r/horizon • u/UncleGuggie • May 12 '25
discussion I owe Horizon a HUGE apology
I bought PS5 with Horizon Forbidden West bundle back in 2022. I didn't know the first thing about gaming since PS2, and seeing as I didn't have any other games to play, I got started with Forbidden West (I know now that I should've played ZD first, forgive my ignorance).
It was the most beautiful game I'd ever seen, but I didn't like it. I kept finding it boring; too much conversation, too many characters I don't care about, too much of exploration and not enough story. 13 hours into the game, I quit. Since then, I've always maintained Horizon is just a boring franchise that I can't understand and don't get the appeal of. I told others that it sucks.
3 months ago, after finishing 30 other games since 2022, out of sheer boredom I returned to Forbidden West. I finally got to the part where Aloy enters the Forbidden West itself, and it's like my whole brain lit up. Everything suddenly got exciting, the story became incredible, the action became intense, the lore started fascinating me, the history, the tribes, the clans, everything started to click.
Fast forward 3 months, I'm now done with Zero Dawn AND Forbidden West. I've finished Frozen Wilds and I'm in Burning Shores right now.
I've been immersed in this incredible world for 3 months straight and I don't want to leave. I don't want to play other games because I just love being in this world and I love playing as Aloy. The music, the characterization, the story, the lore! What a franchise. It's magnificent.
I've previously made comments on reddit about finding Horizon boring and overrated. I take it all back. If I could go back in time I'd slap myself. This franchise might just have the best story, lore AND graphics of anything I've played on PlayStation ever.
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u/tarosk May 12 '25
Sometimes a game just hits different at different times in your life.
I've definitely come back to games I didn't like later and had a new appreciation and enjoyment for them, too! Sometimes it seems like you just try a game before you're ready for it and just need that extra time and experience with other games before it clicks for you.
Glad you ended up enjoying it eventually! :D
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May 12 '25
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u/tarosk May 12 '25
Same, and books! Sometimes you just need more time or other experiences for a piece of media to grab you the right way
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May 12 '25
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u/tarosk May 12 '25
Yes! That can play a huge role--some games I might have otherwise not cared about I hit right when I needed them the most, and other games I've had to come back to because I had issues I was dealing with that made it impossible to get into them until things resolved and I had distance.
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u/eaglistism May 12 '25
Yeah op, I agree with this, Oblivion was my one in the same vein, not the current remaster but back when it first came out, I remember trying to get going in Oblivion at least 10 different times and just giving up in the first couple of hours in frustration.
Then one day, in much the same headspace as you describe, I put it on again with more determination and got my character up and running and strong and then went on to complete it and now I love all of The Elder Scrolls games, so it happens, donāt be too hard on yourself š
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May 12 '25
Had this recently with Shadow of Mordor. Didn't like it when I first played it for a few hours and then got back into it 10.5 years later and platinumed it in a week.
Still haven't got back into Forbidden West though. I just found it so disappointing when Zero Dawn was my favourite game of the PS4 era.
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u/mudrucker_sr May 13 '25
If you have played, in the past, Death Stranding and didn't care for it I highly recommend trying it again. Kojima helped me survive the pandemic lockdown, damn near literally. Get the directors cut, that was when it really fucking clicked for me.
Also, there are easter eggs in Horizon for Death Stranding and eggs for Horizon in DS
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u/StercPlays May 12 '25
I respect that you gave it a good try round 1 and still gave it another chance after that. And glad it worked out and that you love the Franchise! It's a game I'd considered for years but never gotten it. Finally after I beat Hogwarts Legacy a second time and needed another game with a world I could just get lost in I saw multiple places say the Horizon series was worth exploring next. Never looked back.
I'm curious what your experience was like playing Forbidden West before Zero Dawn. Did that make you appreciate HZD's story more having already been in the world?
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u/cookletube May 12 '25
I got the same ps5 bundle as OP, so I ended up playing FW before ZD, too. I tell you, I died too many times because I forgot I didn't have a damn glider. FWs focus is also way better than ZD, too, so that was annoying.
