The Return of the Iconic DLC: Oblivion Remaster Brings Back Horse Armor

The DLC That Started it All Returns

Exciting news for gamers: the Oblivion Remaster has been announced and released, rekindling nostalgia with an updated version of the legendary horse armor. Priced at $9.99 for the Deluxe Edition, this upgrade includes the horse armor alongside two other great features. Interestingly, when broken down, each item costs nearly the same as they did 19 years ago, approximately $2.50 each.

In 2006, many gamers felt $2.50 for downloadable content was a joke—an affront to those accustomed to buying games with all content included. At that time, Bethesda’s decision to sell purely decorative horse armor was met with ridicule. “Horse armor” quickly became a catchphrase for overpriced, meaningless DLC, evolving into a meme that has lingered around Bethesda for years.

Joel Burgess, who was a senior level designer at Bethesda, explained that the original horse armor was experimental. Bethesda utilized its mod-friendly tools to explore the potential of downloadable content. The horse armor was a stepping stone, paving the way for larger DLC packs for Oblivion.

“We needed something that would test enough of our systems, add new art, dialogue, hooks, and quests to the game. It needed to test the pipeline and gauge the market for the best we could achieve,” Burgess shared with Polygon in 2015. “Thus, horse armor was born.”

These days, even minimal cosmetic content, be it for horses or humans, rarely comes under $20. The rise of live service and gacha games has drastically changed industry pricing strategies, and it all began during the period when publishers were just learning how to market DLC effectively. We’ve shifted from ridiculing horse armor to applauding skins with prices considerably higher.

Regardless of how one might feel about horse armor today, it’s undeniable that the Oblivion Remaster just wouldn’t be complete without this iconic piece.