Be sure to keep in your thoughts Mike Andrew Nash who was the concept artist for this game and made some of the most iconic designs. Sadly he passed away roughly a year ago, leaving behind an incredible legacy of designs that make this game so unique
You’re so right about appreciating when something has this much love and care put into it. The level of creativity and technical achievement in video games like this deserves to be appreciated more than just sticking a number on it at the end. Love it when you say things like this. We should all think more like this. Nothing is ever perfect but my god there are some incredible achievements out there in our world of video games.
What kind of comment is this? Songs have typical structures but can conjure up emotions that are unique to them.most all movies have 3 act structures, but there are some amazing ones out there. What a stupid comment.
@@mikehess9458 To add to that, most groundbreaking music is extremely niche at best and anything becoming popular means a ton of copying will ensue if it had not already happened.
For anyone watching this review some time after launch, you'll be happy to know that a bunch of the technical issues mentioned here have been either improved or completely fixed. As of the big early June update (patch 1.14 and hotfix 1.15), the Performance mode has been *significantly* upgraded - Guerilla pulled some kind of crazy technical witchcraft and revamped how it worked, such that to my eyes on a PS5 with Samsung 4k TV, Performance mode is now pretty much visually indistinguishable from Resolution mode in terms of detail and clarity. Gone are the midground shimmering artifacts on foliage and other objects - everything is so much clearer and sharper. Guerilla have also stated that they're working on adding support for variable refresh rate screens as well. Beyond that, the pop-in problems have been in large part negated (especially with larger objects and structures), though it's still somewhat noticeable with smaller things like mass foliage. The overall technical performance of the game on PS5 is still not 100% perfect, but not by much. It's still very stable and now considerably better than it was at and just after launch. In addition, several big new features have been added for free, including New Game + mode and new associated gear to get, Ultra Hard Difficulty, and a fantastic universal armor transmog system. The game is even better now than it was at launch. If you've been waiting, now's your time to jump in!
A lot has been fixed, especially the performance mode fidelity, but keep in mind that not all the side content is very good or well balanced. The side quests are mostly great, but things like The Arena and many of the Errands needed a ton of work to make them work well, and they're very frustrating to play through. Especially for the Arena, I highly recommend lowering the difficulty
Man your reviews are really something. So many reviewers just focus on breaking the game into story/gameplay/graphics etc. and while you do that too you always manage to summarize the essence of every game you play. It's really astonishing and I really hope you'll do this for a long time in the future.
I was sold as soon as you mentioned wanting to explore on foot. I got that experience from Ghost of Tsushima and hadn't realized before that how important is was to me that a game have good environment and exploration with a dense world. So many open world games feel empty and you just want to cross the lengths between objectives as quickly as possible. I'm glad to hear this game isn't one of them. :)
Totally agree, games like skyrim, fallout, botw, showed me how important and crucial exploration is in an open world games, random events, hidden quests, secrets, loot, etc are in my opinion mandatory for a great open world game, games like days gone, farcry, etc struggle with that stuff
I didn’t expect the adaptive triggers and haptic feedback to be as great as it is. It feels excellent to use in ratchet and clank and returnal. tactile feedback makes every weapon feel different.
So true, I figured it’d be a neat gimmick but nothing more, but Astroworld had me very excited for the possibilities. I wish more games used them more heavily, but those that do (including those you’ve mentioned) add a whole new dimension to the game.
@@christopherlowery3797 Yep. I totally expected it to just be a gimmick. But they really nailed the feedback. When you're firing a rapid fire weapon, you get that buzzing sensation in time with the rate of fire. You feel the tension when you pull back an arrow or charge a shot before firing. I can pretty much tell what weapon i have equipped in ratchet and clank with my eyes closed and the sound off just by the feel of the triggers, where they resist, how it vibrates. Very cool hardware. Astroworld demonstrates all the new features very well but it's also just a straight up fun game. If they expanded that into a full length game, I would buy it. It's kind of nuts how much polish, effort and design expertise went into a glorified tech demo.
When a developer gets the triggers right it feels so good, haven't played Returnal, but I agree on Rift Apart, it felt so good there, and actually made some of the weapons easier to use since how far the trigger gets pulled can change how they fire.
