Horizon Zero Dawn

One of the hardest things to do in gaming is to make a new IP, or an entirely new franchise for those of you unfamiliar with gaming lingo. 

A harder thing to do in gaming is make a new IP exclusively for a single console. Exclusives immediately gain interest from the "fanboys" and put a lot of pressure on the shoulders of the developers. 

A harder thing still is to make a new IP once you've already established yourself with a well-known and respected exclusive franchise, essentially shifting gears from what you and your customers are used to and trying something new. 

This is what Guerilla Games had to do with Horizon Zero Dawn and I honestly believe that not enough people understand how hard that accomplishment is, no matter which system you're making exclusive games for. They're the developers known for the Killzone series; often the "flagship" PlayStation launch titles that are competent shooters with insane graphics. Few bought them for the gameplay or story (though I have to admit, I quite loved this series) and more so to show off their new hardware on their HDTVs. 

What they've been able to do with Horizon Zero Dawn is nothing short of incredible and the fact that they've been working on it for 6 years shows. Aloy, the main protagonist of the game, immediately joins the ranks of Nathan Drake and Kratos as an iconic PlayStation character and the game as a whole is probably the best exclusive IP I've seen/played on either Xbox or PlayStation since The Last of Us. Not as momentous as that game, mind you, but still deserving of some high praise.

Utterly gorgeous screenshots of my playthrough will follow. Also, photo mode for the win!

Stalking at night. Eerie and dangerous

Horizon is immediately interesting in the aspect that it presents a world full of mystery. Many post apocalyptic games set out to do this, but few rarely capture your attention. The apocalypse is often looked at as a barren, brown wasteland that was destroyed by nuclear weapons, a virus, or something of the sort. It's clear that Horizon is different and the sense of wonderment that it creates was something that really drove me throughout the game. The decision to not explain the downfall of the world, how these machines came to be, or where you are in the world was a perfect one and it's a lesson in "less is more". With all of these questions unanswered, not only for the player, but for the characters in the game, it creates an overarching plot that always seems grand in ways that few games can achieve. It also makes the world's collectibles more interesting than other open-world games (for the most part) because as you read through the first couple, you see that they're pieces to the puzzle too.

That sense of mystery progresses steadily throughout the core story and side stories and, other than a mildly generic ending, I found it was highly enticing to unravel the mysteries of the Old World. The scope of everything is BIG in this game and the implications and details that you eventually discover are shocking, dark, and will have you thinking in the way that only the best sci-fi stories can achieve. Some of the revelations that hit, hit hard. They're depressing and grand and the whole unfurling of the world's secrets is probably the best telling I've seen since Bioshock Infinite. I was hooked and for an open world game, that's a win in and of itself. Outside of the grandiose, overarching story, the mission-to-mission world is intriguing too and surprisingly mature. Themes like sexism, racism, religion, hierarchical structures, and other challenging topics are handled elegantly and add a considerable amount of gravitas to the game. Guerilla didn't need to do this at all, but their decision to fully flesh out these topics creates a world akin to Skyrim or The Witcher where it feels more like an extension of our world and less like a videogame. The stories that follow our main missions and side missions are often intriguing too, taking you to nearly every corner of the vast and varied map. Some are better than others obviously, but for the most part they feel important and worthwhile. Circling back to Aloy one last time; she is just incredible. Especially once you've played the whole game. Much like the world described above, she's mature and realistic. A fierce woman warrior who takes absolutely zero s**t. It's refreshing to see a character outside of a Naughty Dog game written so damn well, with nearly every line she speaks being something that you can totally see her saying. As a whole, the voice acting is top-notch too, with Aloy being the standout.

Letting my Overridden machine do the work for me...

Where Horizon could have faltered is the gameplay. It's sometimes the death of new IPs and it certainly would have ruined this game. Instead, gameplay is one of Horizon's biggest assets and I adored it. Aloy controls well in nearly every situation and the combat is fluid, and more importantly, intuitive. There are no uselessly confusing controller mappings here and the buttons are laid out for maximum efficiency. For example, the weapon selection can be accessed by holding L1, allowing you to access 4 different weapons. Each weapon can have up to 3 ammo types, thus meaning you have a selection wheel of 12 choices. Under most circumstances, that would be unwieldy but Horizon slows down time when this happens, allowing you to easily switch to whatever weapon/ammo type you want and get back to the fighting. Quick selections get easier as you play and it was a small thing like this that I imagine underwent a ton of testing time. In battle, Aloy controls like a dream. She's highly versatile with slides, rolls, dodges, jumps, and sprints, each of which being realistic but useful in avoiding enemy attacks. I dodge rolled the hell out of each battle, making for some intense close-up fights and avoidance of long-range missiles. Shooting Aloy's various weapons also handles well with a "bullet-time" option and fantastic hit detection. She can fire other arrows faster than others while some are more accurate meaning that you have to consistently have the right tool for the job. Suffice it to say that I often felt like a complete badass. At one point after I had survived a human and machine enemy ambush, dispatching every single enemy I asked, "Did I really just do that?" as I looked at the bodies and lifeless machines scattered on the floor. Anytime a game gives you the power to ask that, it's a pretty special thing.

Ooooo pretty lights!

