Horizon Zero Dawn - Preview Thread [Up: All Previews Live]

i am sure i wll wait for this game's reviews and gameplays...

It will not be a first-day game for me....

Because

1- It is a guerilla game
2- It looks like a classical open-world game (like far cry, madmax)...Lots of grinding etc.
3- And as gameplay it is very much like Far Cry Primal..Sure it has some additional stuff but most of it is alike
4- i have to finish RE7 and Mass Effect is on horizon too :)
 
Wow, I wonder why nobody talked about this here...

It's been being talked a lot since lots of pages ago. But yeah, people here seem to be convinced that it's only for that unimportant cutscene from a side quest and not representing the general quality of cutscenes in the game.
 
It's been being talked since lots of pages ago. But yeah, people here seem to be convinced that it's only for that unimportant cutscene from a side quest and not representing the general quality of cutscenes in the game.
I saw another cutscene, and the voice-acting of the guy in that scene seemed slightly better but the facial animation still didn't look great. I'd like to see more personally.
 
Well, it ain't that easy shitting on this game so they need to carefully pick the worst parts and blow them sky high out of proportion. ;)

For me, I saw my expectations on gameplay confirmed, got a a glimpse of the menus, and saw that it still is just a game with flaws - and if you are honest, there is not a single game without any, except very simple stuff like Tetris maybe - so: I just pushed the preorder button.
 
Feb and March are good months for large-scale open world games. Nintendo fans get Zelda, PS players get Horizon. Good times for everyone.
 
Well, it ain't that easy shitting on this game so they need to carefully pick the worst parts and blow them sky high out of proportion. ;)
You know, it'd be nice if we could have an adult discussion about this game without people like you creating ulterior motives for people that don't exist.
 
You know, it'd be nice if we could have an adult discussion about this game without people like you creating ulterior motives for people that don't exist.

It's literally what some people are doing in this thread. Whether you want to face it or not is not something I can effect.

Pre-order kept, as I thought. I don't mind spending a little on March considering I haven't bought a single game for almost 4 months.
 
I saw another cutscene, and the voice-acting of the guy in that scene seemed slightly better but the facial animation still didn't look great. I'd like to see more personally.

Yeah, I'm not convinced either. Would love to see more side quest footage or maybe the reviewers mentioning this concern if possible.
 
Sure the facial animations aren't perfect or Uncharted level for obvious reasons (it's open world) but it's not really all that different from the larger AAA open world games of the past imo.

Playing the Skyrim's or Mass Effects of the world it seems on par if not better.

To my mind TW3 is something that excelled in this department but could still be stilted in places but that never fully detracts from the experience once I'm deep into the world and it's story 10+ hours in, and I suspect the exact same thing will happen with Horizon.

In any case, I'm guessing it will all be cleaned up a little from final release but I don't see this being a deal breaker at all.
Graphically, everything appears executed to near perfection in terms of environmental art, costume design, NPC/enemy design etc.
 
It's literally what some people are doing in this thread. Whether you want to face it or not is not something I can effect.
Then ignore them.

People have the right to question the quality of certain aspects of the game without being run out of the discussion for concern trolling.
Yeah, I'm not convinced either. Would love to see more side quest footage or maybe the reviewers mentioning this concern if possible.
I assume if they don't mention it that it must not be the norm. That'd be whack.
 
X-what?

If Greg from KF Games is talking it up I know it will be extremely hand-holdy

Nah it doesn't look like that at all that much.

It seems you can approach combat however you like e.g. aggressive, stealthy, far reach etc with Aloys ear piece providing useful info (not hand holdy really) like enemy pathways, weaknesses and strengths which a lot of RPG's have that sorta thing.
 
I saw another cutscene, and the voice-acting of the guy in that scene seemed slightly better but the facial animation still didn't look great. I'd like to see more personally.

facial animation imo is on par with the typical action rpg game like Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Fallout etc. there will be a lot of dialogue scenes like that. it'd be very expensive to have all of them up to the standard of linear games like Uncharted and Killzone.
 
I think the visuals look great but what's up with those desaturated black and white sections?

like this for example

The game looks great, but is this Icon/UI overkill always like that?
Looks more crowded then a multiplayer shooter.

Hmm, for me the game looks like awesome world with awesome graphics, hold back by typical UbiSoft-like open-world-gameplay.
 
OléGunner;229420123 said:
To my mind TW3 is something that excelled in this department but could still be stilted in places but that never fully detracts from the experience once I'm deep into the world and it's story 10+ hours in, and I suspect the exact same thing will happen with Horizon.

I don't even recall TW3 having too many NPC variations. Most NPC's, often with multiple interaction points during quests, had the exact same faces. It was quite strange or amusing interacting with the same faces with different voices very often.
 