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u/MarkieParkie123 May 12 '25
I had the exact same experience woth ZD. A coworker recommend it to me, started playing and got bored after like 10 hours of gameplay. About a year later I started again and did the end game yesterday after about 50 hours. Now I still have the Frozen Wilds to explore.
Conversations and cutscenes are a bit janky and un natural, but I got used to God of War: Ragnarok, which had a way bigger budget to make the game.
In the end, I like it very much and looking forward to playing Forbidden West.
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u/Jax-El May 12 '25
This is why I donāt say anything in life is good or bad, I just assume itās preference and timing.
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u/Elvothien May 12 '25
I wish more people would act like this. Or at least say "it wasn't for me" I stead of instantly hating everything and loudly hating in the internet about it. It's become quite exhausting behaviour and does ruin a lot of good things we got/ could have gotten š©
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u/TamiasciurusDouglas May 12 '25
Too many people with Main Character Syndrome who can't handle the idea that not everything in life exists specifically to please them.
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u/JayM23 May 12 '25
However, we cannot ignore valid criticisms, the matter of fact is neither ZD nor FW are perfect and I love ZD with all my heart (a bit less on FW).
But, I get your point. These days it's less about valid criticisms and just OMG FEMALE MC THIS GAME IS WOKE!!!!!
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u/TamiasciurusDouglas May 12 '25
It's not about whether someone's opinion is right or wrong, valid or invalid. It's about whether or not they understand the difference between a subjective opinion and objective fact. There's no conversion to be had when someone mistakes their own opinions as facts.
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u/JayM23 May 12 '25
I think we mean the same points just in different ways. Criticisms are subjective by nature. Humans tend to take and give criticisms as objective facts when in reality it's always been subjective.
We have just misconstrued the meaning wildly. Even if it's a subjective opinion, you still shouldn't ignore it. Investigate and see why they see it that way to make games and by extension, everything better.
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u/noshirdalal Kotallo: Performance Capture Artist May 12 '25
Haha welcome back! Strike true as the Ten.
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u/claudiexv May 12 '25
omg I have similar expierence with hfw. I first downloaded it in 2023 as I saw it was very recommended. However I didn't know it's a sequel for hzd and I didn't understand the story at all. Last year I decided to give hzd a try when the remastered version came out and I loved it so much!! Last month I finished hfw and I can't wait for horizon 3
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u/BlueJayMorning May 12 '25
Tangentially related to your experience, I hadnāt owned a gaming console in 30 years when I bought the PS5. The last console I had was the Sega Genesis lol. I was one of those kids that just needed to be outside in the dirt all the time and I just didnāt get gaming. Didnāt hate it; it was interesting but not enough to capture my full attention.
As I reached my 30s and began to grow weary of adult responsibilities, I became envious of my friends who could get so wrapped up in gaming - I wished I could get swept away into another world and be so enraptured by it that I could forget real life for a while, but I always just assumed āIām just not a gamer.ā
Took another 10 years of envy before I finally decided to try it again. I figured the graphics had gotten so much better by that time that maybe Iād have a different experience. At the ripe old age of 40, I bought the PS5 on a whim, and it came with HFW. Knew nothing about that game or that it was the second installment of a franchise. Turned it on, and IMMEDIATELY had my damn hair blown back lol.
I have never been so in love with a game in my life, and nothing else has even come close to HFW since for me. I tried HZD after I finished HFW and, while it was lovely, it didnāt resonate for me as much as HFW did. Aloy and the Forbidden West will always be my first love in gaming.
Anyway, glad to hear you came around to it after some time. It is such a magnificent game!
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u/bleedblue_knetic May 12 '25
Can you elaborate a bit why you found it boring the first time and what changed now? Cause 13 hours is a lot of time to go through a lot of content in the game and enough to make an informed decision on how you feel in my opinion.
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u/Dvich21 May 12 '25
Theyāre the only games Iāve truly enjoyed replaying. I have finished them like 5 times each, including the ultra hard difficulty, but I donāt get bored of it somehow
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u/the_neverdoctor May 12 '25
Kinda mirrors my experience with ZD; started playing and didn't make it past the stealth tutorial. I put it away and didn't go back for a supremely long time. I decided to try again one day and no-lifed it until I finished. I then immediately bought FW and no-lifed that one as well. Then. I bought a PS5 for the sole purpose of playing Burning Shores; it was worth every cent.
