Horizon Zero Dawn Review

I have this undying love for the post-apocalyptic genre, and the quest to find the best one is one never ending. How the beginning of the end surfaces, how the world then came to be, and what, now, pray tell, is left – the answers to these questions are what I seek in the journey through the world, and Horizon Zero Dawn looks to bring it with its expansive explorable open-world setting.

I have this undying love for the post-apocalyptic genre, and the quest to find the best one is one never ending. How the beginning of the end surfaces, how the world then came to be, and what, now, pray tell, is left – the answers to these questions are what I seek in the journey through the world, and Horizon Zero Dawn looks to bring it with its expansive explorable open-world setting.

Turn your face to the sun...

Despite its post-apocalyptic setting, Horizon Zero Dawn’s open world isn’t barren and dry. It’s actually the opposite – from lush, green fields to snowy mountains and scorching hot desert, it’s Mother Nature taking back its course from mankind, while what remains of mankind have formed primitive tribes to battle out each other and a threat that currently plagues the world itself – machines, robots scaling from small to gigantic.

The future is now, the very far future where you take the role of Aloy – a spirited young lady in search for answers about where she came from, and will stop at nothing to get them. Her personality is very much likeable, a lot of empathy to make the right decisions, and a bit of sarcasm to throw on the side. She’s not exactly a complex and deep character who you have to read in between. She’s rather naïve, but curious and eager to learn about what her answers hold.

The future is now, the very far future

The same could also be said about its cast of characters. Few as they are, they are more grounded and relatable in their own ways. Some of them however fall to their own tropes, while the less important ones are one-dimensional for their own good. It would be a great chance to explore such characters, and it’s one we’d like to see as a DLC.

There are also a vast number of side quests and errands you can complete. It’s the current standard for open-world games, but there’s none too important than the main story itself. Simply put, your primal objective is one you’re eager to solve without it being compelling, and you may likely drop a few sidequests here and there just to find the answers you seek.

In essence, Horizon Zero Dawn tells a grand story that’s thought-provoking, heartfelt, and fulfilling. But it suffers from poor pacing that it takes time to set everything up, and when you actually get somewhere, it’s thrown at you without stopping.

Beauty in Decima

Visually, Horizon Zero Dawn looks to impress. The game on Horizon Zero Dawn is a great feat achieved on the PlayStation 4. From the ruins of skyscrapers to the fields and vegetation, it’s a wonder to marvel at its sights.  The characters are also rendered realistically that you’d sometimes just want to stop and watch the whole thing happen by itself. Adding to it even is the game’s Photo Mode, which probably contributed to a lot of hours in our playthrough.

Battle Ready

Combat is one of the shining moments in Horizon Zero Dawn. It’s more on precision than guided mechanics. The best method of approach is to perform stealth attacks to unaware enemies, humans and machines alike. You’ll find yourself doing this a lot. The next best thing is to scan your enemies for their weak points using your Focus, and from there strike from afar, stealthily. There are also traps at your disposal, which can greatly help if you find yourself having difficulties with hunting the machines.

There are other methods, too. You’re also armed with a spear, but it’s a bit of a gamble since it isn’t quite as damaging as hitting enemy weak points, and you risk being spotted by other enemies since they mostly come in groups. You could just expect them to land some devastating attacks while they’re at it.

Taking down hulking machines like the Thunderjaw, the Deathbringer, the Stormbird, and other gigantic enemies feel so satisfying and rewarding, you’ll never run out of challenges as you look for the next one that’s just around the corner.

 

The one issue you’ll probably have in and outside of combat are the camera controls. Your point of view is hampered especially in tight and narrow rooms, which leaves you open for attacks behind. You’ll often have to dodge roll across repetitively just to avoid enemy attacks that are out of your field of vision. It’s the same for inspecting objects that tell some of the backstories and lore – the camera moves too slow during your Focus that it gets a bit nauseating if you’re one to inspect every nook and cranny for things to scan.  

Crafting armaments, armors, ammunition, curatives, and other upgrades is also an essential to help you at least get a leg up against the machines you encounter. Gathering materials for them is sometimes a chore, though. And you’ll often find yourself going all out on anything that moves or pick up anything that you can. Well, strictly limited to units that you can target so to speak for the former. There are certain limitations to it for realism’s sense, such as the number of materials you can carry, but it doesn’t necessarily add depth or difficulty to the overall gameplay.  It just makes it more of a tedious chore that you have to traverse back and forth to merchants to sell what you don’t need for metal shards, the in-game currency.

Verdict

Horizon Zero Dawn is simply breathtaking. It tells a majestic story that can fully keep you at its grasp and further have you at it with its precision combat. Its vast and rich open-world is definitely an experience you’ll be wanting to explore on, touched upon greatly by the prowess of the Decima Engine. Guerilla Games has made something so profound and memorable in its own way, giving us a lasting impression of what a journey throughout the afteryears can be.