptop from 2011 still worked...the amount of screenshots i made in 2012/14....the laptop literally said BOOM while playing SSO lol

[@helIokitti]

Oh my gosh! I can totally relate, but the pictures are still salvageable! If you still have the laptop, try looking up a video on how to remove the hard drive from the bottom of your laptop (you might need a tiny screw driver!). And then buy a SATA to USB cable, they're about $5 on Amazon (one end plugs into the hard drive and the other plugs into your working PC or laptop via usb) and then all of the data from the dead laptop will show up on your current PC or laptop. ♡ If you used fraps or Bandicam or any other screen capturing software, the photos should be in the Documents section. If they're not there, try the Pictures section! This is just the method I use with my dead laptops because they all met their inevitable end while playing SSO -_- LOL If you need any more help or advice, let me know at [e-mail] , instagram @kittispiderweb , or discord hellokitti#5083 ♡ Thank you so much for watching my documentary!!!

[@KorraHDAMV]

@@helIokitti ❤️ hoping i still got it since my mom has been cleaning and throwing old stuff away.

[@henrietta9394]

This video made me miss the old models of the starter horses! Star stable was an escape, Jorvik was a place to go and have fun but now we have nothing left except new horses

[@helIokitti]

Oh my gosh, right? When I think of old SSO and the main things I'd love to relive it would definitely be the starter model. They just made sense, they weren't wobbly and didn't awkwardly run like they do now. I especially love how the model was basically a 3d imagined version of their comic book style. Since they were the poster children of the game, it really made SSO stand out. ♡ I miss the haven that was old Jorvik as well. Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@wjnter]

this was such a beautifully done video, and videos like this always make me so upset. i really miss the old star stable more than words can describe and it makes me even more upset to know that i cant do anything about it but just reminisce about it. everything was just so much better back then, and while sso tries so hard to make the game realistic nowadays, they forgot that they already removed all the features that actually *did* make the game realistic (if that sentence made sense 😭) like the cold tolerance, or having to keep up your horse's gait after the icon would flash red, or the little sounds the horses and players would make when you change gait. for me aswell, music, sound, any audio stuff is one of the most important things ever in any game. it can completely change the experience, and i'm just so sad they got rid of the little things like that like the horse sounds, and the old music. now whenever i play the game and hear racing soundtracks i feel like im watching a video about disney stars then and now. i miss how fun the old events and quests would be, and the amount of events there were too, and how fun christmas and easter was. nobody understands how much i loved doing the pandoric cracks!! im so sad they removed that. and i forgot just how fun catching the bus or ferry was with another crowd of people :(( i genuinely do miss having regional trailers, even though it would mean that sometimes i would miss the jorvik stables championships and my opportunity to add another amazing ribbon to my collection, but i loved it. like you said, it made the world feel bigger. its great to hear that i wasnt the only young kid getting up at 9am on the weekends to play this game, or rushing home from school as fast as i could just to ride my little horses lol i also just generally really miss the 2000s (i started writing this comment near the beginning of the video before you mentioned this yourself, so i guess this just proves that point lol) look of the game, the old soul riders, the old outfits that players would wear (that were sometimes a bit obnoxious to look at im not gonna lie!), the fog in dino valley or that autumn sort of aura in golden hills, the graphics and the models. now the only way i can get back that bloom effect is through shaders, but its not the same. obviously for a 2023 game it would be outdated, thats fair, but now the whole game just looks like a fortnite map (once again wrote this before i heard you mention it so proves another point!!) and i really hate it. i especially hate the new npcs and soul riders, and i'm honestly scared for the future of *our* character models. thank you so much for making this video!! seriously, amazing job. it was really really engaging, and as an old player myself i really loved it. also my apology for the long comment, i just tend to get passionate whenever old sso is mentioned haha. keep up the great work

[@helIokitti]