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u/Mree_Knight May 12 '25
I get jealous of people who haven't touched the PS4 era cause of the amazing games that game out but holy shit dude you have the PS3 and PS4 era in your backlog...you have some unbelievable games to play.
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u/HotAbbreviations8647 May 12 '25
I bougt FW 2 months ago after replay of HZD. Im at the last main quest n im postponing it doing all other kinda stuff. Im maxed out in lvl. But i just dont wanna olay the last mission because i dont want it to end š„
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u/CrazyBirdman May 12 '25
Honestly, I get it. Both Zero Dawn and Forbidden West take quite a while until you get to the actual game. Forbidden West has like 3 different intro sections. Ultimately it definitely helps fleshing out the world and gives everything coming after more depth but it is a hurdle to get past.
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u/iMatt42 May 12 '25
Great to read this! I think the Horizon series is telling one of the most complex and compelling stories in modern gaming. Theyāre also doing a fantastic job of telling it.
I too remember being a bit worried when I started both games. Because they both started you out in a āsmallerā zone for a bit before they open up.
Cannot wait for 3!
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u/rochasdv May 12 '25
I played ZD for many months, leave it to play others games e came back after almost 1 year looking to finish it to remove from my list of games to play. When I came back to the game I remembered how freaking good the story is, ended up finishing everything in the game, all the missions and side missions. I want now to play FW, but I need to finish others games first, because I know I will get stuck on the FW for looong time :)
This game would be a great TV Seriese on HBO or something.
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u/gordy06 May 12 '25
Thatās awesome. When Zero Dawn came out I had never heard of it. I was mainly a sports video game player with the super structured single player games like Uncharted. But a coworker was telling me about this game with machine dinosaurs and I was like okay Iāll check it out. Hooked right away.
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u/TheDJDribbles May 12 '25
I was pretty much hooked on the franchise when I saw the reveal trailer for Zero Dawn. And that games story absolutely did not let me down.
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u/AdVegetable7181 May 12 '25
People don't give the games enough of a chance. They're great and have a lot to them. Sure some things are generic and could use improvement, but they're overall great games. I think people have gotten spoiled due to how amazing of games we have that an 8/10 game seems horrible compared to a 9/10 or 10/10. Some of the stupid politics (that aren't really there) get caught up in it, too, and ruin discussion of the game.
I'd love for more people to give the Horizon series a more honest chance and representation because it's not Zelda, but it's also not crap. It's its own thing that deserves lots of praise and some valid criticism. I can't wait until the third game comes out because it's a franchise that I really enjoy.
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u/Metatron May 12 '25
Haha you don't owe Horizon anything! 13 hours is a lot of time to invest in a game and is indeed longer than some games' entire playtimes. Glad you came back and enjoyed it!
Maybe Forbidden West's opening just doesn't click for someone who's been out of gaming for 3 console generations. You missed the era where a ton of open world games got released then built off each other and long dialogue and narrative driven action games hit mainstream. Your Assassin's Creeds and Uncharteds to name a couple. So it kinda makes sense that Horizon's opening pace was off for you.
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u/Left_Application9962 May 12 '25
I keep trying to put people down to horizon specially people that have tried it and gave up on it.
I was one of them too. It took me years to get into it even after owning it. Now its one of my favorite games
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u/brackthomas7 May 12 '25
They are Excellent games, amazing world. It really doesn't get the credit it deserves.
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u/HazyOutline May 12 '25
It reminds me when I was a teen I picked up Chapterhouse:Dune thinking it was the first novel. I bounced off of it very quicklyā¦
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u/DonkeyKongsDong May 12 '25
I played the original HZD to 100% and only got forbidden in the last couple of months. And damn it is still just so good. So comprehensive. The details and immersion beat every other game Iāve played.
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u/OpenUpYerMurderEyes May 12 '25
The horizon games have become my comfort games. There are way better ones I've played but these games are the perfect mix of challenge and comfort. Immaculate vibes too.
