Horizon Forbidden West Review – Leaping To Greater Heights

Horizon Zero Dawn was just the introduction to Guerrilla Games’ fascinating world and the unlikely hero who would do everything in her power to save it. Horizon Forbidden West’s sequel takes it to new heights with innovative mechanics and captivating lore. Guerrilla Games improves on the last game’s shortcomings and isn’t afraid to borrow popular features from other big-name series, like Uncharted, Mass Effect, and Assassin’s Creed. The result is a game that’s not only fun to play, but full of surprises and wonder. Zero Dawn was a great proof of concept, but Forbidden West shows Guerrilla Games still has plenty of thought-provoking and compelling places to take Aloy’s adventures.

Six months have passed since the events at Zero Dawn. Forbidden West begins. Aloy’s discoveries have only brought more questions and dangers her way, forcing her to head west for answers. With a few returning characters and plot tie-ins from the first game, Forbidden West isn’t ideal for newcomers who want to embrace the narrative. Guerrilla’s writers expertly expand upon Horizon’s rich lore and dive into the series’ sci-fi elements, which are the sequel’s most gripping aspects. Some of the most fun I had was piecing together Aloy’s journey, but certain revelations and “ah ha” moments aren’t as satisfying without the full context from the first game. Although the overall story kept me interested, certain sections felt rushed and Regalla, a villain, was not allowed to shine.

In the last entry, Aloy’s journey was often solitary, but Forbidden West makes other characters central to her success, which is a nice change of pace. Returning faces like Varl and Erend get to show more of their personalities, and newcomers like the kindhearted Zo and tragic warrior Kotallo have interesting backstories that explain their tribes’ beliefs and values. Aloy sets up a home base a la Mass Effect to help these new friendships become more genuine. She can share information with her friends about the latest developments, hear their opinions, and learn more about each other. The base’s growth and expansion was exciting to me. I also loved seeing the new spaces open up within it. I wish that there was more time for me to spend with them. It was great to just be there and hear their banter. 

The star of the show is the world. Forbidden west is an amazing technical feat, featuring breathtaking views, vivid underwater corridors, lush jungles, and other technological achievements. Each locale is unique; you’ll see Las Vegas. With smoother climbing mechanics now available, Traversal is much easier. The Shield Wing, which almost acts like a futuristic umbrella, allows you to descend from incredible heights. However, the world’s constant sense of discovery really had me glued to my controller. Forbidden West has a lot more content than the predecessor. There are many quests to complete and plenty of items to discover. These side quests are so rich in lore and provide great insights into the tribes. I was forced to choose between two flawed characters who were trying to lead the tribe. Another side quest had me fighting the worst combination of Sunhawk-flying machines.

The side content also allowed me to unlock new locales and dungeons, and this doesn’t even factor in the additional activities like clearing rebel camps, climbing Tallnecks to reveal more of the map, and exploring Cauldrons for new machine overrides. I wasn’t expecting such a dense and vast world, and I always felt like I had something to do. Side quests offer great rewards, making them worth your while – some of my best weapons and armor came from these pursuits. Re-visiting old settlements was a great way to observe how their inhabitants and environments changed. As an added bonus, I would be able to open more side quests.

Still adrenaline-pumping, battles can be a thrilling experience. It is hard to not feel the thrill of defeating monstrous machines. Expect more destruction and larger setpieces in fights. I enjoyed the diversity of the locations, including close-quarters fighting and rocky terrain with lots of cover. This kept the game fresh and gave me new ideas to think about. Forbidden West gives you the freedom to play in your preferred way, and allows for many different ways to win against machines. There are both advantages and disadvantages to this approach. My creativity was a joy. I enjoyed the ability to shoot off weapons and use them against my enemy, or cause chain reactions using certain elements to create big explosions. I did not feel the power to keep combat exciting over time. A lot of it was due to my dissatisfaction with the skill trees.

These abilities are more of a stipend than significant upgrades. You can, for example, unlock the ability set traps quicker, with more powerful potions and additional ranged damage. There are also techniques to increase shredder damage or guarantee a knockdown shot. Valor Surges are special attacks that you can tactfully unleash and the best part of the skill tree. It would be nice to have more abilities like this. After unlocking and upgrading the powerful Radial blast which causes an AoE shockwave to trigger, there was no other ability that felt quite as useful. Others include melee attack damage that deals more damage for a short time, and an energy shield that absorbs damage. Despite this, I found the skill trees so irrelevant to my success that my skill points piled up to 10 and I never touched them.

The game has many worthwhile enhancements that improve the experience. These include a clearer HUD and less inventory management. My favorite enhancements were being able to use Aloy’s focus to see climbing points and her ability to tag specific machine parts in a different color for easier targeting. As certain components of your weapon and armor are critical, the latter is very useful for locating key upgrade resources. Due to the time required for upgrades, I became tired of fighting the exact same machines over and over again. I encountered a couple of minor problems with my performance as well as some bad A.I. Bad checkpoints and pathing were issues, but not enough to cause me frustration. It was amazing how fluid the game ran considering its scope and size.

Horizon Forbidden West is Guerrilla Games’ new flagship game. It does more than surpass its predecessor; it takes Horizon’s fiction to captivating places and builds a rich world that rewards you for the effort you put into it. Mostly, it’s an entertaining experience, complete with jaw-dropping moments and unforgettable fights.