I think the story concept of Zero Dawn is criminally underrated. It's actually a possible scenario and well thought of for a game that's basically fighting robot dinosaurs with tribes. The thing that really stood out to me was humanity actually falling completely. No cliche of the humans banding together and winning, no super weapon to save them; every human on the planet helplessly died. The part in the story where the general lied to the public and sent the entire public, trained or not, into an offensive to basically be slaughtered to buy time gave me goosebumps.
This is probably going to get buried, but what terrifies me about this game, is that it's possible. Biomass consuming robots that can think for themselves has been a thing for a few years, called (appropriately enough) EATR robots.
In case it all indeed goes to hell, let's just hope there is no version of Ted Faro (AKA asshole willing to wipe out ALL HUMAN KNOWLEDGE in order to not be implicated in the apocalypse) in our world.
It is cool that the concept is based in realism, but what I find actually compelling and scary is the underlying comparison to climate change disaster, how the old world had its climate change catastrophe, but because the underlying system that caused it wasn't ever changed and because the only solution that was implemented was technological innovation, they repeated the disaster even worse than before, creating robots that literally just ATE the environment like a virus, an invasive species, like us when we don't check ourselves. Horizon is actually frightening because it's rooted in something WE are already doing to ourselves in the real world and that isn't going to change. Climate change will claim millions of human lives in the future, we won't be able to stop that any longer and the resulting effects will hurt us all. Except for the Ted Faros of the world. Horizon isn't just a cautionary tale, it's a mirror.
43:11 That's the point... Have Hades become this actual devil-like figure would feel so off. It's a cold machine, it's just about completing the task. That's why Gaia's choice to stop Hades is powerful because that machine learned to emote, by having both do so, it robs the story. I think the idea that the villain isn't actually villainous by desire but just by action in opposition to the protagonist is much more interesting. We have enough 'bad guy does bad things because they want power' stories.
Interesting point of view. And at least partly I agree. Sobek we learn a lot throughout the story, her views, what she wants to achieve with whom she disagree and so on. But for creator of Hades I believe there are very short mentions and a few text notes, still if I remember correctly the guy was very good on what he did, arrogant, loner, maybe (my memory is blurry here) a bit unstable, so it makes sense of Hades being what it is with all its additional features to be able to reset the terraforming. But this is when I have a bit a problem with the story was there no one else a better considered for this AI? Really?
@@mravg79 Gaia was the only part of the system that was planned for sentience and required morality. As long as the experts had the skills and didn’t want euthanization, they needed everyone they could get. He was a bit wild and definitely perverted, but by the time you get to the Alpha’s HQ in GAIA Prime, it’s clear he cares about his coworkers in his own way
I think you more than deserve a break. Counting this video, your last three have been at least an hour. And the quality has gone up one after the other. Amazing stuff my guy. Keep it up but rest easy. Don't want you to burn out to hard! :) ~TJ
Thank you I’m glad that you share that sentiment. I ended up taking a solid 3 days of just sitting back and doing nothing and it was so awesome. Feeling way more recharged and currently getting into the next videos script as we speak!
Honestly, I had the same reaction when I fought the first scorcher, I went in thinkin it was a simple fight and I don't need to use my typical method, pin down and disassemble, but when it hit me and nearly broke my armor, my confidence dropped and took it seriously. In short, The Frozen Wild is just pain for me, the new corruption destroyed me countless times, don't get me started with the Fireclaws and Frostclaws....
For me I didn't really use the bunny hop technique instead I relied heavily on the arrows and the specific weapon that stripped a lot of metal from the machines. I always thought it was so cool watching just how much can be removed and it makes the creatures look so exposed. I understand all of your criticisms for the game. One of my own personal issues was how in the base game when speaking to people neither Aloy or the other person would move much. This was something that was addressed in the dlc but I hope it is made even better in the sequel
4 years later, it’s still a really good game, but I wish that the story had a bit less dialogue, (specifically since like for everything there is dialogue just stating the obvious) but I seriously enjoyed it.
Ya I get that point, but having a lot of dialogue isn't inherently bad. Witcher 3 does it wonderfully of course, and I bet Guerilla will follow suit as they continue the series. Pack the world with engaging details, and conversations.
@@hchappy125 I know, but I feel like there is dialogue just stating the obvious during gameplay, and it’s just better to have the player take in the sights in my opinion. Still a phenomenal game though
@Niller Well it isn’t the cutscenes that I criticized, it was gameplay where Aloy or someone else would state the obvious, but I can still ignore it and pass it since it is such a good game,
My favourite thing about this game was the dread & excitement I’d feel when I came across a new machine/beast … It always got my heart going and ended up having some of the best moments I ever had gaming ..