They remind me of when Nintendo released the Rumble Pak and it just seemed like a stupid gimmick, but now games feel weird without rumble. I already miss these triggers when I'm playing with another controller.
God I fucking love it when games turn out well. I don't care if they're exclusive or multiplatform, indie or AAA or whatever, it's just great when there are nice games. I wish all games turned out amazing. Also love the acknowledgement for MonHun, I'm glad they managed to borrow many good elements from it and made it much more accessible
I feel the same but this is sad actually, it mean we're already used to developer lies. I believed way to many times but deep inside I knew horizon an dying light (I waited for both over 5 years) will deliver.
This is what you get when devs just focus on a single player experience and not fuk around with ongoing live games to milk customers for $$$$. Good stuff.
Exactly. Some people think that every game needs multiplayer, but a multiplayer mode would've just taken time and effort away from creating an amazing singleplayer experience. I'd much rather have a great single player game that makes me want to play it through 3-4 times, over a multiplayer game that just wants you to grind for the next shiny piece of gear. But that's just me.
@@Scattman101 why can’t they focus on the single player first then the multiplayer? That is a possibility lol. It’s not one or the other. Souls games have done well with it. Uncharted and last of us are usually considered underrated multiplayer games because people don’t think they’ll be good.
I played through HZD + Frozen Wilds with the dynamic HUD on. This is where the HUD completely disappears and at the touch of the track pad it'll reappear. I highly recommend this for full immersion and enjoyment of the games visuals, uninhibited 🙏
For anyone wanting to enjoy melee combat in this game, either in the late game or NG+… get the legendary Oseram Artificer armor. With the warrior tree filled out it makes melee extremely effective against everything other than large machines. Also in response to Skill Up’s point on picking up items and crafting… it is super in depth and takes forever to max weapons out and collect resources. Since the game released they added an option to remove the pick up animation which makes collecting resources much quicker. And they did add the unlimited stash and anything you pick up beyond your capacity goes to your stash automatically. This was a HUGE improvement over Zero Dawn where you constantly had to be going to sell inventory or just leave items behind.
I'm about 10 hours in, and i absolutely love this game. It's basically Horizon zero dawn on steroids. just killed my first thunderjaw, it was a pain in the ass on hard difficulty, but holy crap was it superb, so much fun. Horizon's combat is so freaking good and satisfying. Can't wait to jump back in later.
@@jaypiry2506 I hate that I can’t lock on it’s annoying when I’m trying to end a fight with a r2 or even hit them with a full charged rn and she doesn’t want to do the lunge attack
As a disabled person, I'm glad to hear about Accessibility Options, as these can literally mean the difference betwixt being able to play a game or not for some of us. Thanks for both covering & encouraging!!
I thought the combat loop of Horizon Zero Dawn was seriously overlooked. Once you got used to it you figured out that every different machine had its own unique way of taking it on. Then you pair up certain machines and it changes again. Can't think of many games the require a different tactical approach and execution for every enemy. I know it had its issues as far as resource collecting went and a few other issues, but it's combat and story were so good that, for me, the rest was easy to put up with. I'm so pleased Forbbiden West lives up to its promise. This is the first game I've taken the risk to pre order in a long time. Roll on Friday!
So unlike any other reviewer! Revealing your hand upfront with the score. Confident in knowing that your audience aren't here to scroll to the bottom of the page to glance at the score like many do on IGN. We're here for your insight and opinion. I can't think of another reviewer who I trust and respect more. Thanks for all the work you do! 👍
Just want to say that you're coverage of the options available and how that impacts gameplay is a small example of how your reviews are above and beyond most others in the industry. It's a small thing but it shows how much you care, the effort you put in to understand what this game can give to a wide variety of gamers. Kudos.
I appreciate that in all of these reviews, you acknowledge the artistry, where other reviewers treat things as though a monolithic company creates them. Nah. It's art. This is art.
Yeah I'm an Xbox guy as well, and when I posted in one of the comments once about how incredible I think Horizon Forbiddent West looked and that it made me want a PS5 just to try it out, I instantly got marauded by Playstation fanboy telling me how Xbox sucks and they will never have good game. Just sucks that we can't have a conversation about these amazing games without it turning into some toxic console war shit. It's so exhausting now, I just want to have fun chats with my fellow gamers after such a horrible couple of years in the real world
@@audiolatte Legit, 'Xbots' are nowhere near as insanely oppressive with this shit as the ponies are. This is why I don't talk about console games on the internet unless it's on discord.