I don't even recall TW3 having too many NPC variations. Most NPC's, often with multiple interaction points during quests, had the exact same faces. It was quite strange or amusing interacting with the same faces with different voices very often.
Yes it was a little confusing in W3.
When you see the face of the kings butler and a few minutes later a homeless drunk guy has the same face lol
 
i am sure i wll wait for this game's reviews and gameplays...

It will not be a first-day game for me....

Because

1- It is a guerilla game
2- It looks like a classical open-world game (like far cry, madmax)...Lots of grinding etc.
3- And as gameplay it is very much like Far Cry Primal..Sure it has some additional stuff but most of it is alike
4- i have to finish RE7 and Mass Effect is on horizon too :)

I have not seen anything that indicates the need to grind. I have to laugh at thinking Mass Effect looks good or better so far. I love Mass Effect, but Horizon Zero Dawn looks more impressive so far.
 
The game looks great, but is this Icon/UI overkill always like that?
Looks more crowded then a multiplayer shooter.

Hmm, for me the game looks like awesome world with awesome graphics, hold back by typical UbiSoft-like open-world-gameplay.

I think that's a bit harsh.
There's much more tactical flexibility due to weaponry and 26 varying enemy designs which gives waaay more options in terms of combat gameplay to a Ubi game.

But yeah there are a few elements from Ubi in there but Horizon is still it's entirely own beast imo.

I don't even recall TW3 having too many NPC variations. Most NPC's, often with multiple interaction points during quests, had the exact same faces. It was quite strange or amusing interacting with the same faces with different voices very often.

Yeah it felt a bit recycled at times haha!
But the world building and VA was so well done that sort of thing faded into the background for me.

Horizon having so many distinct tribes that wear different armour and garments and have different traditions will mean we get good variety hopefully.
 
facial animation imo is on par with the typical action rpg game like Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Fallout etc. there will be a lot of dialogue scenes like that. it'd be very expensive to have all of them up to the standard of linear games like Uncharted and Killzone.
I'm one of Fallout's biggest critics, and I don't actually remember being that bothered by 4's VO and animation. I'd need to revisit it to compare.
I wonder if we can change the voice to japan from the menu? the jp dub seems nice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIybhAn15fQ
If the language options allow me, I think I might just play the game in Japanese then. Understanding of the story be damned.
 
Expect the Witcher > get disappointed

Expect a great-looking well-made action game with RPG elements of varying quality > good times for all

Expect this to score better than BOTW > get real
but who knows?

I don't want The Witcher 3. I shelved that game because the controls were too loose and the combat was so tedious. I still might go back to it fo the story, but the gameplay flaws have been surprisingly glossed over
 
I have not seen anything that indicates the need to grind. I have to laugh at thinking Mass Effect looks good or better so far. I love Mass Effect, but Horizon Zero Dawn looks more impressive so far.

Perhaps not a need to grind but grind still exists in the game. You have an entire progression tree that fills up from gathering exp from doing x number of quests, x number of activities and killing x number of enemies. Multiple previewers have made similarities to the ubi-open world games when talking about the progression system of the game. And those games can feel grindy.
 
You know, it'd be nice if we could have an adult discussion about this game without people like you creating ulterior motives for people that don't exist.

How about this: the cut scene animations are about on par for other o/w games, and people need to measure their expectations around that.

I watched a 90s clip reel of W3, and IMO that demonstrated the level of variation present in that game is about the same IMO.

As for the writing & dialogue...well from what I've seen it's no worse than RotTR and while I don't think it's getting too many awards for prose, it's serviceble enough.

The traversal, movement & combat all seem very fluid, there's a great deal of depth in how you can approach encounters and it's bordering on RPG-medium for me, I was really hoping for RPG-lite.

I think the UI and menu system/weapon & crafting wheel look well designed around the fast paced nature of the combat although I agree with those who've said that a less 'rustic' design might be better.
 
Perhaps not a need to grind but grind still exists in the game. You have an entire progression tree that fills up from gathering exp from doing x number of quests, x number of activities and killing x number of enemies. Multiple previewers have made similarities to the ubi-open world games when talking about the progression system of the game. And those games can feel grindy.

It's a rpg so that is all part of levelling up .
Still i expect people won't even need to get some stuff if they good.
 
The Witcher 3 is a masterpiece.
But I am sure this game at least has one aspect better than Witcher--combat, could not worse than nothing
 
Perhaps not a need to grind but grind still exists in the game. You have an entire progression tree that fills up from gathering exp from doing x number of quests, x number of activities and killing x number of enemies. Multiple previewers have made similarities to the ubi-open world games when talking about the progression system of the game. And those games can feel grindy.

You can grind any open-ish world game with RPG mechanics. The point is you don't need to progress. You grind in Bloodborne, Tomb Raider, The Witcher 3, Borderlands, Destiny etc. Obviously the need to grind more intense some of those more than others. Some people actually like to grind. As long as it isn't forced on you it's fine with me.