@@maskedswagger7044 if you wanna watch videos early you can give a couple dollarydoos a month to his Patreon. You also get other really cool things like copies of the scripts, posts talking about what's going on etc. Join us
I love the story and world-building of this game. The simultaneous learning of the 'Old Ones' as well as the current tribes and their history. How the old technologically advanced civilization has been viewed and taken on board by the people just discovering small elements at a time. How the Carja see the world and the Nora are different like our own societies and religions based on climate and surroundings, but also those surroundings in relation to the 'Old Ones' structures. It all feels natural and believable if this situation were to occur. The story having the current threat overlapping and interweaving between the past and present choices of the human world is fascinating. The actions that lead to the devastation are plausible, and the reaction even more so. It's extremely good narrative writing, even if the dialogue isn't your style.
Even with all its flaws, it’s still one of my favorite games of all time. It’s literally the perfect game for me. Post-apocalyptic setting? Check. Interesting groups and cults. Check. HUGE AWESOME ROBOTS? CHECK!
I think the combat which you criticized was your problem. You can take down thunderjaws and other big machines with a plan or certain weapons but you chose to just keep jumping so you slow down time and hit a certain part. You can use ropecasters to tie down a machine and then from there do some damage.
A shame this video feels like it got hit by the algorithm blender, such good content I could just watch all day, I'm subscribed but I thought he stopped uploading, I had to look for his videos again since it wasn't recommended to me. I dunno hopefully its just me and I'm glad he has been uploading, but if not its something to think about.
Yea it unfortunately seems it has suffered what me and the boys call an “algorithm moment”. I appreciate the support though and it’s good knowing that the issue isn’t that the video was bad!
@@CommanderGinyu normal lol. That makes sense that he could get away with just that weapon on normal but playing on ultra hard and fighting a boss like the fire claw. You literally have to use your ice cannon, terrablast arrows and the rope caster helps a lot
@@frogglen6350 it breaks the game on easy difficulties. Not on the harder ones. Also having turned aim assist on makes this method a lot easier to execute than it would be otherwise
The motion capture is god tier in Forbidden west Its actually insane, I don't think there was a single line of dialogue that wasn't accompanied by motion captured even in super small side quests. Kinda makes me want to see HZD Remastered with that same Motion capture. That's one of my biggest issues with the first game. Convos are so boring to look at The character just stand there, Its jarring when you play the DLC too cause they fixed it in that and mocapped most things
I was surprised by HZD when I absolutely loved the climbing animations. The most common climbing I had seen was in Assassin's Creed games, but I loved watching these animations. Instead of just reaching up for the next handhold, Aloy will boost herself up and then leap up the wall to grab the next point. Her whole body is part of the climb. It was something I had never seen before and I really liked it.
Another great review Aqua! I agree with a lot of what you said here, especially with how the world feels so captivating when you’re in the moment playing it but just doesn’t hold the same awe when you look back at it. I wasn’t aware of the bunny hop bullet time, or at least I don’t remember using it. I can see how abusing it can simplify the gameplay and take some of the fun out of it, but you could also just... not abuse it? I feel like it’s a choice to play like that, there’s plenty of weapons and tools that allow more depth with the combat. I don’t know, maybe that just me. Fun fact about Frozen Wilds, depending on how early you complete the dlc, you will get unique dialogue both in the main game’s story and in the Frozen Wilds. For example, I had completed the dlc before ever meeting Sylens, and as such he was never mentioned and he doesn’t talk to you during the dlc. Along with that, there were times in the main story where Aloy and Sylens mention Cyan and Hephaestus, such as when they were learning about Hades and Project Zero Dawn. Oh, and Aratak will show up to help you fight in the final battle of the game which is pretty neat.
Once we found out what Zero Dawn was about, I was hooked and made it one of my favourite games. The exploration of this was great and gameplay was really good for a challenge, but not too hard.
I finished this game on PC a few months ago and I did not have any of the problems you encountered, and it was installed on my HDD. Just saying this in case someone was turned off with the problems you said in the video.
