Horizon: Zero Dawn | Review Thread

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KyleOnTheRun said:
In the quality of its world-building, and the way it really earns its plot twists and surprises, I'd say... BioShock? That pops into my head as something equally well done.

Apologies for the word wall, but I think a passage from my review really explains this:
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I shouldn't be this excited for the story...

But I am!
 
It is pretty telling that they absolutely school developers like Bethesda with both visuals and performance with their first open world game. Devastatingly so. I hope you guys are paying attention.
 
wild wild rice said:
Not really. The reviewer found it average and explained why in detail.
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Indeed, as someone with low tolerance for open world adventure games, narrative flow and depth of interpersonal relationships explored are a big part of what pulls me through a game like this. The reviewer clearly cares about that stuff and focused on just those factors and I appreciated the perspective. I'm still on the fence for Horizon, and weighing this kind of critique against some of the high praise for the story concept.

I'll probably get it eventually, but with limited gaming time, Nier and Persona as upcoming must buys, and still on the fence about ME:A and Torment too, not sure when....
 
I think it's one of those rare cases where people are happy with the game receiving praise and an average sub-90's metacritic, and this makes me happy.

I also wonder whether Horizon will affect reviewers in scoring Zelda. The bar has been truly raised in open world visuals and presentation, and Zelda might seem to lack the same oomph that this game possesses.
 
ManUnkindH said:
Think I just noticed all video reviews use the same footage...Could be wrong.

Small downside for the awesome fact they released reviews a week before launch. Fuck embargo!
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Previews and reviews are occasionally accompanied with Sony-approved B-Roll footage. It's usually the only stuff reviewers are allowed to show ahead of launch. (Bear in mind my only source is that it happened once when I reviewed inFamous Second Son).
 
Holy shit, I'm pleasantly surprised at all these glowing reviews! Glad I got this baby on pre-order and am beyond hyped for it. With Nioh taking pretty much all my gaming time, this will be a very welcomed break from that. Can't wait to explore the world they have created cause it looks fucking awesome.
 
Zia said:
Saw the OP and was prepared to eat all of the crow until I read reviews from writers I actually care about in Eurogamer, The Guardian and Kotaku UK. About what I'd expect from Guerilla. I'm calling an Edge 7, maybe a generous 8.
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Lol very clever ;)
 
Savantcore said:
Previews and reviews are occasionally accompanied with Sony-approved B-Roll footage. It's usually the only stuff reviewers are allowed to show ahead of launch. (Bear in mind my only source is that it happened once when I reviewed inFamous Second Son).
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Correct true footage is embargoed until 27th.
 
That's awesome - whoever's in charge of Sony's exclusive deals is fucking killing it lately. As a longtime GG fan I'm really happy to see them finally find the right game to expose their talent in a way that resonates with a wider audience.
 
Omnistalgic said:
This is honestly the most surprising element of the game, the high praise for the story. Colin from Kinda Funny said it's up their with horizon, and his gripes are so small they can easily be overlooked.

Would you say the story here, the lore, is good enough to develop into a book series?

Something like Wool/Shift/Dust or Hunger Games?
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Definitely surprising for me, too. After Killzone, I didn't expect Guerrilla to so masterfully develop that plot and lore, but it's really, really great. I think their hiring of John Gonzales (Fallout: New Vegas) was huge for delivering an original world.

I would buy a Horizon book series in a second. Without spoiling, one thing Horizon does incredibly well is introduce and explain lore that's highly interesting and rooted in some interesting ideas... politics, culture, technology... It's a triumph that the story of the game is so satisfying and self-contained even while introducing all these ideas, but they could be explored so much more.
 
Yeah, the story and setting stuff getting this praise is something I didn't know whether or not would happen, but was really hoping for since the setting looks so good.

Kaako said:
Holy shit, I'm pleasantly surprised at all these glowing reviews! Glad I got this baby on pre-order and am beyond hyped for it. With Nioh taking pretty much all my gaming time, this will be a very welcomed break from that. Can't wait to explore the world they have created cause it looks fucking awesome.
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Yeah.
 
Well Done Guerilla Games. Horizon releases on the day before my Birthday and I have the dentist that day too. Boy what a tumultuous day that will be. I would never have thought I'd be excited for a day in which a dental visit occurs but here we are. Just Well Done.
 
Just woke up expecting to see a 74-77 Metacritic for this game at best. But holy shit at these reviews!

Congratulations GG, this makes me feel like a proud dad who's son just won MVP on his high-school football team.

Fantastic job, turned me into a day-1 buyer!
 
ironcreed said:
It is pretty telling that they absolutely school developers like Bethesda with both visuals and performance with their first open world game. Devastatingly so. I hope you guys are paying attention.
Click to expand...

Again the biggest difference is this was developed for one system from a developer who had worked closely with the hardware. Bethesda is crating an engine that has to be ported to multiple platforms. Bethesda needs to work on their art style more than their engines.
 
Annoying Old Party Man said:
I think it's one of those rare cases where people are happy with the game receiving praise and an average sub-90's metacritic, and this makes me happy.

I also wonder whether Horizon will affect reviewers in scoring Zelda. The bar has been truly raised in open world visuals and presentation, and Zelda might seem to lack the same oomph that this game possesses.
Click to expand...

I'm sure Zelda will still have a leg up in something that all reviewers still hold for Nintendo franchises than most. Really and truly tbh, Horizon had to be greater, not great...to come close to what Zelda will guarantee to do. So when you really think about it, Zelda will be fine.
 
