There was stiff competition for the best games back in 2017 with games likeBreath of the WildandRE7, among those was Guerilla Games' most ambitious game thus far:Horizon: Zero Dawn, an at-the-time PlayStation 4 exclusive open-world adventure that was incredibly unique and critically acclaimed.Horizonremained a bright spot for PlayStation 4 during that year that saw great success for a brand new IP.
With the PS5 launch coming this fall, and rumors abound stating thatHorizonis becoming a trilogy, many fans have been waiting for theHorizon Zero Dawn2reveal. WithHorizon: Forbidden West, the vision forHorizon’s future has now been unveiled to fans and will be coming to PS5 in the near future. Judging from what was shown in the reveal,Forbidden Westcould be poised to become Sony’sBreath of the Wildopen-world spectacle.
Breath of the Wild Changed Open-World Games
Dialing back to Nintendo’s open-world epicThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild,very quickly did Link’s latest adventure become one of the most innovative open-world adventure games ever made. The game exhibited an elegant simplicity unlike any other game before it, emphasizing a giddy and child-like wonder rarely invoked by many video games. Rather than presenting the player with endless quest markers,Breath of the Wild’s sense of discovery took center stage. Rather than quest completion being the focus, every aspect ofBreath of the Wild’s world was meant to pique player’s interest like purposeful distraction.
While not all open-world games were guilty of “checklist” gaming,Breath of the Wildcame out during a time where this concept was a genuine criticism for other open-world games before it. What’s noteworthy aboutBreath of the Wildwas the fact that upon release, its gameplay concepts acted so vehemently against this notion that the game received praised as a result. Sure it’s fair now to go back and criticize the game further,asBreath of the Wildis not a flawless game by any means, butBreath of the Wildwas a moment in games that many should look back on as a pivotal instance in video game history.
A Different, More Expansive Horizon
As much as hardcore fans may not want to admit it,Breath of the WildandHorizon: Zero Dawnreleased far too close to each other. Some will believe thatZeldastoleHorizon’s thunder, others will state that it forced an unfair choice for players to pick which to play first. But the truth is thatHorizon: Zero DawnandBreath of the Wildshared a lot of similaritiesthatForbidden Westis emphasizing even more. WhereHorizon: Zero Dawnwas story about self-discovery and belonging,Horizon: ForbiddenWestseems to be foreshadowing a great calamity coming to its “post-post apocalyptic world.”
From the trailer alone, it seems Aloy’s journey inForbidden Westwill be more about exploration and discovery in service to ending another apocalyptic infestation. Aloy will travel to several old landmarks of the former San Francisco and surrounding areas, in search of answers to this red plague that seems to be infecting the new Earth. The trailer also specifically states that there’s “no depth [Aloy] won’t explore,” along with her underwater with a breathing apparatus. Subsequent shots also show Aloy climbing up a sheer rock face with her bear hands,something players consistently did inBreath of the Wild.Horizon: Forbidden Westmay be signaling that players will have more freedom in traversal and exploration by taking the near-limitless approach thatBreath of the Wildutilized.
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Capturing the Spirit of Discovery
In a lot of waysHorizon: ForbiddenWestseems to be following the samestorytelling concepts thatBreath of the Wildfeatured in its narrative. Aloy will traverse a completely new world ravaged by an unknown apocalypse that occurred 1000 years ago, and explore to find a way to stop some sort of world-ending plague that’s taking over flora and fauna. There will even be flashes of life before through Aloy’s Focus, showing what life was like in the futuristic America prior to its collapse. This sequel seems to haveBreath of the WildDNA written all over it, and while that doesn’t mean it’s better or worse because of it, it does meanHorizon: Forbidden Westcould capture that same magic.
Breath of the Wildhad Calamity Ganon as its version of apocalypse, though it wasn’t as much of a plague-inspired malevolent force like the red vines that appear inForbiddenWest’s trailer.Horizon: Forbidden Westalso seems to utilize these flashes of modern-life similar to the Princess Zelda flashbacks inBreath of the Wild. These commonalities are largely coincidental, as many of these systems were present in bothBreath of the WildandHorizon: Zero Dawn.
That being said, it’s clear thatHorizon: Forbidden Westwants to lean further into the discovery aspects that were so beloved inBreath of the Wild’s gameplay. Theone clear inspiration fromBreath of the Wildhas to be from Aloy’s traversal, as she’s seen climbing a sheer rock face and swimming underwater, each a precarious and dangerous place thatHorizon: Zero Dawnnever let players explore before.
Horizon: Forbidden Westmay very well attain the same level of gameplay freedom and layered complexity thatBreath of the Wildhad, whilst simultaneously building off the same foundation thatHorizon: Zero Dawnlaid on PS4. Assuming the game lands well and captures that same feeling thatBreath of the Wildemphasized wholeheartedly,Horizon: Forbidden Westcould seeBreath of the Wildlevels of praise.
Horizon: Forbidden Westis in development for PS5.
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