Good video, but I thought the world was plenty memorable. I can easily picture Meridian/Sunfall/Day Tower. Nora/Carja/Oseram architecture is distinct from one another. Different biomes indicating different territories etc. And jumping around to trigger slow motion constantly doesn't look fun or satisfying at all. But everyone plays differently
Had a lot of fun with this game. My wish for the sequel is that Aloy will be able to override and mount flying machines. Itd make travel faster and really cool
I think Forbidden West has a lot of room for story improvement generally, but the world building in Zero Dawn was so amazingly strong. The written details and clues to how the world became as it is are so thorough and well-planned. They've got the basis for an absolutely stunning franchise
The most well crafted apocalypse story I have ever seen. And thats coming from someone who watched interstellar twice. Every detail of every single step is very well throught just brilliant
I finished this game a month ago, turns out i left the last mission on hold for two years and never bothered finishing it, it was pretty good, but since i played the end right after finishing God Of War the melee combat left a bad taste in my mouth, the rest of the game is pretty much amazing, just hope melee combat is better in Forbidden West
Based on the trailer...yeah they took that criticism to heart. You can do combos, special attacks, and customization. Who knows, maybe we can use other weapons lol
You oversold the bow way too much. If you experimented with all the weapons you’d realize the bow is not as good as you think. It IS good, but some of the other weapons are just so much better in their specific instances that they are meant for. The storms linger and ice gun are incredible. The mix of using freeze arrows and bomb slings is 10x more damage than any bow can.
Yeah not making Hades a metal devil or a "Horus unit" was a missed opportunity but in retrospect the lure after the end screen basically tells us that there is no physical way we aren't fighting a Horus unit in the sequal
One thing that I actively love about these videos is the little jabs of shade you throw throughout. They always catch me off guard and make me chuckle. Great work as always Aqua!
Bit late onto this one, but great vid as always. Loving the idea of separating the videos into chapter like segments with the title cards. HZD was one of those games I loved but never ended up finishing. Hopefully I wont repeat that with the new one XD also congrats on the sponser, I hope that you continue to get those :)
Horizon zero dawn can be both fun with its mechanics and story, and not to mention the characters. And the dlc adds new places to see and experience. Over all, I love this game!
the dlc is worth it coming from me. if your not that stacked with good weapons just do these steps. 1. hunt animals and get their loot. 2. use said loot to get a bluegleam map 3. collect said bluegleam by using the map 4. get the weapons. 5. your stacked.
Get Surfshark VPN at surfshark.deals/thatboy - Enter promo code THATBOY for 83% off and 3 extra months for FREE! IMPORTANT NOTE: Many of you have mentioned that while I criticized the time slowing bunny hop mechanic with the bow, I abused it for almost my entire playthrough. I want to clarify that I do believe it is easily abused; however, I enjoyed abusing it. I feel it should be removed because it causes some balancing issues, and for some, it is annoying watching someone else abuse it. But I still used it plenty because there was something so badass to me about jumping off a cliff and in mid-air sniping a Thunderjaws disc shooter off of its back. I engaged with the elemental effects plenty. I realize that using elemental effects is great for taking down the machines, but for some reason, I felt more inclined to use hardpoint arrows. It also seems that because of this one criticism, I somehow don't enjoy the combat or the game as a whole. I have no idea how that sentiment got across, but it isn't true. I was delighted with my playthroughs and the time spent with this game, and I am beyond psyched for Forbidden West. Hope that clears all of this up!
About the environment, I also didn't remember much of the whole thing, and I think that the reason is that (something which you touched on) is that the whole thing has like 4 biomes (desert, jungle, grassland and ruins), and none of them are very memorable in themselves, only some part of them seems memorable
Aloy does not look beautiful but I don’t feel that way because that stupid make up pic. She looks not attractive but that is my opinion, she just isn’t point blank just cause she’s conventional “beautiful” doesn’t mean she is actually is.
Ehhh I disagree they can’t really write it in cuz if two things 1.the sequel is supposed to be a couple years after the first game so therefore most tribes still and will have that “no tech mindset” 2.Even if they did accept tech and industrialization I don’t think they’d be that advanced to start making buildings w the new resources
I only played this game on Ultra Hard, so seeing health bars during your footage caught me off-guard. I didn’t know health bars were a thing in this game :P
Been looking for an analysis like that ever since completing the game half a year ago. Thank you! I think the biggest achievement of the game is doing barely anything original (while working within an entirely original IP), but iterating on other's ideas. Ubisoft towers? What if they are moving, and have a whole lot of enemies around them. Witcher sense? Now you don't have to keep the button stressed to follow the tracks or stop the game to see enemies' vulnerabilities. Engaging enemies? We've got 24 types, each with unique weak spot layouts and behaviours. And that confidence bleeds into the quest design and worldbuilding. You are a hunter in that game so most of the time you hunt. The game is laser focused on that gameplay loop.
