Everything about Horizon: Forbidden West (Playstation 5 exclusive game)

13/3/2021

Horizon 2: Forbidden West is the PS5-exclusive follow up to the critically acclaimed futuristic adventure. Here’s everything we know so far.

This time around protagonist, Aloy, travels to a “far future America” to take on all manner of robotic foes. We’ve already laid eyes on a robotic mammoth in the game’s announcement trailer.

Horizon Zero Dawn looked fantastic, but thanks to the magic of next-gen machines, visuals seem to have received a significant upgrade. We’re looking forward to seeing what ray tracing technology and 4K resolution does for the lush landscapes Aloy will explore. While it won’t be launching alongside PlayStation 5, this is a hugely ambitious exclusive we are definitely looking forward to.

Horizon Forbidden West release date – When is it out?
Horizon: Forbidden West is currently planned to release in 2021, although a concrete release date is yet to be unveiled. Given the circumstances of creating a game in the pandemic, we imagine the date is subject to change in the coming months.

Horizon Forbidden West trailer – How does it look?
The new Horizon Forbidden West trailer showed off the new western world that Aloy has travelled too, which also features a huge robotic mammoth. You can watch the trailer for yourself below:

Horizon Forbidden West wishlist – 3 things we’d love to see
A revamped inventory system
One of my biggest qualms with Horizon Zero Dawn was its frankly messy inventory system. A large number of items and crafting components were simply thrown into a single category with little organisation. It made for a messy experience overall, and generic icons for the majority of objects meant finding something to craft or sell to a merchant seldom felt good.

We’d love for Guerrilla Games to refine the inventory system for Horizon 2, making it easier and more satisfying to navigate in a pinch – since a hotbar on the user interface only takes you so far. A refinement such as this will likely come naturally as part of a sequel, but there’s no harm in also mentioning it here.

Increased customisation options
Don’t get me wrong, I loved the sheer number of unlockable outfits in Horizon Zero Dawn, and roaming the ruined world in search of precious ingredients purely to craft some fabulous new clothes. However, it was a shame that outfits were largely presented as a whole, with no way of really customising them beyond removing Aloy’s headgear and maybe a hair accessory or two.

A system which allows you to alter every aspect of your appearance, whether it be chestplates, gauntlets or headgear, would be very welcome in Horizon Zero Dawn 2. It would also give Guerrilla Games an excuse to implement a more comprehensive and rewarding loot system which keeps players coming back for more. Imagine special hunts or other events introduced with post-launch updates similar to Monster Hunter World, offering meaningful drops for those who complete quests.

More varied combat and creatures
A number of encounters in the original game began following a familiar formula after a handful of hours. You’d learn the telegraphed moves of each enemy and react accordingly, hacking off body parts until they eventually fell. Or, you could abuse the frankly broken stealth system, luring foes one at a time to their untimely demise. Both options worked, and served to highlight a lack of potential depth in Horizon Zero Dawn’s combat.

Fleshing out each encounter with new weapons, mechanics and varieties could make each skirmish so much more exciting, forcing players to make innovative use of each system. The same sense of freshness also needs to be introduced with creature design. After a handful of hours Aloy has learned the routines and habitats of her mechanical adversaries, so we’d love to see Horizon 2 push the boat out with a few unexpected surprises.