@@TheTruem4n They all have their toxic portions, but ponies are the only ones I have seen where they will start trashing Xbox on posts that are praising how a PS game looks. Which is absolutely freaking insane that they can't go 5 minutes without needing to dunk on Xbox
I really like the number of accessibility and UI options they've added, along with the various gameplay, visual and controller options - I hope this is a trend we see in more and more games!
@@BorderlandsBoy0 I'm not sure how pre-ordering games has an impact on what accessibility features are implemented. Usually it's more so about developers feeling comfortable releasing an unfinished game because they already have people's money.
This is one of the best looking worlds I’ve ever seen. It’s stunning I can’t get over how good it looks! Give the concept designers at Guerrilla a raise.
Horizon zero dawn was the first game I ever 100% completed because I loved every aspect of the combat and movement, the side quest, and the little bits of lore you can get from the collectibles, sounds like when ever I get my hands on a ps5 I'll have more to look forward too
I was always going to buy Forbiden West. They went all in what i'll call "Smoothness" that I haven't experienced many times. where you just play and it's almost theriputic or meditative. Can't Wait.
So true. Minecraft used to be like that for me, and still is on occasion. HFW is an alluring escape from reality that won't let you go, and I personally don't get that out of a ton of games
100%. Horizon pulls off what almost no other game does. It just feels so free and fluid. You can go almost anywhere you like, its easy to move, easy to play and it's not stiff if you know what I mean
Zero Dawns story was the biggest surprise to me. Not a lot of people seem to talk about it but I LOVED it. Something about the setting being in a distant future Earth, following a major apocalypse of modern society, and how the human remnants still alive in that world fit into the typical high fantasy castes. I loved their explanation for how the world became what it is. It's not just robot dinosaurs with missile launchers for the sake of being metal. It's one of my favorite sci-fi post apocalyptic stories in general. Can't wait for forbidden West!
I love the controller co-op idea. My young son who sometimes gets overwhelmed fighting these things tends to throw the controller to me! he loves dinosaurs and we played the first one together. This way I can just take over if its above his skill level, well done!
UPDATE: I played the first open area with my boy and he was fighting those burrowers, flipping LOVE the coop controller idea I could instantly assist him with healing and using items. I was glorious.
The way you shoot off and disable enemy weapons and body parts reminds me of those old arcade shoot'em ups where the bosses were just big masses of weapons and you could either go for their weak spot or disable they weapons. It was always very satisfying to break each small part of the boss first.
Sounds like you didn’t play zero dawn? It’s especially awesome shooting off their specific weapons so they can no longer use them against you. And then even more awesome than that when they’re weapons you shoot off and can then pick up to use against THEM
I feel so much the same about open worlds and infinite map markers. It's encouraging to hear what it actually feels like and your perspective on the experience.
As far as the story is concerned with Horizon Forbidden West, I felt the same with Mass Effect 2's story not being as good as Mass Effect 1 was... which the trade-off was more character development (Aloy and Shepard), side content, and companions you meet or reunite with to face a lesser but important threat that's not about saving the world... but saving others and yourself in more ways than one. Aloy and Shepard didn't need another epic tale outside their control (initially), but rather a more condensed tale that adds onto and polishes on what was missed before. And guess what? I look forward to all that.
I’m so happy Erend is a returning character in Forbidden West. He was a character that really made the last game for me. Guerilla has really made side characters a joy to interact with and talk to rather than a chore.
36:00 My father is very close friends with the art director of the game, Jan Bart, I got to see the inner developement and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remakable the way the team works, I have no idea how other AAA games are made, but here there are enitre 3-10 person teams working on a single thing, there is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive
36:00 My father is the art director of the game, Jan Bart. I got to see the inner development and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remarkable the way the team works. I have no idea how other AAA games are made but here there are entire 3-10 person teams working on a single thing. There is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive.
36:00 I’m the art director of the game, Jan Bart. I got to see the inner development and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remarkable the way the team works. I have no idea how other AAA games are made, but here there are entire 3-10 person teams working on a single thing. There is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive.