This just felt like your run-of-the-mill video game story. It didn't need a big bad meanie for the endgame. The worldbuilding & lore were enough to carry the story. The fact that they went for the 'Big Villain' route kind of marred the whole narrative.
U do know u don't have to spam jump for arrow time? If u took the time to get good u dont need to cheese the enemies & doing so makes the fights much more entertaining & epic using tools, tactics & dodges to take down everything.
Is using a feature in the game considered Chesse? Some people play different would you be telling him to stop using the shock line launcher ( I don't remember the name) it can be spammed and immobilises the enemy its a tool and it does not make the battle epic and you are saying if he took time to get good at the game he wouldn't need to cheese enemies isn't shooting their weak spot cheesing the boss? Who would want to put restrictions on themselves man let people play how they want to play
Despite being a massive fangirl of this game, I definitely am glad I agreed with much of your criticism My one main issue is hearing about the bow. Despite you saying the game rewards planning ahead & changing things up, many machines have elemental weaknesses which I don't think you even mentioned. The Glinthawk for example. Aiming for the canister is a pain but hitting it with 2 nocked fire arrows gets the job done much faster. Similar to the Tramplers. Use 3 on the engine and it stays on fire, making it far easier to fight since it's always taking damage Theres also the Rattler. Use the freeze ones then the impact once an enemy is frozen and even the Hardpoint arrows will struggle to get close to its DPS I could go on and on but it would be redundant & just rude. Overall, I still enjoyed the video a lot. Even gave a diehard fangirl like myself a few things to consider which I liked ♡ glad you still liked the game & hope it's sequel is even moreso
I felt like the humans served more as the antagonist, rather than the machines. People's curiosity corrupted the bots, but in turn corrupted everything else
Came into Horizon with low expectations, then I surprisingly ended up loving it. There are issues, but something about it made me captivated enough to beat the entire game. That's pretty rare to get out of me.
Throughout my over 2,000 hours of gameplay on a relatively low-end PC... (Intel Core i5-4440 CPU @ 3.10GHz 3.10 GHz)... I have witnessed everything that you have described. It still hasn't stopped me from playing my new favorite game, however. Looking forward to HFW on PC.
I don’t know where you’re from but I live in the area of Colorado where the Nora live and I’ve spent a fair amount of time camping in the desert southwest so for me that made the environment much more memorable because I have a personal connection to the game’s locations
I had this game for so long before I decided to ever play it but once I did I fell in love with it and once I beat it I instantly bought the sequel and now I'm patiently waiting for part 3 and this series deserves to be a lot bigger than it is cuz these games are amazing
This was refreshing thanks for the video man. A lot of other youtubers just kept harping on the negatives and IMO didnt give credit to all the good things it had. Your criticisms are fair and you made sure to point out that the entirety of the experience is not just NEGATIVE. Hope to watch a video in horizon forbidden west from you in the near future! So far in my playthrough I'd say what really is holding me back from falling in love with the game is tools tied to story missions causing for massive backtracking making it become tedious or vice versa forcing the player to B line the main story and causing for unorganic exploration to save time on backtracking. Anywho hope to see u soon! 😁
we definitely need a one time massive last boss we havent killed already, i was let down too at the end. still love this game just hope we have a one time crazy hard final boss in the new one fw
When I replayed this game from scratch, I beelined straight for the Ice Rail, it took me 2 hours to finish the 3 Iceclaws while severely underequipped but GODDAMN that weapons slaps
I love how majority of his complaints/requested additions were actually added to the new game. Really feels like they were listening to us, and that just makes me feel like more slack can be afforded to them. They took advice from players and ran with it, so I look forward to what they might do to make the foundation of forbidden west even better in the DLC and Third game!
Exactly! They really listened and made changes for the better! Human enemies are tougher and wear strong armor, machines are more aggressive somehow, cutscene animation and VA is excellent, Side stories have actual characters and good writing as well.
Horizon zero Dawn was the only reason why I picked up a PS4 when it came out. I was hooked from the very beginning and still am to this day. I can't wait for Horizon 3
Wow great timing, I just bought the game last week and played it over 40 hours already ,finding it very adicting. The gameplay was cool and I was always on the edge of my seat because of how hard it is to get healing, how every monster one shots you and has its own strengh and weakness. The story was interesting to follow aswell, with a lot of twists and a storyline you want to know every intricacy. The characters weren't the best written, but did the job anyway. Overall i would give it a 15/20 and recommend you try it.
