Horizon: Zero Dawn presents such a lush, vibrant game-world that at times it seems like an actually living world. With so much to look at and do it is natural to miss some of the more nuanced details that were hidden in plain sight by the developers. Some of these secrets are references to other games that share a link with Horizon: Zero Dawn, some are references to Horizon: Zero Dawn’s competition and some are landmarks that many may have not noticed due to the deteriorated state of the “ancient” structures scattered across the map.
Here are 10 secrets many players may have missed while playing Horizon: Zero Dawn, and explanations for some of the secrets many found but may not have understood what it was referencing.
10 The Old Chapel
Near Mother’s Cradle, there is an old A-frame structure overgrown by vegetation and in seemingly in imminent danger of collapsing. Many players explored this area and never realized that structure is based on an existing structure – even with it being given a vantage point that gives Aloy and the player a glimpse of what the building looked like before the fall of civilization.
The structure in-game is based on the real-life U.S. Air Force Academy Chapel located near Colorado Springs. This area is also where the player (and Aloy) can learn something about the origin of the machines that now roam the land.
9 Killzone Reference
During the PlayStation 3’s time, there was a best-selling trilogy of games titled Killzone. One of the more memorable, and recognizable, characters in the series was Helghast . Helghast's helmet became the de facto symbol for the series. In Horizon: Zero Dawn one of the ancient relics the player can find is a “vessel” that is, in fact, a coffee mug with an image of the Helghast helmet. This is no random reference. The developer of Horizon: Zero Dawn, Guerrilla Games, was also the developer of the Killzone games. This is not the only reference to one of Guerrilla Games’ previous games in Horizon: Zero Dawn.
8 Skeletons Holding Hands
This secret was an easy one for a casual player who didn't want to spend hours exploring every inch of the game-world to miss. The player must first go to the lower center part of the map – to the right of the brown mountains arranged vertically in a saw-tooth pattern. Getting to this area requires leaping from the head of a tallneck onto a stone outcropping. From there, the player must climb up to a small area with a campfire and two skeletons holding hands. As the player approaches the skeletons somber music begins to play. Many have speculated that this area is a reference to Silent Hill.
7 Secret At The Denver Stadium
This secret is another reference to Guerilla (Cambridge) Game’s past. Finding this easter egg requires going to the forested area on the far eastern part of the map. In the eastern part of this area, the player will come across a vantage point that gives Aloy a view of Denver Stadium from before the fall. While looking at the stadium the player will notice a blue-and-red kite shield logo with a capital R within the shield. This is a reference to Guerrilla’s RIGS: Mechanized Combat League game. Does the RIGS logo at the stadium give a clue as to where some of the machines came from?
6 The Triforce Of Power
This may be a coincidence, but there are several places in the game-world where the player will encounter a symbol that looks suspiciously like the Triforce of Power from the Legend of Zelda games. There is some evidence that this is more than a coincidence.
Breath of the Wild was released four days after Horizon: Zero Dawn; Horizon was released on February 28, 2017, and Breath of the Wild on March 3. This made the two games direct competitors in the open-world fantasy genre. What was Guerrilla trying to say to Nintendo if this was actually a reference to the Legend of Zelda series…and not just a coincidence?
5 The Platinum Trophy Reward
This is a secret that was only found by the most dedicated completionists. If the player is able to collect all the trophies and earn the platinum trophy for Horizon: Zero Dawn they are given a special reward. After reaching 100% completion the player could download a Horizon: Zero Dawn theme pack for their PlayStation 4. This puts a nice wallpaper of the machines behind the menus and gives the menu symbols a primitive style that resembles the “cave-paintings” found in the game-world. Dedicated players might want to check their completion percentage to see if they’re only a few trophies away from getting this reward.
4 The Death Stranding Necklace
This is the first of three references hidden in Horizon: Zero Dawn for Kojima Productions’ game Death Stranding. This necklace can be found in The Grave Hoard located in the northeastern part of the map. After entering the underground entrance the player should go to the left of the blue area that says Operation Enduring Victory.
Along the wall to the right, the player will come across two bodies. The marker on the body to the right is tucked into the corner and not immediately noticeable. The necklace itself is composed of six small ingots hanging from a wire. The necklace is a collectible item with the title “Stranded Necklace”.
3 The Death Stranding Shackles
To find these shackles the player must go through the back entrance to the Coliseum – labeled on the map as Zero Dawn Alternate Entrance. After reaching the underground area the player will notice a pair of shackles resting on a table. The marker for the item is visible makes it fairly easy to spot. These shackles are the same as those first shown being worn by Norman Reedus’ character in the Death Stranding trailer. Unfortunately, these are like the Stranding Necklace, meaning they are a collectible the player cannot use them in-game. This is a shame since most players can probably think of several uses for these shackles, being able to incapacitate some of the lesser machines being only the first example.
2 The Death Stranding Figure
The third and final Death Stranding reference in Horizon: Zero Dawn is the damaged doll collectible. This item can be found at the starting location behind a stairway. It can be easy to miss if the player is in a hurry, but the marker for the doll is visible behind the stairs. This doll is very similar to the one first shown in the Death Stranding trailer. All three Stranding items have an inventory logo that is a silhouette of Kojima Production’s logo. Some players might be wondering why these Death Stranding references were put in the game. It could be due to Kojima Productions using Guerrilla Games’ Decima game engine for Death Stranding.
1 Jazz Jackrabbit
The final secret that many players probably did not originally notice is located by one of the metal flowers. The player will come across two rabbits – one named Jazz and the other named Jack. This is clearly a reference to the PC game Jazz Jackrabbit, released in 1994. This easter egg might seem a bit random until one learns the story behind it. Jazz Jackrabbit was created by Arjan Brussee and Cliff Bleszinski. One of the founders of Guerrilla Games, the company that made Horizon: Zero Dawn, was none other than Arjan Brussee.