One thing I think needs to be more recognized is Sony’s game studios’ commitments to accessibility options and their willingness to be inclusive and give options to EVERY gamer of differing abilities. Makes me want to buy this more just for this.
It's such a joy to hear the excitement in your voice about this title man. I was a HUGE fan of the original game and I can't *wait* to get my mits on this one! Thanks for the fantastic review!
The point of the crafting ammo was to have a set number of resources and the ability to leverage the resources to define the attack strategy since the resources were shared between the ammo types. Doing so would allow you to focus on particular resources to fit your fight style. Like gathering additional wood to compensate for using the Rattler which takes a ton of wood.
@@ryo-kai8587 exactly.. pretty nit-picky imo.. it's literally two buttons held for a couple seconds max to completely top your reserves (of a specific type).. it's intuitive and smooth, it's not an inconvenience, and can give you a moment to catch your breathe in the middle of a hectic battle.. I do wish you could loot while moving though..
@@StayFractalesque Yeah, the moment to catch your breath might even help pacing-or at least it helps with that _Horizon feel_ anyway. You totally should be able to run by and snatch stuff. And while mounted! I could see it being a skill in the skill tree.
Fully agree. You see most other games crafting where you may not need a lot of resources but usually the resources end up being rare and you have to completely pause the game and wait for it to craft or wait for an animation to complete or you have to be out of combat to craft. I love Horizons crafting because of how much depth and yet simple the system can be.
Imagine if it was realistic like this dude want. Imagine you're fighting a Storm Bird, or ThunderJaw or Slitherfang and you run out or arrows, you wodulnt just run away and take your time to craft more, you'll be fucking dead. Logic has to be left out sometimes, for the sake or ruining immersion.
There is no such thing as too much sci-fi. I actually am more excited for the story by the way you described why you didn't quite liked it! Nice review!
Agreed and I don't think good sci-fi necessarily have to be about how technology affects humans as Skill Up claims. You can envision a future where technology makes humans gradually irrelevant to the point of not being the main subject and it could still be just as interesting.
What I'm gathering here from a lot of these reviews is that the story of this game really requires you to know this first one in and out. Like all the lore and foreshadowing that the logs set up, and since a lot of the reviewers played zero dawn a while ago....it flies over their heads.
This game world feels like a love letter to the artistic scenery we envisioned as a child on how video games should be. It’s beyond breathtaking can’t imagine how it will look my LG G1 Oled tv. Your statement about sony in the intro is also so much true.
@@Contractor48 wth are you talking. I have played 30 hours so far and didn’t even scratch the surface yet in terms of major story content. It’s open world is that good and side quests in general are similar to main line quests.
@@vishalbharadwaj570 you must be a fan of game of thrones 8th season since the story, art and visuals are at the same level. Tell me what can this game be remembered for? Like what is a thing that this game does better than any open world trash?
@@Contractor48 1. Combat it’s better than any other open world games 2. Enemy variety , I don’t ever recall a open world which has this much enemy variety and how they have expertly their own characteristics 3. Side quests, it’s so polished with every character animations, details which it makes it equal to main missions. 4. Enemy AI is clever and improved upon than any other open world games 5. Underwater exploration it goes beyond any game did 6. Aerial exploration using flying mounts to explore every nook and cranny of the map is miles beyond than any other game. 7. It’s scifi story is so deep and thought provoking and epic if you combine both games story and lore in general is massive. 8. Visuals ofcourse is best in the biz with some of the best character details and voice acting 9. Geographical diversity in terms of regions to explore is better than many games. 10. Environmental story telling and the way it pays homage to our world and its creators with even some of the basic collectible items like vistapoints, metal flowers and stuff. I am not a fanboy who is not blinded by these consoles or gaming systems. I appreciate games for what they are and what they’re trying to separate themselves from others. So if you don’t like the game , good for you. Just because you didn’t like it meaning everypeople has to. Be self aware of others opinions as well dude.