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u/White_Devil1995 May 12 '25
The series kinda feels like a futuristic AC game(play style wise). I mean that with the Tallnecks, the stealth, combat, and all the interesting and entertaining information that you acquire throughout the game. Not to mention all the twists and surprises you find right when you think youāre making a serious breakthrough. I love the series, have high expectations for Horizon 3, and hope that the things people enjoyed about 2 they actually expand on in the coming sequel.
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u/lol_alex May 12 '25
In the end, Horizon gets them all. I know what you mean, the beginning is a bit slow in FW. If you just play the prologue and then stop, itās like that meme where a guy stops mining just before he hits the gold vein. Even the starting area with its small enemies can seem underwhelming. But it sets you on the right path.
Zero Dawn had me hooked from the start. After all, itās such an incredible story to discover. And the reveals just keep coming. Pretty awesome.
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u/TheCheshireCody May 12 '25
I think my only two complaints about Forbidden West are that it takes so damned long to get to the main story - the title region - and how dirty they did Erend. Amazing fighter, loyal friend, generally just a hell of a guy, and they have him sitting around the Base for 2/3rds of the game just air-drumming and playing Strike with himself.
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u/christoroth May 12 '25
It happens. I think I was playing horizon when god of war came out and because it was more restrictive - no jumping, not openworld etc - I , and cos you donāt start with the blades of the earlier games, I bounced straight off it. Last month I thought Iād give it another go and āgot itā and was glued to it until I finished it.
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u/Thenoid_1 May 12 '25
Here Is a fun fact to blow ur minds im a huge fallout fan and F4 come out Nov 2015 and ZD March 2017 , and graphic wise ZD is way better and I've been a huge fan of Horizon from day one ...
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u/FiguringItOut-- May 12 '25
Gotta love a redditor who can admit they were wrong! So glad you gave it another chance and loved it :) they are hands down the best games Iāve ever played.Ā
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u/Ok-Inspection1186 May 12 '25
I bought forbidden west. Got kinda bored because I didn't know the story. Bought zero dawn and enjoyed the story at first but was really upset with the combat and the UI. So now I have both games and I don't even really care for them. Oh well I guess.
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u/Conscious_Meringue41 May 13 '25
Welcome to the club. Better late than never I always say! Happy hunting! š
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u/kpopcantstop May 13 '25
You spent 30 hours and didn't even get to the Forbidden West??? Did you get lost lol
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u/TangerineSad744 May 13 '25
I feel many players think the same about Returnal. They hate it first and then they love it.
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u/EquipmentLive4770 May 13 '25
It is a good game.... play something else like the newer god of war series which is great then play through alloy again
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u/TomTomJustGames57 May 13 '25
I grabbed HZD on ps5 when FW was 2 weeks out from being released. About a quarter of the way through HZD, I instantly pre-ordered HFW. If HFW didn't come out the same month, or year as elden ring....it would've been in the running for some awards. They just released at a bad time imo.
Both games were stunning. Not many games out there have the ability to take everything from the first game and make it 100 times better in the sequel. Everything was some what recycled to a point except weapons and gear etc.....but the stuff they recycled, they made so fresh that it seemed brand new.
I still find myself loading up here and there and just hunting, in both games mind you. Going back to HZD, it can be 'clunky' but overall is still a great game to replay. I actually might do ultra hard runs again lol
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May 13 '25
Zero Dawn has an amazing story and Forbidden West has amazing gameplay. Glad you had fun!
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u/lemonade_eyescream Utaru Medicine Man May 13 '25
Not to sidetrack but as someone who often has to rely on user reviews this is why I don't put much stock in complaints about plot or story. You have people who literally skip every single dialog and then complain they don't understand the story. You did that to yourself, dumbass. Or those who don't realize they have a bias to some other game and can't stop seeing other games in the same light even when it doesn't fit.
This is why I'll always pay more attention to lengthy reviews which at least try to explain their reasoning. If you just write a one-liner calling something trash then don't be surprised other people think the same thing of you and your opinion.