The only game I have played in recent memory that made you grind was Dragon Age Inquisition.

OléGunner;229421391 said:
Some framerate drops as it's preview code but apparently it has been cleaned up for the gold master

I have seen conflicting reports on pop-in. How prevalent is it?
 
Perhaps not a need to grind but grind still exists in the game. You have an entire progression tree that fills up from gathering exp from doing x number of quests, x number of activities and killing x number of enemies. Multiple previewers have made similarities to the ubi-open world games when talking about the progression system of the game. And those games can feel grindy.

err... that's basically rpg. you kill enemies or do quests and you got xp to level up. even the GOTY Witcher 3 is like that.

actually Witcher 3 felt super grindy to me because to get better equipment, I had to do these elaborate treasure hunts, and then I had to find the ingredient to properly upgrade them etc.
 
Witcher 3 combat felt really enjoyable at 60Fps.

It was actually a surprise after reading many comments here.

Did you play it with a controller of mouse/keyboard? I found the constantly cycle of pausing/slowing time to switch spells to be tedious. It is like an unrefined weapon wheel. And Geralt is so floaty using either control scheme.

err... that's basically rpg. you kill enemies or do quests and you got xp to level up. even the GOTY Witcher 3 is like that.

Yeah I'm not sure how the mere existing of grinding for XP is a valid criticism for any RPG
 
It's a rpg so that is all part of levelling up .
Still i expect people won't even need to get some stuff if they good.

It doesn't look like an RPG to me. More like an action game with a progression tree. Which is fine but this type of progression system is really prevalent and unappealing for many.
 
Did you play it with a controller of mouse/keyboard? I found the constantly cycle of pausing/slowing time to switch spells to be tedious. It is like an unrefined weapon wheel. And Geralt is so floaty using either control scheme.

Elite controller with the evade and both attacks mapped on the paddles.

Plus the "here horsey" button cause i dont like clicking on thumbsticks. xD
 
It doesn't look like an RPG to me. More like an action game with a progression tree. Which is fine but this type of progression system is really prevalent and unappealing for many.

I don't have problem with the progression tree in Horizon either, actually, comparing it again to Witcher 3, I hate the progression tree in Witcher 3, you spent all that time to level up and unlock skill and you had to pick only 4 skill to equip. Witcher 3 had one of the worst character progression system in rpg, I barely felt like my character is getting stronger.

Witcher 2 had much better system and I have no idea why they had to change it
 
It doesn't look like an RPG to me. More like an action game with a progression tree. Which is fine but this type of progression system is really prevalent and unappealing for many.

It doesn't matter what it looks like to you. It's an RPG. And since when have people not found skill trees and RPG style progression appealing? I see it mentioned as positive for the new Tomb Raider games and basically any RPG has it including massively popular games like Destiny, Borderlands, The WITCHER 3, Diablo, Fallout. I don't think your claim that many find it unappealing rings true. The sales definitely don't correlate to that.
 
I can understand the comparisons to The Witcher 3, given they're both current generation open world games drawing from medieval/fantasy concepts, and both have a locked protagonist and narrative driven questing, but I get completely different vibes from each. Tonally, structurally, aesthetically, mechanically, and everything else. Surface level comparisons and not much more.

Unfortunately my sour impressions from older footage aren't changing here. It's mostly subjective, and I recognise that, but in the same way that so many open world games just don't look compelling to me so too does Horizon. I find it exceedingly difficult to be drawn to the world Guerrilla are creating, which is a point of frustration as I should love this post techno-apocalyptic setting they've created. I'm not drawn to the aesthetic and design, which is oddly unconvincing to me. And the landscapes look to fall into similar traps as Ubisoft's Far Cry series, where topography and asset distribution is scattered and inorganic.

Mechanically there might be some great stuff going on, but again I'm not compelled. I don't have this spark in me saying hey, pick up Horizon, build your character, explore your world, conquer the techno wildlife. I'm not sure why. I think it's neat that there appears to be a genuine attempt at agency driven usage of your tools in engagements, particularly with the bigger dinosaurs, but I guess I'm not convinced by the draw to do any of this stuff in the first place.

Oh well. Fingers crossed it delivers for the fans, and doesn't have too many performance issues in the standard PS4 unit.
 
err... that's basically rpg. you kill enemies or do quests and you got xp to level up. even the GOTY Witcher 3 is like that.

actually Witcher 3 felt super grindy to me because to get better equipment, I had to do these elaborate treasure hunts, and then I had to find the ingredient to properly upgrade them etc.

I would say witcher 3 also falls in the category of an action game with a progression tree.

Games like Pillars of Eternity and Deus Ex MD are recent examples of games that I would call true RPGs. Those are games where you have to focus on a specific build and that build determines your entire play style.

W3 essentially has 3 build paths with minor variations and that's far too narrow to be an RPG for me.
 
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