Oblivion Remastered was shadow dropped out of nowhere, and of course, the modding community started cooking stuff up within just a couple of hours. It’s been a few days now, and we already have a few things that enhance the overall experience both in terms of performance and gameplay.
In this list, I’ll share with you some of the mods that I use to make it run better and fix some of the pain points that the developers didn’t change from the original. Let’s start with some optimizations first, because that’s something almost everybody is struggling with at the moment!
Just for context, I’m playing this on Game Pass and have personally confirmed that these are working even if you don’t have the Steam version. I’m not just listing random mods from the Nexus front page without actually using them.
Mod #1. Ultimate Engine Tweaks
The Ultimate Engine Tweaks mod is a custom “Engine.ini” file that aims to fix a lot of your performance woes. Many players have reported gaining a lot of extra FPS with it, and for me, it helped solve my issues with random stuttering and frame drops at outdoor areas.
To test if it worked, I ran around the Imperial Waterfront at day time with plenty of NPCs nearby and a very specific spot near The Bloated Float that would consistently lag me out. Without the mod, that one spot would cause me to dip to the 30s. With this custom .ini, my FPS would stay at around 70-90 there.
I tried a few more areas in the open world, and it definitely helped bump my framerate up by around 5-10. Nothing exceptionally high like some of the people who commented on the mod page, but it’s significant enough.
Just so you know what I’m working with, this is the hardware I have + ingame settings:
- GPU – RTX 3070
- CPU – R7 5700X
- 32GB RAM
- Settings Preset – All High
- Resolution – 2560×1440
- FSR (Quality) w/ Frame Gen on
Your mileage will vary with stuff like this because we all have different rigs. In case it doesn’t do anything for you or, in worst case scenarios, tanks your performance even more, consider checking out Optimized Tweaks OBLR instead or just lower your game’s resolution.
Mod #2. Lumen Begone
This is another custom “Engine.ini” file that simply disables the Lumen lighting setting. This will drastically change how the lighting in your game looks, but also give you a significant performance boost. I highly recommend getting this if you’re on a lower-end system.
There’s an alternate version of this mod that includes the settings in Ultimate Engine Tweaks too, so you can use that for an even bigger boost. For my setup, this combo added at least 10-20 more FPS in the open world, though I’ll admit that I personally prefer the aesthetic with Lumen.
Here’s a side-by-side comparison of what it looks like with and without this tweak (same settings I listed in the previous entry):
NOTE: If you do end up using this, make sure to set your Global Illumination Quality setting to Low. This removes the buggy shimmering effect that becomes very noticeable in the dark.
Mod #3. Auto Upgrade Leveled Items
This mod solves one of the biggest problems with Oblivion‘s scaling system, which is that certain unique items are stuck at whatever level you acquired them at. For example, if you received a unique sword as a reward at level 5, its stats are locked to that level. This would make it completely useless once you (and enemies) reach higher levels.
With Auto Upgrade Leveled Items installed, most unique quest rewards will now scale up with you. How it works is that it’ll automatically replace any applicable item in your inventory with a superior version once you reach certain levels.
Definitely get this one whether or not you’re new to the game. It makes completing certain side quests early not feel bad once you progress further!
Mod #4. Weightless Arrows
The Weightless Arrows mod does exactly what you expect. It changes every unenchanted arrow in the game to have a weight of zero, allowing you to carry as much ammunition as you want. Stealth archers rejoice!
There are other mods that make a lot of other resources weightless too, but this is the one that feels the least “cheat-y” as it adjusts a mechanic that was pretty divisive back in the day too.
Mod #5. Leveled Creature and Item Diversity
This mod fixes another issue with the original game that was carried over to this remastered version. Basically, as you reach certain character level milestones, enemies and loot will scale up alongside you.
What this means is that all enemies will eventually be replaced with superior versions. For instance, once you reach a high level, basic bandits in Cyrodiil will somehow suddenly be wearing full sets of glass armor. Y’know, one of the strongest types of light armor in the base game.
With this mod, lower level enemies will continue to spawn even as you hit certain milestones. Not only is it better in terms of immersion, but it also avoids the issue of every single enemy suddenly becoming an unbearable sponge for damage once you’re many hours into the game.
Mod #6. Valuable Clutter
Finally, this Valuable Clutter mod will increase the sell value of those bits and pieces that you can pick up all around Cyrodiil. We’re talking about stuff like plates, baskets, various tools, and many more.
It doesn’t increase values by too much, so it’s hardly going to feel overpowered. If anything, it just makes moneymaking feel slightly less grindy. For example, stuff like silver utensils and containers will now cost significantly more, while plain ceramic and clay items now actually sell for something rather than nothing.
This mod is especially good for thief playthroughs, because now you can roleplay as an actual burglar stealing all sorts of miscellaneous items from people’s homes, rich or otherwise!
BONUS TIP: If you’re not sure how to sell stolen items, I’ve got a guide detailing three different ways to sell stolen goods that’ll help!
And those are the six mods that I think every Oblivion Remastered player should have! As for how to install them, I’m holding off on writing a guide for it because the Vortex mod manager tends to break stuff at the moment.
Just follow the instructions in each mod’s page. They’re extremely easy to follow, since most of them just involve dragging a single file to the correct folder and adding a new line to a text file.