@@vishalbharadwaj570 1. You just shoot with a bow at weak point and dodge. And you claim that this is the best combat you have experienced? Dude, what games are you playing? Ever played souls game or bloodborne? Its like people saying red dead combat is the best out of all the open world games. 2. Enemy variety and combat are much better in Monster hunter and combat is much better over there as well. 3. Side quest sucked hard. Not sure you and me played the same game. I just remember one or two memorable side quest. 4. Enemy AI is again decent. A lot of open world games have the same AI. It is nothing to rant about. 5. Underwater exploration is great. But that is not the main highlight of the game. 6. Aerial exploration is copied and decent. Nothing to boast about. 7. 1st game was thought provoking. This game story is generic at best. All the reviewers claim that story is the weakest point of this game. Not sure what you liked. 1st game was way better in that aspect. 8. Visuals are stunning and ground breaking. Only aspect that i felt was best. 9. Geographical diversity can be added to 8th point. 10. Now you are just putting bullcrap. I agree that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I just want the person who watch this review and scroll down to your comment know that there are people who thought this game play was average. My comment was for them. If you enjoyed the game, good for you. I think just watching a playthrough on youtube is good enough. This game can entertain you for 30 hours at max. Worth only 20 dollars. Buy elden ring and destiny 2 witch queen rather than this crap with your money.
100% agree on the crafting system. Doesn’t work well with the incredible machine combat. It’s as if they tailored it for hunter/human gameplay, as opposed to designing ammo capacity for the amount it would take to take on machines. Still really looking forward to this one.
It works better if you DON'T set time to slow down massively when in the menus, because then you'll get hit while making more ammo, making you consider changing weapons instead, like it did in the first game DLC quite a bit. But if you set it to essentially stop time while crafting the ammo, I can see why it'd be annoying.
100% disagree on the crafting system. And the fact that it has not changed in this game is a testament to how good it is. I never found crafting materials too difficult to find in HZD nor was it immersion-breaking to craft more in the midst of battle. Also, I rarely had to craft more in the middle of a battle because when you learn how to efficiently take down enemies, you simply don't need to
@@violentpursuit exactly, people expect unlimited amount of ammo just cuz their ass can't get a straight shot. All while some people play this game without crosshairs for added realism.
@@violentpursuit I'm with you here. I loved how they handled the combat and crafting in the game. I never had issues in crafting bc I always grab everything I see. I even had to start discarding a lot of items bc I didn't realize how much I had hoarded until I look at my inventory, and I played it on ultra hard difficulty lol. I think the issue comes in when people aren't that skilled but then again, they could play it on lower difficulties.
@@caos024 Yeah and they added a stash with would fix my problem with getting too many resources. Imagine fi everything you pick you will have in the stash or on you troughout the game
I beat the first game back in January for two weeks straight, it was seriously that fun for me, so I’m definitely hyped and prepared for forbidden west.
@@ramonandrajo6348 how, exactly? I’m genuinely curious. If it’s because the characters aren’t 99% white men that isn’t called woke. That’s called reality.
We're already there, and if Tales of Arise is anything to go by, game design, originality and characters/narrative are gonna take a pretty big hit in favour of eye candy.
@@ChrisStoneinator I don't think the Tales of series was what the OP was thinking of. Maybe ones that don't sell xp boosters because there is way too much grinding. Actually I doubt he was thinking of JRPGs at all. Just a hunch given the context of the video you may or may not have watched but are commenting on.
@@mvhess now THAT I can agree with. Last half decent one was Graces which could have easily been on PS2 to be honest. And to be honest JRPGs are more or less the only rep that the proper RPG genre gets in the AAA or AA space these days. No one's making a big budget follow up to Titan Quest, or Shadowrun, and god knows Bethesda isn't planning on making a decent Fallout anytime soon haha. I don't necessarily think the context of the video implies that this comment is about western open world action games with token RPG elements.
@@ChrisStoneinator depends on what you label an rpg. I'm guessing in the context of the review the OP was reacting to the fact that NPCs are conversationally reacting to your actions and more quests open up in places you've already been. We're all waiting on the promise of reactive worlds and barely any really live up to it. Hoping for a huge rebound from Bioware and Bethesda this Gen... Although bethesda will probably only get one game out in that time.
Awesome review. I bought a PS4 for the first HZD and never regretted it single second. To hear that they improved almost everything is enough for me to buy a PS5 with this game. My biggest complaint was melee combat so I'm glad you covered it. Kinda sad it's still not up to par but atleast they improved it.