Meridian was a large scale section/city that stood out to me. The hunters lodge within said same city also adds to your Arsenal if you do the side quests. Meridian was definitely a highlight to me personally. The color palette kinda made things look similar within the world. The sequel may remedy that issue I would hope. There’s two ways of slowing time during combat so I’m not sure what else you wanted in place of those two options they gave you to choose between. My only issues would be that the spear combat could’ve been better, your only able to ride one machine type for some reason, facial animations in parts could’ve been better, more stealth options would’ve been nice, last boss fight is a recycled machine you already beat, the cauldrons could’ve looked more different and lastly, better side quests (though it didn’t bother me significantly).
don't take this the wrong way, but i kinda hate when people will only play a game a certain way despite numerous readily available and rewarding options available to them and then blame the game for those parts of the game being repetitive. while the human enemies were definitely easier and more uniform than the machines, it kinda sounds like you never used the slings or tripcaster on them because let me tell you, that was amusing and efficient as hell. ropecaster on a human? gold. the game shouldn't have to hold a gamer's hand to stop them from exploiting something (like the jump slo-mo) if it really bothers them that it's there. people like me, who are terrible at combat in general, literally need things like that when pressed, but even i wasn't hopping around all the time because i wanted to at least try to get better at actually fighting. you're being far from whinny or petulant (unlike some other players i've heard), nor are you coming across like a gatekeeper or anything like that; this is just a sore subject for me as the whole "this basically-a-handicap skill shouldn't be here because it's easy to cheese" argument just makes me feel kind of unwelcome and self-conscious in the gaming community, like i have to apologize for being there and very much needing and enjoying those features. and i'm not the only one who feels that way
Fighting a metal devil would have been lore breaking even with exploding arrows. It took literal battalions with modern weaponry to take down even one.
The environments felt very similar for a few reasons. Firstly, the base PS4's memory could only handle a limited number of assets. The story and world of Horizon also kind of limits the types of environments as you mentioned. Lastly, time and money. I remember heading that Horizons budget was surprisingly small for such a large open world game. The game also restarted development after a new director/designer was brought in. So Guerilla only had 3 years to complete development on the new version of the game. All of those things had something to do with repetitive areas and somewhat bland expanses of the map. It's not something I noticed on my first playthrough, but when I attempted to re-play it a couple years later, I couldn't get into it. Suddenly the repetitive designs and bland areas were very obvious and made the game feel boring. I think the story really kept me going the first time around. I wanted to know what happened to humanity, what Zero Dawn was, where Alloy came from, etc... Once I knew those answers, I had trouble getting into the game again. Can't wait for Forbidden West though. That first playthrough of Zero Dawn was amazing and I hope that Forbidden West can be just as good while also having more replay value.
With the amount of hype surrounding Horizon I'd thought I'd be blown away, but it's actually a pretty standard game. The best compliment that comes to mind is that it looks pretty and it plays well enough.
"not necessarily the most humane option" i always interpreted that whole thing to mean that hades would only kick in if gaia had failed to make earth livable at all, meaning the air/earth/water/atmosphere are literally unable to support life. she didn't have a limitless supply of seeds and embryos (animal or human) so hades was never supposed to kick in once animal life got up and running. honestly, it sounded like gaia got it right on the first try, considering it had been something like 950+ years since the world ended, took about 50 years to stop the faro robots, and the tribes' own known histories go back hundreds of years. essentially, hades ended up never being needed. just always thought that was cool
You're right. The only reason he did wake up was because of the mysterious signal which goes unexplained (Probably Forbidden West will provide answers). I think Aqua was under the impression that it was Sylens who did it, but that wasn't the case.
I never realized I could keep jumping to reset the bullet time, despite over 100 hours of playing. So I had to deal with Focus' timeout all the time. I can imagine that changes things.
I don't know what I would call myself, but I feel A Veteran of the game would be appropriate bc I have played this game a lot and when ever I get bored and play it again I almost instantly get back into the feel of it (by abusing the game mechanics in my favour) but not only have I enjoyed this game, my parents have and they are significantly older than me, they willingly played it and Horizon Zero Dawn was the reason why my parents got a PS4. My mum has gone through the game multiple times in the new game plus just to get the collectables from it and has gotten really far in collecting all of the collectables around the world too. So yes this is an amazing game and it will probably forever hold a special place in my heart.
I want you to imagine.....Riding on top a controlled thunder jaw in to an epic battle against 1 of those giant Metal devils......even if its just for one mission
Played through this game about a month ago on pc, beautiful, didn’t make a huge impact on me as a person or anythin but I liked it a lot and 100%’d it and the dlc, probably getting a ps5 for the sequel. Getting the ps5 for other games too but the sequel is the only game that I’m actually looking forward to.