I wish I could like this comment 100 times because the structure? the humor? You got your point across so well, I've read this comment about 4 times now and each time it warms my heart because I feel so validated and I'm so glad that you not only found this video, but made this comment!! No shade to any of the current composers or singers but I consciously avoid Silverglade Village nowadays because the moment I accidentally step into the region I immediately head to the salon so I can turn that mess off. The music nowdays simply can't compare, especially the racing music... the disney stars comment made me laugh so hard every time I read it I have never heard a diss that accurate LOL what was the reason? What was the reason for getting rid of Midsummer? a literal SWEDISH holiday that players look forward to every year, there is almost no other game on the market that celebrates Midsummer and it made SSO so unique and celebrated their heritage because they are a Swedish game! I hate that basically for the past 5 years they have basically recycled the same activities but seriously? Removing it? They need to count their days... I'm so glad that you found my regional trailers comment relatable, I totally thought I was the only one!! ♡♡ It's like... the 2000's look was really reminiscent of their own personal style. It would've been so neat if they just updated the style a little, still keeping the original charm but they took the game in a direction where they have no style! It seems like they are just trying to do whatever they can to appeal to kids instead of sticking to their original motive >: This comment was so heartwarming, it made me laugh, it made me think, this is exactly the comment I wanted to see under my video so don't even apologize for your phenomenal words. ♡♡ irl I tend to trip over my words when it comes to any other topic, but when you ask me about SSO I will not stutter a bit. I realized that it is just passion and love for the game, and seeing someone with the same passion as I do makes me feel so great inside. ♡ Thank you so very much for your comment, I wish I could've written more because I'm so appreciative and I understand exactly where you are coming from ♡♡

[@wjnter]

​@@helIokitti you are just the sweetest oh my god!! thank you so so much for your words :)) yes omg!! i honestly can't bear to go into the silverglade area anymore either haha. i'm so happy that i made you laugh with that LOLOL no once again ur so right ??? midsummer was such an enjoyable fun festival, i have such amazing memories from that, doing funky dances around that flower pillar with my friends. even with the events that *are* still here, they're all so recycled as you said!! there's nothing new to look forward to. and same feelings, i really hate how they are clearly trying so hard to satisfy KIDS for this game. everything is becoming so minimalist, i hate it. your response has made my entire day, and i'm so happy to hear that my comment was enjoyable to read for you

[@theresa_1975]

since you wanted to know how long it would take to speedrun the game: i created a new account recently and used the code for one week of free sr. in 7 days of playing i got to level 17!! and i never "slept over" at a stable to get through the quests faster. i was pretty shocked

[@helIokitti]

OH MY GOOOSHHH WHAT?? You're the second person to say that you got to level 17/18 in a week. That is literally insane... and so upsetting too! I really wish that they would pace the storyline again, because back then .. the story is what made the game so special. Thank you so much for your response. ♡

[@FaustineFontaine]

That was such an amazing video, thank you for your work ! I’ve been playing Star Stable for 11 years now and I’m just so sad and nostalgic. I miss going with all my friends buying a new horse that i’ve been dreaming about for weeks. Thank you for wording perfectly how I feel

[@calysiagamer1237]

I first played in 2017, and came back last year. I was level 7 when I came back, and hit level 20 in less than a month. It really is lifeless... All I did after I finished the story line was train horses I buy and go to club activities. There is nothing to do if your horses are maxed, and training itself is boring and tedious unless something is happening in the background (like watching videos, playing music or watching movies/tv shows) They really do need to make everything a choice - so those with accessibility issues or don't want them can turn them off, while those who want them turn them on. SSO's issue is not giving players the choice - like, they could give us the option to buy an instant ticket for the bus, or wait for 3 minutes, and they could have trailers right next to each other that go to different regions idk. If all of these things were a choice, it'd mean those who want them can have them and those who don't can turn it off. It's a win win, idk what sso was thinking just taking all of it away

[@helIokitti]

WOW You're actually right?? I love the ticket idea so much!! Or like a quest that gives you a super ticket?? That is such a great idea. That is also crazy to hear that it took you literally ... less than a month to get to level 20. Wow. First of all congratulations because sitting through all of that dialogue gets pretty boring after awhile LOL I totally agree, one of my dream updates would be SSO re-releasing the game in different patches so the players can choose what era they want to play the game in, like Minecraft sort of... You're right though, they don't give players a choice... and then don't hear them out when they ask for one. Players being able to play the game the way they want would also be very unique, we all wouldn't be playing the same way. Thank you for this comment, it literally felt like an aha moment for me and gave me so much to think about. ♡ You are so creative!!

[@ribbonsea]

i only just started this video but i'm already so intrigued. i played star stable since i was 9 years old in 2015. now being 17 in my last year of high school, i still log on every now and then to check whats new, spend some starcoins and leave. its so sad when a game you loved as a kid changes nearly everything about the ingame graphics. it's just not the same with the cartoony-esque environment. you should have seen my reaction when i saw how much steve's farm has changed! it really broke my heart because now i will never reexperience what i had. i also LOVED the valley of the hidden dinosaur. being someone that never sees snow irl due to where i live, sso fulfilled my dream of a mysterious place with such a pretty biome. it is so true that the immersion has been ruined because now there is no cold effect :(. even now i'm still waiting for ashland!! thanks for making this video, i'm so excited to listen to the entirety as i get ready for bed❤️ much love to you! i hope this gets the attention it deserves❤️❤️

[@claudianightweb8967]

omg ! im in ur video! im so excited hehehe. thank uuuu for saying the siurce. someone on sso told me about this video !

