Far into a future after a devastating global extinction, Aloy follows clues that lead her on the path to saving the world, again. With the help from old friends, fight new and variant machines as well as forces from another world in this open world RPG.
This review contains spoilers for the main story.
A World of Difference
It’s clear that Guerrilla Games wanted to outdo themselves in their second title in the Horizon series. While building onto the lore of Horizon, they doubled down on including as much detail and history into every aspect of the game; from the clothing, weapons, architecture and even lingo. So I’m not surprised that I was truly immersed in the lands west of Meridian and filtering my expectations through the lens of the previous game only enhanced the experience.
The characters introduced and returning to the series have exceptional depth and some very satisfying character arcs; Beta, Sylens, Kotallo and Aloy especially. However, my main man Erend has gotten the Jack Sparrow treatment in this game. From what was originally a charismatic and strong-willed personality that sunk low due to his sister’s disappearance and then death, in this game they decided Erend is just a drunken meathead who is only good for lifting things and swinging hammers. He has a pity party every time Aloy shows herself and is always mentioning how his dumdum brain can’t read so good as you and I. Like Jack Sparrow, Erend now exists as a caricature of himself and is mostly just a means to comedic relief. This is where my character critiques end.
Aloy’s journey in this game feels a lot more focused than in the previous title. She already has the experience, knowledge, and allies to succeed; she just needs to compress it all into a nice sandwich to achieve her goals. That’s the main character arc we get to see from Aloy. She feels like she has to shoulder all of the burdens of saving the world due to the legacy of Elisabet Sobeck and the responsibility that was placed on her. Aloy learning to accept help from her allies and allow them to shoulder some of the burdens is slowly realized throughout the game. Even at one point (spoilers) when Varl is killed because he was protecting Beta, Aloy doesn’t allow that moment to permanently reverse the growth she made. Instead, she understands that there are some things out of her control and that despite the risks help is necessary to overcome insurmountable odds. By the end, I felt incredibly satisfied.
The new tribes of the west are a lot stronger in culture and appeal than the ones from the previous game. The Utaru especially have such a unique look and history that it’s easy to be drawn to the lore and spend time admiring the architecture of impossibly tall woven structures.
I also appreciated that the tribes weren’t one-trick ponies (unlike the Oseram). They have internal disagreements and cultures spanning across various environments. The Tenakth from the desert are unique from the ones in the jungle and mountains, having their own rules and history. Instead of just plopping down differently named tribes with one unique characteristic, the Tenakth creates a lived-in world that Aloy is experiencing rather than just being eye candy for the player.
Overall the world is continuing to expand and become more interesting with each detail the devs include into every aspect of the various cultures, while not abandoning previously laid tracks.
More Explosions, More Loot
The updated focus system is a much-needed way to integrate the parts mechanic and combat. Being able to tell, at a glance, which parts of the machine are vulnerable, what will drop the part you need, and which damage types are most effective, makes me feel like a true hunter rather than just throwing damage at a sponge until it dies. Which, to be clear, is one way to go about machine hunting. I could just throw explosive spikes into the Tremortusk’s side until it falls but without first removing its tusks and turrets, I’m going to be having a bad time. The game also doesn’t hold your hand for each encounter. It provides the player with all the information they need and it’s up to them to decide how to go about defeating a machine in a way that best fits their playstyle, and to be fair throwing endless explosive spikes doesn’t hurt.
The new machine additions are also a welcome addition to the pool, and Guerrilla Games didn’t shy away from putting a lot of effort into designing their models and animations. The first time I saw the robot sea otter I knew I was going to have a good time just looking for more machines to discover and fight. I also appreciate that the game continues to show off new machines all the way to the end of the game, and doesn’t just stick to reskinned alpha variants.
However, sometimes the machines are just relentless, hardly giving you time to craft materials you need or even take cover. Which is part of the difficulty of fighting a deadly robot, but sometimes can get a little more frustrating than fun, especially if you end up fighting multiple at a time. The most egregious example is the turtle, which will constantly spit ice chunks your way, burrow underground, and dive bomb you. This type of combat forces the player to have perfect timing just to be able to get hits in, and constantly staying underground meant I was twiddling my thumbs waiting for it to pop up and let me continue a very frustrating game of whack-a-mole. Though in addition to being rage-inducing, it was very satisfying to finally turn it into a pile of scrap.
Upgrades, People
Forbidden west has also taken prior criticism to heart and upgraded its traversal systems. Free climbing terrain, gliding from tall structures and cliffs, and using a greater variety of mounts are what stand out most as far as improvements from Zero Dawn. Though the traversal can be janky at times, the additional movement options, such as backward jumping, make up for it so that you’re never truly stuck in one area.
The override Aloy receives also gets a much-needed upgrade, allowing her to mount all kinds of cool new machines. Like a raptor, giant boar and even a pterodactyl. Which is also a flaw in the game’s pacing. Soaring over Plainsong and the cliffs of homebase was one of the coolest moments from my playtime, and they got the flying mechanics just right so that it felt natural and convenient, but it comes so late in the game that it’s hard to truly use it to its full effect. If you’re playing Forbidden West for the first time I recommend plowing through the main story until you get the Sunwing override and then take to the skies and appreciate the absolutely beautiful atmosphere.
Master of Some
The skill trees in Forbidden West aren’t that much more unique than any other game that features them except for the Valor Surge system and alternate fire mode mechanics. While being a refreshing addition to the flow of combat there are some aspects that don’t quite situate themselves perfectly in the trees. For one the Valor Surges are more often than not just buffs to attack damage, such as from bows or Aloy’s spear. While useful, they don’t exactly come across as an ultimate style move that changes the tide of battle. Instead, it just feels slightly more convenient than normal. However, this doesn’t go for all the Valor Surges, like the EMP shockwave that damages everything nearby. I just wish the other surges reflected that style of a one-time powerful effect that is difficult to achieve.
In the same vein, the skill trees flowed into allowing certain weapon types to have multiple firing modes. However, the placement felt sort of arbitrary. If my playstyle featured using the shredder gauntlet as well as ranged combat, then I was being slightly punished by not putting points into the trapper tree. Though by the halfway point of the game I had enough points for it not to matter, it still wasn’t as efficient as I wished it could be.
My time playing Forbidden West wasn’t without its flaws, but by the end of the story, it was easy to forget them over the overwhelming amount of positive changes to the series. While a good amount of side missions are more or less following footprints to fight another machine, it had an equal amount of truly breathtaking moments and action pieces that set Forbidden West apart from its predecessor.
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Final Review: 5 out of 5 stars
Matthew has been a lifelong lover of video games since he could first hold a controller, and among his favorites are narrative-heavy, singleplayer games like; Divinity: Original Sin 2, Elden Ring, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice and Hollow Knight. Matthew also plays tabletop games like Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder and Call of Cthulu. He graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor’s in Sociology and minored in English.
