Gaming Horizon: Zero Dawn (PS4)

[Shane88]

Thought this would have a thread already but I searched and couldn't find one. Out on February 28th-March 1st, depending on where you are in the world. The story seems a bit bleh....


But I watched a gameplay video of it and I really like the look of it...


I'm a sucker for bow combat though. Bows are awesome.

 

[afrocentricity]

I played this last year and I'll say that it plays very well. The mounts controlled easily enough, mounted combat was good. Normal combat felt good. Took me less than 10 mins to get my head around it...

I liked it, can't wait...

 

[Donut]

Hmm... This looks very Ubisoftish / Assassin's Creedish.

Will definitely wait until reviews are out before buying.

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

Looking forward to it myself, and as it comes out on my birthday it'll make a nice present. I put these two previews from Easy Allies and Kinda Funny Games in the PS4 thread, suppose they'd be better off in here:

Some previews for Horizon - Zero Dawn now out, all the ones I've seen so far a very positive on the game. Looking forward to this one.

 

[One Night Only]

This is Can't wait.

 

[Redlambs]

It does look good. Out just before Zelda though, so I might need to take a while off

 

[Ainu]

It looks incredible from an aesthetic point of view and gameplay certainly looks pretty good from what we've seen so far. However I'm sceptical about how much depth or substance there is to it, both in terms of gameplay mechanics and story/character development. Like @Donut, I'm dreading a Ubisoft-style collect-a-thon. Guerrilla Games lack credentials in this genre and haven't shown themselves able to craft a great game beyond the technical side, so there are definitely concerns there. I'll await the reviews and prepare myself for a competent but uninspiring 7/10 game. Anything better will be a pleasant surprise.

 

[Massive Spanner]

My problem with Guerrilla is that their games always look like they'll be unbelievable and usually end up being pretty good.

Remember Killzone 2?

 

[Randall Flagg]

Not a big fan of the killzone games... They are ok

But I do like Ubisoft games like Farcry etc... but I am a little burnt out now. I'm gonna guess low to mid 80's on metacritic

 

[GaryLifo]

I'm gradually getting more excited about this.

I'm not expecting it to be the greatest ever game but I think it will definitely give me something I can enjoy playing while I wait for news on Destiny 2

 

[Man of Leisure]

Can someone explain to me how it's been nominated and even won a couple awards if the game hasn't been released yet? This is from its Wikipedia page. I mean I can understand "Most Wanted" or "Most Anticipated" nominations, but how could it have been nominated for 2015 awards when it won't be released for a couple more weeks?

Year Award Category Result
2015 Game Critics Awards
Best of Show Nominated
Best Original Game Won
Best Console Game Nominated
Best Action/Adventure Game Nominated
2016 Game Critics Awards
2016 Best of Show Nominated
Best Original Game Won
Best Console Game Nominated
Best Action/Adventure Game Nominated
Golden Joystick Awards 2016 Most Wanted Game Nominated
The Game Awards 2016 Most Anticipated Game Nominated

 

[Shane88]

Game awards are a load of balls. Especially "Most wanted/anticipated" awards which are probably just advertisements.

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

Those awards are just ones handed out after E3, all the gaming media sites & journalists etc get a set of various awards to allocate to games shown & played there, then at the end they're all tallied up and winners with them most of a whatever category get an official award, it's been going on for almost two decades now.

 

[Massive Spanner]

I want this to be great.

So many games coming out, so little time. Playing Yakuza 0 right now, then there's this in 2 weeks, then Andromeda 3 weeks later, then Persona 5 2 weeks after that. Bleedin' 'eck.

 

[Coxy]

I want this to be great.

So many games coming out, so little time. Playing Yakuza 0 right now, then there's this in 2 weeks, then Andromeda 3 weeks later, then Persona 5 2 weeks after that. Bleedin' 'eck.

There are some great impressions on GAF - have faith my friend!

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

A review has leaked:

https://abload.de/img/ertjejerketketkrlfku41.jpg

The rest go up tomorrow, must be confident more than a week before release.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Yeah, developers removing the embargo early pretty much means it's nailed on to be good. Dragon Age: Inquisition, The Witcher 3, and Uncharted 4 all did it.

 

[Peanut Butter]

Too many good games on the PS4 now and not enough time!

 

[One Night Only]

A review has leaked:

https://abload.de/img/ertjejerketketkrlfku41.jpg

The rest go up tomorrow, must be confident more than a week before release.

The pictures in that review especially the bottom one

 

[Randall Flagg]

Too many good games on the PS4 now and not enough time!

I have made myself stop buying games upon release unless it's a must must have like Horizon

Otherwise I would have gotten Yakuza, Nioh, RE7 and probably gravity rush 2

 

[Ainu]

I have made myself stop buying games upon release unless it's a must must have like Horizon

Otherwise I would have gotten Yakuza, Nioh, RE7 and probably gravity rush 2

I know the problem. I've already got FFVII, Yakuza and Gravity Rush 2 on my to-buy list and within the next month or so Horizon, Mass Effect Andromeda and Nier: Automata will join that list. And I haven't even got round to playing Titanfall 2 which has been sitting on my HDD since the Christmas sales. A good time for PS4 gaming, but a bad one for the wallet and my time management.