I had no doubt in my mind that this game would fall under nothing short of amazing. I am just in awe of the improvements that this game has made especially those larger-than-life character animations that blow zero dawn out of the water. It has been a long time coming but now we are finally here this Friday we all get to experience the wonderful world of Horizon Forbidden West that you had the joy of playing. As always, great review.
This is why I will get this game at launch, even if I have a massive backlog I want to support this guys and this kind of quality so that we'll continue to get this in the future
@@coolsteve1342 i love people like you. people don't realize how much money and effort it takes to make the games that sony makes. nice to see people buy it and support it otherwise we would be stuck half-baked ubisoft games
Just wanted to say a really big thank you for highlighting the accessibility features of the game. So few reviewers do this and it really matters to those of us who need them. I can't tell you how annoying it is to spend £60 on a new game, only to realise you can't play it! Glad you enjoyed the game, I'm so psyched for Friday!
Yes, it really is awesome he gives it decent coverage. And, I’m not certain about this, but it seems we may soon have many more older/senior gamers that previous generations, because a much larger percentage of the public now plays. And as they get into their 50s, 60s and beyond, many more will need accessibility options. I’m in my 50s and one of the few gamers in my age group. Most of my friends NEVER played past elementary or junior high. But my sibling is in his 30s and ALL his friends still play.
@@ShiningEyeBrigade Really interesting point, I hadn't thought of it like that but it totally makes sense and I really hope games keep moving in the right direction for all players! It's also crazy important for folks like me with disabilities. Games can be a fantastic way to keep your brain engaged, be social, and have fun when you're dealing a condition that makes everyday activities challenging. Gaming with pals on discord has been an absolute lifeline when my health has been bad so its great that accessible options are becoming more common.
I like that cheats are coming back in games. I remember the 90's where you would get stuck on one level or fight, and never ever finish the game that you paid $60 for. It does absolutely nothing to the gaming community to have these "story" modes, or be able to disable certain gameplay systems like turning on "auto heal" or turning concentration on for every aim. There are a few things to that. Some gamers simply don't have the time to dedicate to playing the game with all of the dying on every encounter. It also let's them change that difficulty at any time. Cheats on PC have been provided by programs called "trainers" and that's why they are called that. In single-player games, I would like to see more and more options around accessibility from the perspective of allowing people to skip puzzles, bosses, or difficult encounters so they can experience the exploration and story. Accessibility options start with those that are differently abled, but they should end where it simply allows more people to play and complete the game that otherwise wouldn't. (I have to insert this disclaimer here because someone will say it, I'm not advocating for cheating in multiplayer games, but for offline single-player experiences; and I would rather see actual developer support for these options, over having to hack the game on PC after it eventually releases there.)
Out of curiosity, what accessibly options in this game are the most helpful to you? I feel that quite a few of the settings are preferences rather than helping someone play the game. I can understand stuff like holding for qtes, but I’m just wondering what helps and why? You don’t have to share background if you don’t want to but i would love to hear your take.
Skill Up: *Spends hours upon hours creating a youtube video detailing and reviewing a massive game* Me: *Spends 2 seconds liking the video after watching* "Whew..you deserve this hard work ShillUp."
Loved the first game and I'm glad to see and hear that the second one doesn't dissapoint. I know I've had nothing to do with creating this game, but seeing (and eventually playing) this in an industry dominated by American and Japanese studios, makes my chest swell with Dutch pride.
I don't know if anyone will see this but there's an option in the settings to turn off the animation for every time Aloy picks up a resource and it saves SO MUCH time and I can't believe it's not the default setting. Dramatically makes the game better in such a simple way.
"It would take me a whole video to say why Horizon Forbidden West has the best combat of any open world" 29:36 Please do! I'd watch that, probably multiple times too. Also amazing review!!!
I watched one and an half minutes of this review before I stopped. I’m getting too excited for this game. I still remember finishing the first game and going to Reddit to see if there are any news on an sequel. People on Reddit have came out with concept arts that got me so excited at times. I can’t believe it’s coming out and the praise you gave in the first two minutes. I’m going to enjoy this game so much and I’ll come back and finish the review when I’m done with the game!
So relieved to see this review - after Cyberpunk I've learnt to set expectations super low for expected titles from "good" studios. Glad to see I'll be able to enjoy this entry :D
Difference is this is a Playstation exclusive from one of Sony's top studios, I haven't seen anything to tell me it wouldn't be loved, even Days Gone which scored a 72 has a cult following and like a 8.3 user score. Just saying, Playstation exclusives are on another level.