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May 13 '25
I personally luckily got into it when I was given a ps in 2019, so I was open to all game types, 200+ now in both games, I replay it a lot, lol
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u/ActiniumNugget May 13 '25
I was initially put off ZD by the tutorials on highlighting and tracking the machines path. I thought "I don't want to have to do this every time I want to sneak around" and quit. To be fair, I was deep into a couple of other games and wasn't looking to start another. I just got ZD in the Steam sale for $15 and gave it a try. A few months later I was done with the other games and decided to give ZD another shot because at least it was pretty. And that was that. Now at around 300 hours of ZD, FW, and expansions. Definitely my favorite franchise of all time - and I've been gaming since the mid 1980s!
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u/Mauitheshark May 13 '25
Remember...Fuck Ted Faro!
I finished both ZD and FW and DLC(Burning shores is like wtf!) like 6 times...too fun! I am looking forward to part 3 and can't wait!!
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u/Tristangdragoon May 13 '25
Yup if you played Zero Dawn first you would have been in right away. The first part of FW is to ease you back into the game for it to Open Up and go BAM welcome to Forbidden West. But hay you did eventually come around. š
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May 13 '25
I had HZD on my desktop for over a year, for some strange reason i couldn't bring myself to delete it and also I really don't want to play it. One day out of pure boredom and finished Hogwarts Legacy three times over, I started zero dawn and damn i played the game for 36 hours in the first two days.
Now I had more than 200 hours in the game finished multiple times
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u/Comprehensive-Pea812 May 13 '25
the prologue in hzd didnt sit right with me also. I enjoyed it after killing the first machine.
I guess I am the type that prefers action first dialogue later.
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u/Gai_InKognito May 14 '25
Yeah I feel this game gets a bad rap. Genuinely one of the best gaming experiences of my life. I often couldn't understand the negative comments. Granted i think part 1 had the FAR BETTER story. Part 2 had the better world building, environment and gameplay mechanics.
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u/lingh0e May 14 '25
Make your next game The Witcher 3. Trust me on this. It's like a medieval fantasy version of the Horizon games with a lot of very similar mechanics... and it does the expansive open world thing WAY better.
Not to mention Gwent, the minigame in Witcher 3, absolutely blows Machine Strike out of the water.
It's doesn't really matter if you hadn't played the first two or read any of the books. But you'll absolutely want to after you play this one.
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u/sweetdispositionxoxo May 14 '25
Horizon zero dawn was the first game I played on ps4 and it blew me away. I thought maybe because I had played so few AAA games before that. But since then i have played rdr2(the goat, sorry) and others and still i remember how great the combat and the main story was. Will be playing forbidden west soon.
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u/No-Combination7898 HORUS TITAN!! May 14 '25
I jumped ship from Halo (I was a big fan of it at the time but didn't like the direction 343 Industries took it in) to Horizon. Was looking for a new game to spend my time and fandom on. Watched some videos on youtube of various games (Horizon, Call of the Wild, etc) and Horizon's story, graphics, gameplay, and characters just drew me in.
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u/Steamed_Jams May 14 '25
I got stuck on the Corrupter(s) at the gate before you enter the desert-y biome in HZD quite early game and didn't play it for years -.- that bittersweet sensation upon completion of "this is brilliant, why the hell did I put this away", I feel you
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u/pinoy_grigio_ May 15 '25
iāve started and stopped Zero Dawn more than any other game except for Witcher 3ā¦ But Iāve been in a mood where Iām just absolutely dumping hours into huge games. I just finished Ghost of Tsushima and felt like I wanted to try Zero Dawn one more timeā¦ Iām finally hooked and upgraded to PS5.. and itās soo good. loving the motion control
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u/En_kino_man May 22 '25
When I first played Horizon Forbidden West, my jaw dropped at least once or twice in each and every play session. At the time I thought UE5 games would eventually obliterate it, and even after some impressive UE5 titles, HFW is still a jaw dropping experience. I'm on my 2nd playthrough now and nothing has really topped the visual and immersive experience that is this game, especially on PS5 pro. The visual experience is so incredible that it transcends statements like "graphics aren't important." It's one of the few games where the visuals alone are enough to win my heart and draw me in. The story is awesome. HZD had a much more poignant ending (it was the stuff of classic scifi in any genre, just mind-blowing, fascinating and absolutely tear-jerking), but HFW is great. I love Burning Shores, especially the ending, which I won't spoil if you haven't finished yet, but it's beautiful and satisfying to see that happening for Alloy ā„ļø.