 

[siw2007]

I hope this turns out to be really good. I've just beat FF15, TLG and Dishonored 2 and would like something to look forward to. It has great graphics, stylish combat and of course the scale is incredible but I fear it might get a little boring after a while. Despite what it looks like on the surface, the game is essentially following the same formula of big world filled with side quests, collectibles, free roam etc.
Am looking forward to the reviews before putting in a purchase and hope it's more Witcher 3 and less Watch Dogs.

 

[One Night Only]

I hope this turns out to be really good. I've just beat FF15, TLG and Dishonored 2 and would like something to look forward to. It has great graphics, stylish combat and of course the scale is incredible but I fear it might get a little boring after a while. Despite what it looks like on the surface, the game is essentially following the same formula of big world filled with side quests, collectibles, free roam etc.
Am looking forward to the reviews before putting in a purchase and hope it's more Witcher 3 and less Watch Dogs.

Not having a go at you, but what else would you expect really? Side quests, collectibles and free roam... I understand collectibles are a right pain in the arse. But without side quests and free roam it would be stupidly linear, a to b and that's that. Then people would complain there were no options.

 

[siw2007]

Not having a go at you, but what else would you expect really? Side quests, collectibles and free roam... I understand collectibles are a right pain in the arse. But without side quests and free roam it would be stupidly linear, a to b and that's that. Then people would complain there were no options.

I really like the formula, but some developers get it really wrong, mainly Ubisoft with Assassins Creed and Watch Dogs which were rather boring iterations of the style. However, I really liked Witcher 3 and FF15 which executed it perfectly.
I'm trying to say that if Gorilla go down the same route, then it's important that they don't fall into the same trap that Ubisoft do every year.

 

[Peanut Butter]

I have made myself stop buying games upon release unless it's a must must have like Horizon

Otherwise I would have gotten Yakuza, Nioh, RE7 and probably gravity rush 2

Yeah same here.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Yakuza is the best game I've played in ages. Anyone who doesn't see it as a must buy should change their mind immediately.

 

[Randall Flagg]

Yakuza is the best game I've played in ages. Anyone who doesn't see it as a must buy should change their mind immediately.

I will get it eventually, but will wait until it's on a psn sale

 

[Neelu]

Review embargo is up
Gamespot - 9
IGN - 9.3
Game Informer - 8.8
Polygon - 9.5/10
Jim Sterling - 9.5

Metacritic 88/100 from 35 reviews

 

[Ainu]

Review embargo is up
Gamespot - 9
IGN - 9.3
Game Informer - 8.8
Polygon - 9.5/10
Jim Sterling - 9.5

Metacritic 88/100 from 35 reviews

Strange that Eurogamer haven't even given it a Recommended badge, which basically corresponds to a sub 8/10 score. They call it a generic open worlder, which is exactly the opposite of what I'd hoped it would be. I hope it's just a case of Eurogamer trying to be special, which is a trap their reviewers often fall into. Will check out some of the other reviews.

Edit: even the reviews that give it high scores mention "various collectibles that clutter the map" or "activities that feel all too familiar" as its drawbacks. Yeah, no thanks. This is a sales buy at best for me. I'm fecking sick and tired of open world collect-a-thons.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Strange that Eurogamer haven't even given it a Recommended badge, which basically corresponds to a sub 8/10 score. They call it a generic open worlder, which is exactly the opposite of what I'd hoped it would be. I hope it's just a case of Eurogamer trying to be special, which is a trap their reviewers often fall into. Will check out some of the other reviews.

Gamespot are my most trusted source these days, I think they tend to do the most balanced reviews that I usually agree with.

Polygon are pretty good too, 9.5!

This is now a must-buy for me.

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Getting rave reviews. This or Nioh will be my next buy. Probably this given I have Dark Soils 3 still to play. Was thinking maybe dishonoured 2 but that would be too similar to the current game I'm on (deus ex).

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

Getting rave reviews. This or Nioh will be my next buy. Probably this given I have Dark Soils 3 still to play. Was thinking maybe dishonoured 2 but that would be too similar to the current game I'm on (deus ex).

Is that a gritty 3rd person game set in the unforgiving world of Horticulture, or a baby changing VR game where danger lurks in every diaper?

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Is that a gritty 3rd person game set in the unforgiving world of Horticulture, or a baby changing VR game where danger lurks in every diaper?

The latter.

Not only is it dark, but extremely hard. And the more you collect the stronger you become.

 

[Donut]

Waiting for ACG's review...

 

[ArmandTamzarian]

The latter.

Not only is it dark, but extremely hard. And the more you collect the stronger you become.

 

[DWelbz19]

Review embargo is up
Gamespot - 9
IGN - 9.3
Game Informer - 8.8
Polygon - 9.5/10
Jim Sterling - 9.5

Metacritic 88/100 from 35 reviews

Wow. Very impressive.

 

[Alock1]

Nice, will pick this up!

 

[ADJUDICATOR]

General consensus from reviews is: graphically superb, satisfying mechanics/combat, great world-building and forgettable everything else.

 

[Massive Spanner]

General consensus from reviews is: graphically superb, satisfying mechanics/combat, great world-building and forgettable everything else.

Pretty much sums up most open world games that aren't The Witcher 3!