[@helIokitti]

OH MY GOSHHHHHHHHHHHH My heart literally stopped when I saw you comment this. Claudia when I tell you I binge watch your videos all the time, I'm so glad I found you because you are one of my go-tos when I need old SSO videos. ♡ You've been in my subscription bar for almost a year now and always deliver. I hope that it is okay if I remain using your videos, if you ever need me to take anything down PLEASE let me know and I'd be happy to help.♡ That is insane that this video reached to someone on SSO and then told you. This comment literally made my day 10000%. ♡

[@deliash.1693]

Wow, very good video! You made me feel so nostalgic right now and there is some stuff I completely forgot about. I also loved this game when I was a kid and I still check on it sometimes - but only for a new horse release or a quest because you know, I grew up with this game and don't really let it go completely. Good to know that others share the same opinions and thanks for the informations. Like, I didn't know that SSO deleted the pandorian cracks - part of the story. These quests were so exciting for me back then (such as the old druid training) so I really can't believe they just deleted it :(( Anyways, thanks again, well done documentary

[@nightlypumpkins4059]

Okay this video made me nearly cry as someone who has played this game since I was literally 5 so like 10-11 years now??? There are so many things I’ve missed about this game, the game no longer feels interactive, the game is more there for display nowadays, and I try to admire the new graphics but I can’t… the graphics are too dark and boring, feeling a connection to every new pixel horse is difficult because the new pixel horse is simply too similar to the last, unlike when star stable stylized the horses and at least didn’t delete older gen horses or change them permanently. This game was my childhood. Also the fact that it seems the social aspect of the game has been disapearing more or more, idk if that’s true since I play on a literal deserted server no pun intended known as frozen desert. The immersion with the story quests and the sensation of risk they invoked made the world feel more real, yes would the silverglade under attack quest be scary for a child? Of course!! But it was also exciting and definitively not nightmare causing. Star stable very much was an escape from the real world for me and i’m kinda sad I feel that’s gone now. Regardless… I may or may not be heavily affected by nostalgia but :,) well… yeahh.

[@helIokitti]

I'm glad that I'm not the only one who feels a disconnection to the new music and horses.. I'd rather spend my money on old generation horses that I never got as a kid. :) It's true ... it feels like the community grows more and more every day, but the longevity isn't there anymore. I met players who joined two years ago and have already quit, not to mention all of the players who have been playing for ten years and have quit! My friends list is also, basically deserted haha. I don't blame you for playing on Frozen Desert tho I've met people that have said Misty Valley is just as toxic as Night Star LOL .. I don't think anything SSO has shown has caused nightmares, even when they first dropped Galloper Thompson and made a disclaimer to have a parent nearby. He's just a silly guy without a head .. I don't know why they had to remove all of these mysterious aspects just because they might have been borderline creepy for some kids. Thank you so much for your comment, ♡ I also can admit I am sometimes blinded by nostalgia but at the same time we're just speaking our minds :) The game has changed a whole lot, so who says they didn't sacrifice some of the game's original charm along with these changes?

[@babushkat2602]

I know I don't like sso as much as I did before, but I never knew how to say it without mentioning "nostalgia". You pointed out things (especially with deleting a lot of the main quests?!?!) that I didn't even know of, which just makes sso so lifeless:/ Really good video. I miss the old sso.

[@itz_juliamoonlight]

I have been playing the game since like about 11/12 years ago, might sound pathetic, but i do miss the old days in sso. I sometimes get sad over the fact that star stable is making the game look realistic, while the little details you mentioned (such as taking care of your hore here and there again) made it more realistic aswell. Also the Magis horses don't change anymore when you go into avillage/'the wild', you can now choose what you want your horse to look like. It was one of the things that made the magic horses special to me, now i have so many of them in my stable, not wanting to ride on them anymore because they're not really that special anymore. The health bar thingy also made it more realistic/challanging to me, now you can just jump oof a cliff and you don't get teleported to your homestable since your horse is completely fine. They also let the non-star riders do things only star riders could back in the days. such as jumping, buying the magical horses (because they sell them by the wall where Jasper stands st the start of the game). The Dino vallei has became less interesting since the cold thing has gone away, i don't see any people if i do go over there. I'd love it if star stable finds the old blueprints and at least turns sso back to how it used to be for a month each year or something (i have too much fantasy, i know.). It would be great if the Creators of Star Stable would see this video, maybe it could give them idea's to bring back certain details. (also sorry for any spellings mistakes, it's late and also sorry for saying a bit much--)

