Although the Sony E3 press conference basically threw in the towel on exclusive games coming to the PS4 in the fall, the company did surprise fans with lots of jaw-dropping trailers for games arriving in 2016 (hopefully). Somewhere between the return of The Last Guardian and the teaser for Final Fantasy 7, a new IP called Horizon: Zero Dawn also caught the eyes of fans with its unique setting and a strong female protagonist.

The E3 trailer for Horizon: Zero Dawn kicked off in cinematic fashion like the rest of Sony's presentation, but actually transitioned very gracefully to a highly-polished gameplay demo. The sci-fi, jungle-themed apocalypse looks like an incredible setting for a new action game and the combat against the giant mech-animals looks intense. We haven't heard much about the game since its E3 reveal, but Aloy (the protagonist) and her bow returned to the stage recently at the Tokyo Game Show.

The Tokyo Game Show demo marks the first time the game has been played live on a visible console in front of an audience. The footage will look very familiar to gamers who have already watched the E3 demo, but despite the familiar setting the action does play out differently. We also get a better look at the HUD this time around.

[HTML1]

Although some potential fans might be disappointed that the gameplay so closely resembles what we've already seen at E3, there is no denying that the game looks gorgeous. The enemies that the demo showcases are the same, but this playthrough is a bit slower and, potentially, more unscripted. The player takes his or her time early on and looks around the open world to give viewers  better sense of the game's setting.

Once the player engages in combat with the herd, things start to play out the same way they did in the original footage. Aloy unintentionally draws the attention of the enormous Thunder Jaw and then uses duck and roll techniques to dodge its attacks, while she attempts to find the weak spot in its armor. Gameplay goes into slow-mo when the player changes weapons, but aside from that, things seem very fast-paced when engaged in combat against a large enemy.

As Guerrilla Games finishes up Horizon: Zero Dawn and gets ready for the 2016 launch, we look forward to learning a lot more about the game and its world, which is all entirely single-player focused. The setting is definitely a breath of fresh air and playing with a hero that doesn't look like a carbon copy of Nathan Drake is always a nice change of pace. Check back for updates as more details continue to leak out about the game.

Are you looking forward to Horizon: Zero Dawn? What do you think of the gameplay we've seen so far? Let us know in the comments.

Source: YouTube