What began as a new IP for Guerrilla Games has blossomed into one of Sony's most popular franchises. Since the release of Horizon Zero Dawn in 2017, Aloy and her post-apocalyptic world have taken the gaming world by storm, and gamers are more than ready for the next entry in the series. Fortunately, the wait will not continue for much longer because Horizon Zero Dawn's sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, is set to release in early 2022.
Expectations are high for Horizon Forbidden West, and Guerrilla Games appears to be eager to not leave gamers disappointed. From trailers, podcasts, and blog posts released, it is evident that Horizon Forbidden West will significantly expand on its predecessor and improve on as many aspects as possible. Aloy will be traveling to the Forbidden West, a dystopian version of San Francisco with huge swaths of it submerged underwater. Here, Aloy will face dangerous tribes and killer machines she has never seen before. Fortunately, she has also learned a lot since her previous adventures, and has new ways of exploring the world and fighting her foes.
Travel in Style in Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Zero Dawn offers an expansive world filled with varied settings including mountainous regions, desert plains, and lush forests. Aloy, being nimble and fast, can tackle all these environments with relative ease, and when she is facing extremely long distances she can also override a machine and use it as a mount. However, one annoying aspect of traversal in the game is that mountain climbing is a very color-by-the-numbers experience. Aloy is unable to climb freely, and she has to grip onto yellow ledges, or else she might find herself falling down the side of a cliff.
Guerrilla Games has noted this issue, and is attempting to remedy that in Horizon Forbidden West. The game will feature free-climbing, which will allow Aloy to climb mountains, rocks, and cliffs without the need for handholds. As the studio explains in an interview with Game Informer, this will make the world more inviting to explore. Players will also be able to high-vault, meaning that ledges that are within jumpable height will be accessible to Aloy with a little hoisting.
Aloy will not have to rely solely on her muscles because she also has a few new gadgets to help her get around. As part of her toolkit, she will have a grappling hook, known as a Pullcaster, that will help her to get to high-up places quickly. This will certainly come in handy when she is dealing with machines and she has to make use of her environment as creatively as possible. The Pullcaster also doubles as a winch that Aloy can use to manipulate objects in her environment.
Descending will also be made easier thanks to the glider, known as a Shieldwing, that will allow Aloy to get back to ground level gently. According to Guerrilla Games, the Shieldwing was originally meant to be part of Horizon Zero Dawn, but it never made the final cut. Fortunately, it will receive plenty of use in Horizon Forbidden West. Used together, the new tools will help to make Aloy feel more agile than ever before, and the verticality of the gameplay will be greatly improved.
Perhaps the biggest change to traversal in Horizon Forbidden West is the inclusion of underwater environments that players will be able to explore. As trailers have revealed, Aloy will be able to swim underwater where she will cross paths with new machines to face and new worlds to explore. Although the game will be available on both PS4 and PS5, Guerrilla Games has revealed that the PS5 version will include more underwater effects.
Aloy's New Combat Mechanics in Horizon Forbidden West
Despite being a post-apocalyptic one, the world of Horizon Zero Dawn is sublimely beautiful. There is no doubt that Horizon Forbidden West will be equally as breathtaking. As lovely as the environment is, the world is still lurking with all kinds of dangers. Whether it be aggressive tribes or nasty machines, Aloy always has to keep an eye open. However, Aloy is better equipped to deal with whatever comes her way this time around.
Combat with humans in Horizon Zero Dawn is lackluster, to say the least, and outside of simple melee attacks and arrow-flinging, there is not much Aloy can do. Luckily, players will have plenty more options in Horizon Forbidden West. The studio designed the combat system of the game with player choice in mind, meaning that gamers will have different ways to deal with enemies depending on their preferred playstyle.
To sharpen her tools, Aloy will have workbenches available to her where she can upgrade her outfits and weapons. The skill tree from Horizon Zero Dawn has also been majorly revamped. By moving up the skill tree, players will be able to unlock more perks and abilities for Aloy, allowing her to take on bigger and tougher enemies.
Aloy will have some new moves available in Horizon Forbidden West. This includes the Resonator Blast, a move that is charged up by successfully landing melee hits. Once Aloy's spear is charged up, she will be able to send forth energy that can be placed on her enemies. When she follows it up with a projectile, it will result in a tremendous explosion.
Valor Surges are another new addition. These are unlocked and upgraded through the skill tree. With 12 Valor Surges available, there is one to accommodate every playstyle. Valor Surges are charged by playing smart; this includes getting headshots and knocking off machine components. Once Aloy has enough Valor, she will be able to unleash a spectacular attack.
There will also be new weapons at Aloy's disposal. This includes a Spike Thrower which launches projectiles that deal high damage. This is perfect for dealing with larger enemies. Returning weapons will also feature new ammo types. The Blast Sling, for instance, will have Cluster and Adhesive Bombs which have been shown off in trailers. Aloy will need all these new abilities because the foes she will face in the Forbidden West are far fiercer and smarter. Humans and machines will work together, and human enemies have better AI.
What has been revealed about Horizon Forbidden West suggests that it will be an amazing experience whether on PS4 or PS5. Instead of offering up more of the same, Guerrilla Games has decided to allow more ideas to come to life, resulting in a game that has scaled up to accommodate Aloy's new experiences and skills.
Horizon Forbidden West releases on February 18, 2022, for PS4 and PS5.