[@howaboutno1424]

They just want to make it an entirely different game it breaks my heart

[@helIokitti]

I know right ): At least in 2016/2017 they were just graphically updating the characters and environment... Not entirely stripping characters of everything that made them special in the first place. Thank you for your comment, I hope the feeling won't be so bittersweet any longer. ♡

[@mars.mp3]

As an old player who eventually left the game behind, I really enjoyed this video. I used to be OBSESSED with this game, I played it with my friends, by myself, I even got my first laptop specifically for the purpose of playing sso. However I eventually stopped as I moved on to different things, and it didn't offer the same magic anymore. Every now and then I revisit the game to see what has changed, and every time I get hit with the same new "conveniences". I really agree with your point, like I miss the times when you had to click on something with your cursor to interact, and couldn't just click E. Although inconvenient, I really remember that :'] (Also the fact that they made the horse getting injured screen GREY instead of red is SO SAD TO ME.) Honestly I want to make my own little art-piece dedicated to my nostalgia for old star stable, and the joy that has been sucked out of it for me in newer times. There's some complicated feelings in it all for me :'] Regardless, your voice was very pleasant to listen to! :D Great job with the video :]

[@daginganinja6916]

I’ve been playing SSO since about mid 2015, watching it far earlier. And everything in this video struck home to me. Another thing I would like to add that gave me motivation for the game were just the simple things, like actually having to drag things out of my backpack, piecing together lore that has been slashed today, the excitement of getting that new area unlocked or looking up tutorials on how to find a star. Now nothing compares to the mixture of fear and excitement I had being so close to finishing that seemingly impossible shadow seeker quest. The game just doesn’t feel alive anymore, pretty graphics half heartedly put on the map, and rushed horses for us to spend money on when we have already given so much. Even being an MMO it really doesn’t fit the title, as you can only talk to people and now that doesn’t happen anymore. It went to asking someone where they got their pet from whilst waiting for the south hoof ferry to masses at steve’s doing nothing but standing there. I have only bought SC a handful of times, and it feels uncomfortable trying to get the horses I don’t have and yet another one I ‘need’ is released the next day. The stone circle, the secret passage, the funny but dark lines from NPC’s just have that evil fantasy feeling! I’m happy they are making small improvements, but for the price that just can’t cut it, but i truly hope they see why we loved the game in the first place

[@autumnlynn7517]

This is incredibly well made. I miss how I felt when I was 7 and my whole life was Starstable. Also your voice is so nice and calming. Beautiful job!♥️

[@MegiMoon]

I think SSO actually went pretty dark with horse market now. Ealier it was pretty fun place to shop for horses, tack, do some quests and stuff. Now it actually feels like slaughter market. I know SSO doesn't have enough places in other stables to put all horses to buy but now they put on market only horses that are on a clock. Pretty much sooner or later all horses there will go on ,,retirement". When Fjords were removed they kinda went away with Kallters which was pretty logical. On the other hand we don't really have retirement home for horses in SSO. If SSO calls it retirement then they should make like one special, not so big farm with field full of retired horses from the past (like one horse of each removed race and coat just hanging out with other horses on the field). Players wouldn't be able to ride them if they didn't buy them before but we could visit them, remember them and actually it would feel like retirement. Horses from market are being removed completly in way that we can't see them anymore beside the ones that players got. It really feels like Ferdinand went kinda dark and started treating his market like ,,You better buy them out or you will never see them again". Now if any horse is being placed on market, it's almost a given that SSO plans to delate them at some point. I wouldn't be surpriseed if SSO just waits to get rid of all horses from market and then close horse market as a whole.

[@helIokitti]

HELPHEL,PL You're so right .. it really is like a slaughter >_< The concept way back in 2014 was so fun, and once they decided to permanently have it settle down conveniently in a non star rider area ... >_> it felt like they had given up. It was no longer fun and now they are just one by one removing the older generation of horses. They really don't seem to care about their older work, and I doubt the people who worked on the gen 1 horses even work at SSO anymore which is depressing. If they're going to k1ll off the old gen, at least give them out for a bigger discount or better yet .. free. -_- I like your idea of still being able to see the retired horses, because much like SSO's new soundtracks .. they're trying too hard to revamp their game by erasing their past. I don't think they should do that, I think they should celebrate the past as a way to be like "Hey! We've been operating this game for over 12 years." which is a huge accomplishment for a video game. But instead they're trying to turn it into a whole new game... entirely. Thank you for your comment. ♡

[@alexis003]

loved and agreed with every part of this video! old sso and the memories i have of it are something i'll cherish forever. also super funny to see myself in global chat in the first clip LMAO

