Over on the PlayStation Blog, Guerrilla Games has provided all-new details regarding the machine enemies of Horizon Forbbiden West. Among this new information is an increased lethality to these metal creatures and how the player will survive battles against them on a regular basis.
Guerrilla has shown off some of these beasts already in past Horizon Forbidden West gameplay trailers such as the "fast and agile Clawstrider and the deadly mammoth-like Tremortusk." This Tremortusk has a body completely covered in guns that also uses different elemental attacks as well as its armored tusks. It is an unstoppable force and was Guerrilla's answer to war elephants that were used to topple fortresses in medievel times.
Many of the machine designs are carry-overs from the original Horizon as the team was unable to implement some of the more exciting ideas from that first entry. The Sunwing enemy, which is a slightly bigger size than Horizon Zero Dawn's Glinthawk, is one type of enemy the team found new life for in Forbbiden West as they found "a place and a role in the world" for it. The Sunwing will collect solar energy during sunny weather, and will be vulnerable while harvesting power, allowing Aloy a chance to strike. However, it will also be more alert while idle creating a more dynamic situation.
Many of these enemies will pose new dangers to Aloy on her adventure, and she'll need to use all the weapons in her arsenal to take the metal gargantuans down. Guerrilla says that every machine has multiple ways to be defeated, with clear indicators through added textures that show off weak points and other areas of interactivity.
Aloy's movements have also been given an upgrade to further allow her to take on these beasts more efficiently through new mobility changes while jumping, swimming or clinging to surfaces as well as "Aloy's ability to survey and plan an encounter before engaging, as well as her ability to escape if things don't go as planned." Of course, climbing and using smoke bombs will be excellent ways for Aloy to get an edge in battles but the team is also planning to make use of the PlayStation 5's 3D audio for greater situational awareness. The machines have new sounds for acts such as idling or alerting others that will give players feedback on what exactly their foe is up to.
Finally, the team confirms that Aloy can once again override machines to assist her in battle and that there are many more mounts to choose from in Horizon Forbidden West, such as the Clawstrider. Politeski says to keep a watchful eye on many of these enemies as they will, more often than not, inadvertently lead Aloy to secret stashes or resources in the open world.
These new additions to Horizon's pantheon of enemies are sure to keep players even more engaged than ever before, and will hopefully, like Politeski says, require players to use everything in Aloy's arsenal to emerge victorious.
Horizon Forbidden West releases on February 18, 2022 for PS4 and PS5.
Source: PlayStation Blog