KyleOnTheRun said:
In the quality of its world-building, and the way it really earns its plot twists and surprises, I'd say... BioShock? That pops into my head as something equally well done.

Apologies for the word wall, but I think a passage from my review really explains this:
Click to expand...


Thanks for your reply. Never played BioShock, not my thing. When it comes to HZD. I don't believe I'm going to love it. But I might just really like it. That's all I hope for. Can't wait for next week.
 
Zia said:
Saw the OP and was prepared to eat all of the crow until I read reviews from writers I actually care about in Eurogamer, The Guardian and Kotaku UK. About what I'd expect from Guerilla. I'm calling an Edge 7, maybe a generous 8.
Click to expand...

This makes me laugh
 
Zia said:
Saw the OP and was prepared to eat all of the crow until I read reviews from writers I actually care about in Eurogamer, The Guardian and Kotaku UK. About what I'd expect from Guerilla. I'm calling an Edge 7, maybe a generous 8.
Click to expand...

Edge have been v forgiving recently.
 
KyleOnTheRun said:
Definitely surprising for me, too. After Killzone, I didn't expect Guerrilla to so masterfully develop that plot and lore, but it's really, really great. I think their hiring of John Gonzales (Fallout: New Vegas) was huge for delivering an original world.

I would buy a Horizon book series in a second. Without spoiling, one thing Horizon does incredibly well is introduce and explain lore that's highly interesting and rooted in some interesting ideas... politics, culture, technology... It's a triumph that the story of the game is so satisfying and self-contained even while introducing all these ideas, but they could be explored so much more.
Click to expand...
That's what I wanted to hear, man, really can't wait. Just have to finish TLG, but I think i'm gonna hold off on GR2 and Nioh, and just dive day one on Horizon. I'm so glad I can finish the story in a reasonable amount of time too, every time I'm about to pick up W3 or MGSV, I just shudder to think about the 80-100 hour completion time for both of those games lol.

Also, the scaling seems to imply a 90 on meta, I'm hoping when it all tallies, it'll go back to 89 or even 90. Something about that 90 put it in the "classic" category, and impressions seem like it's certainly there.

Regardless though, I think this is a franchise, if sales are as impressive as these scores, the sequel will no doubt improve and build on this starting point. What a time to be alive!

Few things I'd expect in a sequel

- A more fleshed out melee engine
- Deeper RPG elements
- Online Co-op

This should be the one of the easiest sequels for GG to capitalize on and improve the franchise.
 
It's finally happening - the week of legend is almost upon us. Between 02/28 - 03/7:
  • 02/28: Horizon
  • 03/03: Breath of the Wild
  • 03/07: Nier Automata
  • 03/07: Wildlands
This might be the most exciting week I've ever had for new game releases.
 
Hi. I played Horizon and loved it. Gave it a 5/5 on my review(if any portuguese reading gaffers want to read, it's here) but also I took like 50 screenshots with Photo Mode. If anyone wants to check them out. (text is in portuguese but the screens are there) https://omelete.uol.com.br/games/artigo/horizon-zero-dawn-e-um-dos-jogos-mais-bonitos-dessa-geracao/

Here are a few (taken on regular PS4)
NKuAjtB.jpg

w0S3BN6.jpg

HB9FJg9.jpg

HSffLO3.jpg
 
Annoying Old Party Man said:
I think it's one of those rare cases where people are happy with the game receiving praise and an average sub-90's metacritic, and this makes me happy.

I also wonder whether Horizon will affect reviewers in scoring Zelda. The bar has been truly raised in open world visuals and presentation, and Zelda might seem to lack the same oomph that this game possesses.
Click to expand...

Botw will get extremely positive reviews, it's guaranteed 90+ just because it's zelda. Some fans will claim it's the best in the series, others will be disappointed. Personally I'm far more excited about zero dawn.
 
AudioEppa said:
Thanks for your reply. Never played BioShock, not my thing. When it comes to HZD. I don't believe I'm going to love it. But I might just really like it. That's all I hope for. Can't wait for next week.
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I've been itching to tell people about how good the story is, but the gameplay is super-polished as well. It actually instilled fear in me with really memorable boss fights that felt like insane odds.

I think you'll really like it. It's hard to imagine anyone not at least really liking it. Then I read a couple reviews that I sounded as if they didn't finish the game.
 
N.Domixis said:
To think we started with Knack, 1886, KIllzone Shadow fall, Drive Club. Yeesh, were out of the woods now.
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The release of Bloodborne was the start of the PS4 climbing out of mediocrity as far as system exclusives go. Even then, this past year was the first time I would actually recommend a PS4 to a friend.
 
shinobi602 said:
I'm surprised by a lot of the "surprised" and "didn't know it'd be this well received" posts. I felt like all the signs were obviously there.

Even if it was because of "Guerrilla's track record", which isn't really bad at all, every showing of the game was phenomenal, they added a ton of talent to the studio, previews were pretty exceptional...
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lol exactly what I was going to post, what are the odds. Its been nothing but one impressive showing after another with glowing previews.
 
Zia said:
Saw the OP and was prepared to eat all of the crow until I read reviews from writers I actually care about in Eurogamer, The Guardian and Kotaku UK. About what I'd expect from Guerilla. I'm calling an Edge 7, maybe a generous 8.
Click to expand...

What is it about this game that brings out shitty trolls like yourself?
 
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