Horizon Zero Dawn is home to both natural and mechanical marvels. Those on the mechanical side are innovations created by GAIA and the terraforming system’s subordinate functions. Though many of the animal-like machines are deadly to the unarmed traveler, there also exist harmless devices such as the game’s Metal Flowers.
Metal Flowers are scattered throughout the map of Horizon Zero Dawn and serve as one of the game’s main collectibles. Much like the other collectibles, there’s some lore to be gleaned from the mechanical flora. In this case, the Metal Flowers hold snatches of DEMETER’s creation, as well as hints to what might happen in Horizon Forbidden West.
Finding the Metal Flowers of Horizon Zero Dawn
There are a total of 30 Metal Flowers that can be found on the map, each surrounded by a triangle of bushes with violet flowers. The machine itself takes on the shape of a flower with long, pointed petals, and in its center is what looks to be a canister. To collect all the Metal Flowers, Aloy can purchase a special map that marks rough estimations of each collectible’s location.
Once the player has collected all 30 Metal Flowers, they can trade these with a merchant in Meridian named Kudiv. In return, Kudiv will reward them with special Treasure Boxes. The player can also ask them about what they know about these Metal Flowers. Kudiv will reply that the Metal Flowers are in great demand among his clientele. Though not much is known about their origins, they were said to have first appeared right after the Derangement, so Kudiv theorizes that the Metal Flowers might sprout from the tears of the Sun.
The Origins of the Mysterious Metal Flowers
However, the true nature of the Metal Flowers is far less mystical. In the Notebook section of the menu, it’s written that the mechanical flora is primarily used for seed germination. Thus, these collectibles were most likely created by one of GAIA’s rogue subfunctions, DEMETER being the most probable candidate as it’s the subroutine in charge of restoring the Earth’s plant life.
Each of the Metal Flowers contains lines of poetry in its code. Many of these verses have to do with nature and are taken from real-life poets of different nationalities. This is significant because Naoto, DEMETER’s Alpha, was fond of poetry. In one datapoint, Naoto even sends Elisabet Sobeck a long poem in response to an important message. This creates a strong connection between DEMETER and the Metal Flowers.
Furthermore, the player has the option to talk with CYAN of The Frozen Wilds DLC about the Metal Flowers. Doing so will prompt the AI to say that the mechanical flora may have come from one of GAIA’s now autonomous subfunctions. As for the poems, CYAN explains that unless the verses are original creations, they were likely programmed into the Metal Flowers’ system. This further strengthens the connection between the Metal Flowers, DEMETER, and Naoto.
Theories and Implications for Horizon Forbidden West
Given that the game is hinting at DEMETER’s recent actions in Horizon Zero Dawn, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the sentient AI in the game’s sequel. This has spurred the community to create theories surrounding the subfunction and the Metal Flowers.
One idea has to do with a bit of CYAN’s dialogue. According to CYAN, many literary texts were uploaded into its system to test the AI’s emotional response. If Naoto did the same with DEMETER, perhaps the poetry affected the now autonomous subroutine’s emotional capabilities in some way. In CYAN’s case, the literary texts made the AI more advanced, capable of emphasizing with humans and feeling emotions like fear and joy. Perhaps the same can be said about DEMETER after it became autonomous.
If DEMETER truly became an empathetic AI, maybe the poems shared in the Metal Flowers are a message to humankind. For instance, the third flower in the second set of Horizon collectibles contains “The Dream That Must Be Interpreted” by Persian poet Rumi. It highlights how humans often forget that they were born from and continue to thrive through the natural world. This could be taken as DEMETER reminding humankind of the bounties that nature brings them.
Others in the community theorize that DEMETER is warning the human race. This can be seen in the sixth flower of the second set, which features “The Mountain” by Arab poet Ibn Khafaja, as it mentions “black clouds” and “bangs of redhead lightning” - both of which are seen in the story trailer of Horizon Forbidden West. Similarly, the first flower of the third set, containing “Nature” by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, emphasizes nature’s impartiality - how it both gives and takes away. It also highlights how little humans understand, and these could very well be foreboding messages about what’s to come.
On the flip side, some fans don’t think DEMETER will be a benevolent force in Horizon Forbidden West. They suggest the rogue AI could be the source of the so-called Red Blight. These players theorize that perhaps the sentient subfunction has grown angry at humankind for not caring for the land and its flora. Though this is convincing as it mirrors HEPHAESTUS, it doesn’t explain why DEMETER went out of its way to create the Metal Flowers and the verses contained within them. Perhaps Horizon Forbidden West will shed some more light on the mechanical flora and its mysterious creator.
Horizon Zero Dawn is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5.