josheast99
2 reviews liked by josheast99
Its difficult for me to rate Horizon Forbidden West. There's a lot to love about this game. For starters, its probably the prettiest game I have played all year. The graphics are absolutely stunning, even when you play in performance mode. A console game that rivals the graphics of, say, Elden Ring on PC, is damn impressive. The world is extremely detailed and full of life, both man-made and natural.
The game also takes huge strides forward from the first game. A lot of annoying systems are gone and the game feels so much better to play than the original, which was already a damn good foundation to start with.
The story was intriguing, though I don't feel I can fully comment on it since I am currently shelving the game. Why am I shelving it, you may ask? Well, while Forbidden West takes a ton of steps in the right direction, I just feel like its nothing we haven't seen before. I have grown extremely bored of this title. The story isn't gripping me as much as the original game. Aloy is much more unlikable due to her standoff-ish nature here. No characters or scenarios are really gripping me. And to top it off, the gameplay is just too similar to the original game. Zero Dawn's combat was pretty basic and, at times, boring because of how spongey enemies can be, and how it all boils down to shooting arrows and dodging. The exact same can be said about Forbidden West. Sure, there's an expanded melee system that feels pretty good, and there are new weapons and elements to play with. But it all boils down to being the exact same stuff you did before. It just makes the game boring to play for me. They really needed more engaging combat to make me care about any characters or side quests.
I can see why people really like this game. But for me, an open world game needs some kind of true hook, or something that sets it apart to make me want to play it till the end. Zero Dawn hooked me with its incredible premise and very intriguing story, along with likeable characters and a fresh new world to explore. If you just want more of that, then Forbidden West is perfect for you. But for me, I just needed something more. While my personal enjoyment is probably a little lower than a the 7/10 I'm giving the game, I do recognize why people love this game, and think that it is better than the original. But for me, Forbidden West doesn't do enough to give me a reason to keep playing until the credits. I may come back to this game, but I think my time will be better off catching up on my backlog for now.
The game also takes huge strides forward from the first game. A lot of annoying systems are gone and the game feels so much better to play than the original, which was already a damn good foundation to start with.
The story was intriguing, though I don't feel I can fully comment on it since I am currently shelving the game. Why am I shelving it, you may ask? Well, while Forbidden West takes a ton of steps in the right direction, I just feel like its nothing we haven't seen before. I have grown extremely bored of this title. The story isn't gripping me as much as the original game. Aloy is much more unlikable due to her standoff-ish nature here. No characters or scenarios are really gripping me. And to top it off, the gameplay is just too similar to the original game. Zero Dawn's combat was pretty basic and, at times, boring because of how spongey enemies can be, and how it all boils down to shooting arrows and dodging. The exact same can be said about Forbidden West. Sure, there's an expanded melee system that feels pretty good, and there are new weapons and elements to play with. But it all boils down to being the exact same stuff you did before. It just makes the game boring to play for me. They really needed more engaging combat to make me care about any characters or side quests.
I can see why people really like this game. But for me, an open world game needs some kind of true hook, or something that sets it apart to make me want to play it till the end. Zero Dawn hooked me with its incredible premise and very intriguing story, along with likeable characters and a fresh new world to explore. If you just want more of that, then Forbidden West is perfect for you. But for me, I just needed something more. While my personal enjoyment is probably a little lower than a the 7/10 I'm giving the game, I do recognize why people love this game, and think that it is better than the original. But for me, Forbidden West doesn't do enough to give me a reason to keep playing until the credits. I may come back to this game, but I think my time will be better off catching up on my backlog for now.
A vast improvement in every way over its predecessor. The only thing holding this title back is the fact that it just can't let go of that Ubisoft-inspired, waypoint-clogged open world exploration concept.