You can't walk more than a few feet in Elden Ring without tripping over messages from other players. These messages can be helpful, harmful, or silly, they can encourage players to leap off cliffs to their certain death or search for secret doors where there are none or alert them to a dog that is certainly not a dog. After 60 hours of playing, these messages can even get a bit exasperating, but they're a beloved tradition carried over from earlier Dark Souls games.
But now Elden Ring isn't the only open world RPG where you can find messages from other players that say "Try jumping," "Liar ahead," and "Try finger but hole." A modder has added an Elden Ring-like message system to Fallout: New Vegas so couriers can now communicate with each other.
The Building Bridges mod is a plugin created by modder Tomminfinite that allows New Vegas players to leave messages in the world for other players to find. Players with the mod installed will see messages exactly where another player left them, even if the other player left the message just a few minutes earlier. Below you can see the asynchronous multiplayer message system at work, where one player leaves a message to suggest "Try jumping" at the top of a cliff, and another message that warns of a mine trap—though it's placed a bit too close to the mine itself to be of much help. That's some good griefing.
The messages placed in the world appear as weathered sheets of paper on the ground, which fits quite nicely into the aesthetic of the post-apocalyptic New Vegas. And, as in Elden Ring, players can rate each other's messages, with positive ratings resulting in benefits to the creator of the message:
"People can leave likes to your message increasing the rating of the message and your rating as well," says the mod's page. "Rating gives you levels. With each new level you have more messages you can place at the same time and your messages can be longer. You can't see whose messages you are liking and the same goes for everybody else."
Here's how it works:
- To post your message - press "B" (by default) to initiate BB menu and choose "Post message" option.
- At level 1 you can have up to 20 messages at the same time containing up to 115 symbols.
- Only ASCII characters (English alphabet) are supported at the moment.
- To like message of other user - activate message and press "Like this message".
- You gain level by increasing your rating. Your rating is increased when people like your message.
- You can leave only one message per cell (interior or exterior).
- Worldspace (non-interior) consists of small separate exterior cells. You can see what cell you are in BB menu.
- Every exterior cell can contain up to 10 messages. You usually have 8-9 non-interior cells loaded when you are outside.
- Every interior cell can contain up to 35 messages.
Naturally you'll need an internet connection for the Building Bridges mod to function. Messages you post are sent to a server, and messages you find are downloaded from the same place. Nicely, Building Bridges is compatible with other mods, so if you're using a mod like Project Brazil or New Vegas Bounties, you'll be able to leave and find messages in those worldspaces, too. There's also a reporting system if you come across a message you think is offensive.
There are several requirements for using the Building Bridges mod: the JIP LN NVSE Plugin, the SUP NVSE plugin, and xNVSE (New Vegas Script Extender). Please see each of those pages for complete installation instructions.
Here's how to install the Building Bridges mod:
- Download the files from Nexus Mods and install the mod and its requirements (you'll need a free account)
- Request an API key by scrolling down to the bottom of this page to Building Bridges.
- Launch the game and enter the API key into the pop-up box.
- Load a saved game and select "Yes" on the BB mod pop-up.
- Restart the game and you'll be able to find and leave messages.
To learn more and read the mod's FAQ, vist the mod page here at Nexus Mods.
