Horizon Dark Zero review: A vast and exhilarating post-apocalyptic adventure
Horizon Zero Dawn is the best looking console game ever made. Set centuries after the collapse of human civilisation, you play as Aloy, an outcast in a beautifully overgrown post apocalyptic world inhabited by futuristic machines.
With tonnes of quests, a lengthy story and a huge open world, Horizon is rich with things to do and secrets to uncover, and the quality of its 30-hour epic story make it an early contender for the best game of 2017.
It’s a hunting game at its heart. Armed with a variety of different primitive weapons, Aloy roams across the game’s vast open world fighting against all kinds of different mechanical beasts, from small velociraptor-like hunters, to stomping behemoths, to airborne mechanical birds that swoop down from the heavens, raining lightning upon you.
These freeform fights are the highlight of the game, with combat packing weight as you launch arrows, set traps and tripwires, and lob elemental explosive bombs to take down targets.
You can play stealthily, too, skulking through the game’s sumptuously detailed grass to remain unseen, which makes fights even more gratifying as you deal deadly silent takedowns to man and machine alike.
Aloy’s story is surprisingly great, taking her from the safety of her tribal territories to the sprawling open world, with lush forests, deserts, mountains and tundra all occupied by various warring factions.
What starts out as a test of self becomes a story of wonder and mystery as the protagonist ventures into the depths of the old, decrepit “metal world”. The result is something memorable and compelling.
Horizon isn’t without problems. Iffy voice acting, unconvincing facial animations and some uninspired side quests are notable blemishes on an otherwise stunning open world adventure. These are problems you’ll notice but readily forgive, mostly because the sights, sounds and big machines along the way are just so entertaining.
Horizon Zero Dawn launches on PlayStation 4 on 28 February