Horizon Zero Dawn Review

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Platform: PS4 PC

Reviewed on: PC

Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment

Developer: Guerrilla Games

Release: Feb 28, 2017 PS4 Aug 7, 2020 PC

Time Played: 30 Hours

Genre: Action RPG

ESRB: T

Intro:

Horizon Zero Dawn is an amazing game that started out as a playstation exclusive in 2017. It was so good they decided to release on PC in 2020. If you, like me, haven’t seen this game for years after release, you’re going to want to stick around and check this out. I beat the base game after twenty seven hours, you can check out the playthrough from the card up there. But first stick around so I can tell you about the game and give it a proper rating.

Story:

Horizon follows Aloy, a young woman who is striving to prove her worth after growing up as an outcast in a primitive world full of dangerous machines that attack on sight. She has never known her parents and was raised by Rost, another outcast who taught Aloy how to hunt and survive in the wilds. With the skills she gained from years of training she sets out to figure out where she comes from, and finds a lot more about the world then she bargained for.

Kiddos:

I don’t feel like there is to much to worry about. The only qualms I’d have were the violence toward other humans. The language is clean and the combat wasn’t graphic. My kids really enjoyed watching me play. They thought fighting the machines was really cool. And it is, lots of flashy lights and unique sounds. Every fight puts on quite a show.

Gameplay:

Horizon is a big beautiful game. The map is very expansive, and full of lethal machines, side quests, and any number of mysteries waiting to be uncovered. The main story line took me through the entirety of the map, opening up new areas as I was ready, level and skill wise. There did come a point where I could explore everything, but that could take me to some places I definitely was not ready for.

There was a main quest line to follow with a lot of side-quests. I did a couple but generally stuck to the main storyline. I was usually a high enough level to handle what the game threw at me. The only times it got difficult were when I ran out of crafting materials.

Aloy carries a spear for close up melee combat, but she generally sticks to ranged combat. There are three different bows she can use, each with different uses like fast loading but low damage or slow loading with a lot damage and better range. Followed by a few different slings that could throw lobs of elemental orbs at enemies, and a few trap related weapons to help keep machines contained while fighting.

All the different ammunition types had to be crafted using materials gained from machines and the wild. There were a couple shots I used more than others and seemed to always run out of those materials. Go figure. So I would have to travel out into the wilds and go hunting for materials. Or I could just buy them from a merchant if I had the shards to spend.

The currency in the game was Metal Shards, found on basically any defeated enemy. They were also used to craft arrows. So in the beginning before I had saved up a nice supply I had to decide on whether I wanted to spend my shards, or save them to craft ammunition. Besides crafting mats, merchants would also provide more weapons or armor. But they would want more than just shards for the more expensive gear. Every piece required something extra like the heart from a specific machine. So if you want all the equipment, it will involve a lot of hunting. The parts they want are rarely dropped.

Besides crafting ammo, there is also the ability to craft bigger pouches to carry all of Alloys various trinkets, like weapons, traps, and clothing. In order to craft all the different pouches she would have to hunt down a lot of different organic animals. It was fun making a mental note about what animals I needed to keep an eye out for while exploring, hoping they drop their skin or bone, whatever I needed.

As Aloy leveled up and completed various missions she would gain ability points. The points are used to purchase various abilities from four different trees. Each tree has it’s own usefulness like bigger bags, more damage, being able to sneak around easier and a much more. To get the better skills at the bottom, the skills before had to be obtained. In the beginning it felt like I was leveling up really fast, but it slowed down forcing me to think hard about what I wanted to grab next.

As I mentioned earlier most of the combat in the game is ranged there is also a really nice stealth mechanic that I took a real liking to. When hunting there will usually be some long grass to hide out in. I could call enemies close and stealth attack with my spear, usually taking them out in out hit. The tougher enemies took a lot more but for an initial attack it would take a big chunk out of their health bar. Or I could hide out in the grass and shoot my bow at baddies and remain hidden. It didn’t pull some nonsense where I had to stand to shoot, exposing myself to the enemy.

If a big story, a lot of side missions, and a huge map to explore gets boring, there are plenty of collectibles to hunt down. Some are special items while others are just notes and audios. There is a lot to read and listen to. The story was really good by itself, the notes and audios just build on top of that and helps you to understand the world of horizon. Where it stands now and where it was before.

Now, some qualms I had with the game. They aren’t major issues and were easy to play with, I just wish it was a little smoother better quality of life as it were. When picking up materials off the ground, Aloy has to stop and pick it with a short animation. It creates realism and immersion for sure, but it got old. I just want to be able to run by and snag a flower off the ground without losing momentum.

The only other issue I had was mounted movement. Eventually Aloy can override machines bringing them to her side, and some of the machines can be ridden. I did not like riding around on a machine. Given I was playing on a keyboard, everything else played fine, but the movement was to janky. It was difficult to get them moving in the direction I wanted, and they were very stiff. And looting materials off the ground were so much worse on a mount. I would be sprinting moving the direction I wanted and I would try to grab something the mount just stops dead and I had to work up my momentum again. I just ran everywhere on foot, and there is a fast travel option, so mounts are almost obsolete.

Outro:

Horizon Zero Dawn was an amazing game. I’m just upset it took me so long to play it. And now there is already a sequel out with DLC right around the corner. I beat the base game after about 26 hours but skipped a lot of the exploration and side quests, I didn’t even get started on the DLC yet which I’m sure adds more awesome to the entire game. So, without further ado lets get these ratings underway. The visuals were very good. There was dynamic weather, a night and day cycle, all of which made for a beautiful world to play in. Five. The story was spot on. I really enjoyed how everything came together and just grew. That’s another Five. Gameplay wise, everything went smoothly. The only issues I had I already brought up and they weren’t that bad. I freaking love ranged fighting with bows and arrows. Five again. Now replayability, this is where most games get hung up, but not Horizon. Horizon offers a new game plus, with the equipment gained from the previous playthrough offering new rewards and harder difficulties. So we’re going with another 5. Wow look at that, it’s looking really good so far, only one thing left, how much fun did I have? Even though I didn’t explore or experience everything, I had a blast with what I did experience. If I wasn’t streaming I would have taken more time and really soaked everything in. I think that makes this game worthy of another Five. Wow wee, look at that, five for five. I’m sure you know what that means. This game belongs… on that special reserve shelf. It was so good and I expect nothing less with the sequel Horizon Forbidden West. Keep an eye out for that, I am definitely checking that one out too, but a lot sooner after release than this one. If you have the time, for sure, check this game out, it’s worth it.