Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered Might Pressure Horizon 3 to Fix One Problem

Starting on October 31, PlayStation 5 and PC players will be able to embark on Aloy’s first Horizon journey once more with the release of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered. Here, Guerrilla Games touched up its 2017 PlayStation 4 title through the implementation of improved graphics, lighting, textures, and animation to better align with Zero Dawn’s sequel, Horizon Forbidden West. Additionally, most of Zero Dawn’s original cast returned to produce over 10 hours of re-recorded conversations and mocap to help make Zero Dawn feel brand new again.

In a sense, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered is a facelift of the 2017 original whilst keeping its gameplay intact. However, the return of Zero Dawn’s gameplay may put more pressure on Guerrilla to perfect human enemies for Horizon 3.

Horizon’s Human Enemies Explained

Most of Horizon’s marketing focuses on spectacular and intense combat scenarios with Horizon‘s iconic, gigantic, animal-like machines, instead of fights between meager humans. However, a big chunk of Horizon’s gameplay is centered around fighting rogue factions of post-apocalyptic United States tribes. In Zero Dawn, human antagonists are represented by the Shadow Carja and the Eclipse cultists, who seek to destroy the Carja and reawaken ancient war machines. Though these goals are manipulated by the rogue A.I. HADES, who truly seeks to wipe out all life on Earth.

In Horizon Forbidden West, a few Eclipse remnants can be encountered, but they are primarily replaced by Regalla’s Tenakth Rebels and the alien Far Zenith as human antagonists. While neither faction resurrects ancient war machines in Forbidden West, they make up for it with increased armor, new technology, and greater fighting prowess compared to the Eclipse. Several rebels can be found donning thick armor and energy shields that require powerful attacks to take down. Other rebels can be found riding overridden Bristlebacks, Clawstriders, and Tremortusks. Meanwhile, the Far Zenith are equipped with near-impenetrable shields, shard-firing Specter Gauntlets, and the ability to fly.

The Flaws of Horizon’s Human Antagonists

Compared to the towering and engaging machines, many Horizon fans have found the human enemies to be lacking in challenge. In both Zero Dawn and Forbidden West’s early game, human enemies can be slight obstacles to overcome, with the best option to take them down often being through stealth takedowns or quick melee combat. However, as players increasingly acquire very rare or legendary weapons, human enemies become little more than easy fodder, as they can be quickly taken down with quick headshots from a bow or blown up with slings and other weapons. While the Far Zenith did offer a greater challenge than other human opponents, the Far Zenith acted more like boss battles that were few and far between.

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered’s Human Influence on Horizon 3

With many new players potentially diving into the Horizon series for the first time with the upcoming release of both Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered and LEGO Horizon Adventures, this new influx of players may see some of the series’ quirks with fresh eyes, especially in regard to its human combat scenarios. Players may praise fighting Zero Dawn’s various animalistic machines, but feel the sore spots in its human antagonists over how simplistic their encounters are. Zero Dawn’s machines and engaging story may entice new players to try out the rest of the games in the series, but its human enemies may not be an appealing factor to play the other games.

After Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, Guerrilla Games should strive to greatly improve human combat encounters for Horizon 3. Improvements made in Forbidden West were good steps in the right direction, but more could be done to make fighting humans truly engaging. Fighting humans could be made similar to older Assassin’s Creed games wherein they’ll block most attacks and have to be disarmed through precise moves before they can take damage. Guerrilla could additionally allow Aloy to use more melee weapons, such as Oseram hammers or Tenakth swords, to take down enemies who are only susceptible to specialized weapons.

Experience the critically acclaimed Horizon Zero Dawn™ with stunning new visuals and upgraded features. In a far future where colossal machines roam the Earth, pockets of humanity survive in unique tribes among the lush, overgrown ruins of our long-lost civilization.

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Released

October 31, 2024

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Publisher(s)

Sony Interactive Entertainment

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