[@helIokitti]

HAHAHAAA Omg I'm so glad you had a cameo in the video, that's so exciting!! Something that makes me really happy about the first clip is that it was taken when global chat was really global, Bella is literally riding around in Nilmer's Highland speaking in that chat haha! I miss those days. ♡ Thank you so much for your comment. ♡

[@leanashine]

It makes me really sad to remember how passionate I once was about this game. I used to secretly get up early in the morning to play sso on my dad's laptop and there was so much to do (like, I LOVED soul rider training) :(

[@lucianafrogcat3570]

As someone who didn't play Sso as long (2017) as most people in these comments I still can say that sso changed a LOT! I miss the old horses and the old graphics and I miss telling my parents I can't log of because I have to feed my horse or because I'm in the middle of a quest. It's boring nowadays. Then sso comes up with new updates no one asked for. And when everyone complains, they just ignore it. I would say I quit playing Sso, but it's my childhood and I love my memories connected to it. I want it back and I don't want new characters that look like children or new horses that are not even ready(e.g. frisians, morgans) to be in the game. I always log on and think that I will have the same fun as then but it's not the same.

[@helIokitti]

I think 2017 was really the final year of the beginning era of SSO, once they released Mistfall.. everything changed. I can totally see where you're coming from, it's almost like I have no reason to play SSO anymore but I still do every day. Not nearly for as long as I used to though, it was next to impossible to get me to log off the game back then. Now, I'll log off at almost any excuse. I am honestly kind of scared for the updated character models! I'm really glad they're being inclusive and adding more accurate skin tones and body types, as well as a long range of different hair styles .. but just like the graphics, I think they're going about it all wrong. I'm scared that it will be just another feature they put little to no effort or care into. ): Thank you for your lovely comment. ♡

[@shion-8]

I’m playing since 2014 and yes I would die to feel it again and to play the “real,scary and mysterious” sso. StarStable was my Home. xxx

[@mamoru7310]

Not only they removed the pink rift grind. They also removed the runestone grind as well. The game I grew up with and loved is gone.

[@kristianakolesnikova6389]

honestly i feel like they are just removing all the good stuff....and personaly for me the new cartoonish graphics just look terrible

[@novastarburst3939]

Same.

[@helIokitti]

I agree... I understand that they have to refresh things to keep up with the times but they're trying too hard to appeal to little kids who will give them money for their diamond pink unicorn horses. They have forgotten their original motive, the unique style they use to have, their origins. They're trying too hard to revamp and erase the past, trying too hard to make everything look polished and pretty and it's breaking the game. They need to think about moving on from their 20 year old game engine if they are serious about this revamp.

[@Poptanic]

Well, this game was for children from the start and I don’t understand why some people whine about it.

[@novastarburst3939]

@@Poptanic Children =/= bad quality and poor graphics. Plus during an interview they said that their main target was tweens & teens, not childrens, young kids were never their target, not even during the PC games before SSO.

[@starvampyr]

I'm not a player since 2013 like some other commenters, but I do remember how I loved the realism of the horse cold tolerance, especially when I discovered it after buying my NSH (which was my first SC bought horse) Or the fact that the horse would get tired and slow down if you didn't actively press W (which is something I still do when I play because of muscle memory lol) I can understand that it makes the game easier and areas like the valley more accessible but it does take away from the immersion and the challenge the game had, I miss it.

[@starvampyr]

I also remember getting run over by the bus and I was disappointed when it didn't happen logging on again in 2024

[@lilithiumy]

been playin since 2018 and litteraly feel thtis sm i used to wake up ask my mom if she could unlock her computer bcs i didnt have on at the time and then play for hoouurs personally 2019 was the last year star stable felt like star stable 2020 was the last time i had an obssesion with the game(i also got my own laptop around 19-2020) but it wasnt really the same it was more like yay its star stable i need to log in on my account for my club but it wasnt hey mom can you unlog ur laptop for me? and 2021 it slowly died i do play it but yeah i dont know is just feels different i also would give ANYTHING to just play tthe 2012-2018 version and feeling the same feeling again with the low ahh grafic and just the horse looking goofy af while being so cringe and roleplaying..oof yeah its also sad that star stable is now owned by an different company i mean thats mostly the reason why the changes but still..

[@helIokitti]

LOL Yeah I totally get what you're saying! It's like we actually wanted to play SSO and now we kind of see it as a chore now. I really hope one day you can experience the old graphics and horses, you honestly deserve to. ♡ Let me know when you do so we can have a wild horse roleplay at Everwind Fields LOL , Thanks for your comment. ♡