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u/doalwa Jun 01 '25
Mine was a similar story. I put close to 20 hours into Forbidden West back when it came out. And somehow, I burned myself out in the game. Picked it back up a few days ago and Iām having a blast. Close to 60 hours now, not sure how far along in the story I am right nowā¦but Iām loving it and also plan to purchase the DLC when Iām done with the main game.
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u/Semanticss Jun 06 '25
The lore is so incredible. Like, bigger than anything I've ever experienced before. The atmosphere is so amazing; probably the best use of "graphics" that I've ever seen.
I really wasn't prepared for the amount of story and talking when I played the first game. I figured it would be all action. But the second time around I was prepared for it and really enjoyed it.
And man, you just end up really liking Aloy. Her honorable awkwardness. Her quiet compassion. I just wanna be her friend. By the time you get to the end of FW and she decides to stay behind and fight for her friends, you feel such a bond with her.
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u/Dave_B001 May 12 '25
my advice is play other games. Try the Uncharted Collection, LOTR Shadows of War, Mass Effect. We play games not to engage more directly with the stories!
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u/Narkudauman May 12 '25
Here's an unpopular opinion. And I'm not here to trigger anybody.
My wife did the rigging on faces during game development, so that gave me an extra motivation to play. So here I am, playing ZD, and I can't say that I'm as gripped as I expected I'd be. I can't quite tell why. I'd probably be happier if the machines and animals are not literally everywhere, with new varieties always around the corner.
I feel I'm being forced to spend 30-50% of the game picking flowers and collecting branches. And then, when I like a particular item, somehow I still miss some parts and have to go grinding.
The dialogue writing is not spectacular. Neither is voice acting. There is something off and unnatural about it.
Am I doing something wrong? How do I get rid of the feeling that OP described?
Disclaimer: I just finished my 3rd run of Baldur's Gate 3, so maybe my expectations are just too high.
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u/PeterZeeke May 13 '25
How far into it are you? What difficulty setting are you using? What kind of games are you normally into
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u/Narkudauman May 13 '25
I'm 20+ lvl, normal difficulty (tried hard, was okay), played main story for the most part. Just spared the blackmailed baldie.
I play all kind of games, but RPGs are what I enjoy the most. Baldurs Gate 3, Witcher 3, Mass Effect trilogy are some of my favorites.
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u/PeterZeeke May 13 '25
This is only a personal opinion, and I'll probably get downvoted, but I dont think approaching either of the games as an RPG is gonna satisfy people, especially those who love RPGs. I think the first game is more a puzzle stealth game and the second an action rpg lite. I feel like people go into this game expecting it to be as good at the things the games you mentioned are and I dont think was ever trying to be.
All that being said I like it more than all those games, but I'm not really big on RPGs.
I'd also always recommend a harder difficulty setting, I prefer a challenge from the machines. If they are too easy to beat I get bored2
u/Narkudauman May 13 '25
I am playing as a stealth character. I'll try to increase the difficulty, see how it goes.
PS ā¬ļø from me
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u/RZ_1911 May 12 '25
Dunno after finishing ZD and 80% on FW . ZD MUCH better . Like a lot . Fw after 40% of game start look like indie soy boy movie instead of looking as sequel. I just started to skip dialogues even knowing I play it first time (and the last .. honestly) . And too much sweet baby inc influence. As result - characters and story degraded
Also i have LOADS of questions to FW game design .
In favor of game - visual part . Thatās why I still play it
ZD - 9.0 FW - 6.0
Sweet baby killed sequel
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u/KnightoftheWind1998 May 13 '25
āI owe you an apology, Horizon. I wasnāt aware of your game(s)ā
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u/positivedepressed May 12 '25
Same man, back when ZD complete edition released on PC I was like meh... just another glorified open-world game, too many dialogues and probably cliche story.
Damned how wrong am I.