Let’s go and explore, in this article, all the news that Horizon Forbidden West has put on the plate so far: among so many certainties and some doubts, day one is approaching by leaps and bounds
When Sony released Horizon Zero Dawn in 2017, the company’s hope was to create a new icon of the gaming world and, first, a new face. After four abundant years we can say that the intent has definitely succeeded: Aloy is, together with Nathan Drake and many others, one of the icons of Sony PlayStation and Zero Dawn one of his most popular titles ever. It is therefore not much of a sensation to note how its direct sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, both on the podium of our most anticipated video games of the year. And we won’t have to wait much longer, given that Aloy’s new adventure will arrive on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on February 18, in less than three weeks. Do you hear the hype?
Before starting
We have already talked about Horizon Forbidden West with various cover articles, in which we have gradually summarized all the news that Guerrilla Games has shown over time. The duration was also recently revealed, as well as some curiosities and details on the actual dimensions of the game map, which like the first chapter will be characterized by a vast and colorful open world, and on Aloy’s age in this sequel. In this article we want to create a bit of a summary, dissimilar from our guide on things to know before starting to play, on our expectations towards the title based on all the news already shown. Between certainties and doubts, let’s start!
Where did we stay and where do we go? | Horizon Forbidden West: between certainties, doubts and news!
On the narrative side we have very little to discuss: the events of Forbidden West will be set only six months after the end of Zero Dawn. Moving towards the Forbidden West, which Rost had also talked about in the prequel, Aloy will find himself facing a sort of epidemic that has brought the environment and in general all the biomes (as varied as if not more those of the first chapter) to rot and collapse on themselves.
Out of control climate, destroyed flora and fauna, atmospheric catastrophes that sow even more disasters. Let’s admit that the expectations regarding the narrative, and even more so regarding the lore of the game world, are really high, if we think back to how extraordinary the last few lines of Zero Dawn were. The constant combination and contrast between nature and technology has remained and it is undeniable that it is the most interesting part of the whole production. We hope to the levels of the first chapter!
Open world | Horizon Forbidden West: between certainties, doubts and news!
From a simple playful point of view, what are our greatest hopes? Essentially two and the first concerns the open world. In Zero Dawn, the beautiful open world created by Guerrilla had, as always in the genre anyway, that flavor of emptiness derived mainly from the lack of valid secondary activities. Don’t get us wrong: the secondary missions that Aloy had to face were (almost) all very interesting, especially those related to thick NPCs. But when we went to thin out a little, we had a handful of well-hidden collectibles in our hands (and sometimes protected by large machines), but nothing more.
Grapple and underwater adventures | Horizon Forbidden West: between certainties, doubts and news!
In Forbidden West the world seems more vivid than ever and we hope it is not only from a stylistic point of view. The possibility of using the grapple and greater use of the Focus, which this time does not work only as a scanner, but it also allows you to find holds in the scenario (which in Zero Dawn were highlighted with particular colors), it seems to promise great alternatives in terms of exploration. Furthermore, the introduction of underwater environments further amplifies the sense of wonder, but also the possibilities for Guerrilla Games to create a truly fascinating open world. Furthermore, the underlined presence of hostile creatures even in the depths gives us hope: underwater fighting or simple evasive maneuvers? Maybe.
Barrel! | Horizon Forbidden West: between certainties, doubts and news!
The second slice of gameplay that we hope will be greatly improved over Zero Dawn is definitely hand-to-hand combat. Because let’s face it: the stealth phases were fine, those of shooting with the bow too (and they were definitely fun and challenging!), but the sword fighting left much to be desired. From the various gameplay shown, the developers have often highlighted an innovation from this point of view, with more combos, improved effects and greater fluidity in the transition between melee attacks and those with the bow. We hope well!
Let’s wait!
And here is all the news and especially our expectations regarding Horizon Forbidden West. Let us know what you think of the Guerrilla Games title below in the comments, we will continue to keep you updated with all the news, guides and reviews on gaming and tech themes! And if you are interested in game keys at advantageous prices, we recommend that you take a look at the InstantGaming catalog!