I was so ready to hate Horizon: Zero Dawn. Though an original property, its status as yet another open-world action game in the Arkham/Assassins/Mordor mould - not to mention its seemingly randomly-generated title - made me groan with dread. Hooray, I didnt think. More climbing up towers to unlock an increasingly cluttered map; more taking out enemy camps to unlock fast-travel points; more crafting ever more-capacious pouches, expanding skill trees, and collecting scrap. This was Sonys next big PlayStation exclusive? A post-apocalyptic Far Cry clone? Really?
I was right, and yet I was so wrong. Horizon: Zero Dawn indeed follows the same tiresome structure of other recent open-world games, yet does neat things to freshen up almost everything within, while telling a story that pushes it well above the pack. The result: a dazzlingly imaginative role-playing game more akin to a Witcher than an Assassins Creed, full of genuine surprises. Even the fucking title makes sense.* Who knew?