Speaking about special things, let's talk about character design. Aloy and the other humans throughout the world wear outfits made of a combination of machine metal and resources from the earth (stone, wood, fabric, etc.). They look good, and as I mentioned before, Aloy, red hair and all, will be very welcome as a main staple moving forward for the PS brand. The dinosaur-like machines are jaw-dropping and they're the true stars of the show. Each one somewhat resembles an animal of sorts, though it's clear that the designers pulled from multiple sources for each creature. Watchers for example are like velociraptors mixed with wolves, while the Thunderjaw is a T-rex with a bunch of guns and armor made 3-4 times bigger. These could have easily been bland, gray, creatures with various ticks and quirks, but the attention to detail ends up being staggering. Each machine has small lights and crevices, separations of armor, eyes, components, etc. that make them unique and fully realized. They're equipped with strengths and weaknesses that make them both vulnerable and powerful. If you think you'll go through this game and use the same ammo type on each machine, you'll die. A lot. The earlier machines can be defeated, difficultly, without strategy, but very quickly it becomes apparent that you'll need to think ahead and be ready to use everything in your arsenal for hordes of larger ones. Only a handful of times did I have what I consider a "cheap" death and most times it was because I was playing like a jackass instead. Even just sitting in thick brush and watching these creatures is somewhat mesmerizing and definitely not a moment that I'll forget on the PS4 anytime soon. They move majestically and organically which is immediately in contrast with the fact that they're made up of metal and plates and wire. Again, it makes the world building incredibly strong and all the more intriguing.

Ahhh the Thunderjaw. Huge. Terrifying. And I'm pretty sure he's about to kill me!

Like most PlayStation exclusives, Horizon Zero Dawn also sets a new bar for visuals. That's not my fanboy coming out, just being a realist. My PlayStation sets more graphics benchmarks than any games I play on Xbox (whether they're great or not) and it's rare that I find a PS exclusive that doesn't challenge the status quo. Horizon, for being an open world game, is insane. There are moments here and there that textures are a little off or character models look goofy, but in general, I can't believe how crisp this game looked and how well it ran. I had a single moment of slowdown when there were about 15+ human/machine enemies on screen and even then it was a slight hiccup. Utilizing my new TVs HDR feature, I couldn't believe how flawlessly the game projected its gorgeous imagery, especially during the intense moments. Environments are detailed enough as is, but then you throw in the insanely detailed machines and all the action that comes with fighting one of them and I'm left just baffled as to how Guerilla got this game to perform at this level. With Horizon under their belt (not to mention the visuals that came with the Killzone series), they officially join Naughty Dog on the list of PlayStation geniuses when it comes to manipulating the power of the console. I rarely talk about this next element in games either -- it's usually reserved for movies -- but Horizon has some of the best sound design/editing that I've ever heard, if not the flat out best. This stems mainly from the technology in the world and the machines, but more subtle features shouldn't be discredited too. Machine noises/attacks/deaths, weapon impacts or firings, and just the ambiance of the world are all equally as impressive as the graphics and help to give the game just that much more identity.  The sound of Tearblast arrows will forever be one of my favorite gaming sounds.

Well I hope this turns out well...

Horizon Zero Dawn will easily be one of my favorite games of the year. I couldn't put it down once I started playing it and I immediately want to return to that world. It's an example of a game's elements all coming together to create something special. That this is a new, exclusive IP is astounding and I can't wait to see what the series holds in the future. In this day and age I feel like there are a lot of games that, by the time we actually play them, are "overhyped" -- basically the gaming community got too excited for them. Horizon Zero Dawn is one of those wonderful, pleasant times where, if anything, it was better than the hype would have us believe.

CONS

• Flower/herb picking for resources gets old
• Final "level" is a bit generic
• Some side missions are nothing but fetch quests
• A few unbalanced leveling up choices. Some are far better than others, no matter your play style, yet cost the same 
• I found riding a mount to be difficult and often avoided it

PROS

• Aloy is an instantly iconic character and a fantastic ambassador for the PlayStation brand. She's as strong a woman that I've ever played in a game and was approached with a realistic and thoughtful tone. A post-apocalyptic Wonder Woman
• Addicting sense of mystery. I haven't been this engrossed in discovering a world's secrets in quite sometime and the slow reveals are heavy stuff. There are great sci-fi elements to be experienced here 
• Overall plot and themes are mature and done well. This game may only be rated Teen, but it has a lot to say about a lot of touchy topics and is all the better (and believable) for it
• Strong supporting characters and overall character design
• Utterly stellar gameplay. It's smooth, intuitive, easy to pick up, but also incredibly nuanced. It opens a lot of opportunity for the player to advance as they best see fit and you'll never feel limited by it
• Monster/robot/creature design is jaw-dropping. These are some of the best "enemies" ever created for a game and the fact that there are 20+ of them is exciting -- each new one brings a unique challenge and creature design. If there's a true "star of the show" these guys are it
• Large and varied world that holds a lot of secrets
• Other gameplay elements like crafting, leveling up, fast travel, etc. are well thought out and easy to grasp
• New gold standard for open world game visuals and fluidity. Absolutely outstanding
• Excellent sound design. The monster noises are unreal and add a lot of life/personality to the creatures
• Consistently fun, always gorgeous, and enticingly engaging. Horizon Zero Dawn has established itself as one of the strongest new IPs (exclusive or not) in recent memory

Rath's Review Score | 9.5/10

Below are a handful of other screenshots I took that I thought I'd share. Enjoy!