Absolutely. My only problem is that I have to squeeze this in, without feeling too rushed, b4 Elden Ring.... You're right, it's a first world problem. 😉
This is the fourth review I have watched and no other previous review that I watched mentions the pop in, accessibility options or the dual sense, bizarre. Great review as always, thank you.
@@smokeemifyagotem8851 and he doesn’t sound like a Sony pleb in this? I don’t score games but it’s a 9.5 even though the story stinks, major pop in and way to much looting. How does that even make sense? Just because you gloss over problems doesn’t mean they don’t exist. I’m sure it’s a great game I love the first but you can’t score it a 9.5 with the shit I saw.
Bought HZD on PC two weeks ago. Started playing and after a few hours, I knew the game is AWESOME. Still plenty of hours left in that one (gladly :-)), I will definitely buy this one when it comes to PC :-)
Best Game Reporter so far, gives more details (ex: haptic feedback) than other game review sites (IGN), that's important to me. I always come here for a deeper review. thanks Skilly
New PS owner here, after about 30 years of PC and later, Xbox gaming… the Horizon games and DLC’s have changed what a great game is for me. I’m obsessed, and still playing Forbidden West (platinum), and plan to go back to Zero Dawn to platinum that, too. Ticked all of my boxes tbh, and can’t wait for the next game in the series. 10/10 for me. For anyone watching this now (Sep 2023), I experienced ZERO pop-in on PS5, and I also didn’t experience the frame rate issues described here. I literally had ONE instance where a machine didn’t fully load, in over 100 hours of game play. So I guess they have fixed these issues by now.
HZD’s side quests could have used some work, and some of the main characters didn’t really leave an impression on me either, so I’m looking forward to what they do different this time.
I enjoyed Death Stranding as just a casual fan of Kojima and his work. I honestly wish The Elder Scrolls and their encumbrance systems would work that way. Anyway, This game looks absolutely incredible. I remember buying my own dreamcast like it was yesterday and drooling over Soul Calibur. Red Dead and Horizon are the only franchises I really do pay attention to anymore these days.
Hideo Kojimas name has been synonymous with expert storytelling since the ninety's so yes i am aware of him. I have decent anxiety now in my life and games like Death Stranding really helped me calm down. I haven't ever played thenoriginal metal gear solid or the third or 4th ... so yes, casual fan. Other games like Deus Ex and Shadow of Mordor are some of my all time favorites.
The side content in the first game was the same way for me. I loved it so much that towards the end of the game I was so OP. I did everything before moving on. Cannot wait to play this.
About the arrow crafting mechanics, they underexploited the futuristic theme in my opinion. They could have implemented an advanced quiver, that crafts ammo on demand, as long as you have the materials. It would have provided a cool visual effect, explained the upgrades and ammo variety and be a lot more inmersive.
22:10 just gonna casually not mention they made a freakin' board game?! I love when devs flesh out a board game, because its physical content we can always buy later and appreciate rather than be milked by arbitrary DLC
@@moltenbullet What's so wrong with Horizon getting a boardgame based on it??? Boardgames are always a ton of fun. Alot of great games have received boardgames based on them thru out the years. Sid Meier's Civilization, The Witcher, Dark Souls, Street Fighter & Doom are just a few examples of great games receiving boardgame adaptations.
The grinding for resources, once you moved to higher level difficulty, you will start paying attention. Enemies take more hits to die, the ammo cost more resources, to the point that you are conscious of that on every shot. You do not waste shot on higher difficulty, not even when you are farming resources. Actually, ESPECIALLY when you are farming resources since if you do, it takes more resources than you gain farming it, netting you net loss.
I never heard anyone say that dualsense is just a gimmick. I agree that this is a fantastic feature. Never bothered me that i had to craft the arrow mid combat. I dont get that complaint.
I love the dualsense features to death but I definitely have seen people say they find them annoying and turn them off immediately. Different strokes 🤷♂️
FYI to anyone interested, the pop in issue is almost completely gone now. Like, it's probably happened once in awhile, but nowhere near as bad as this and I can't remember any specific instance except for one boss fight where a Thunderjaw's model didn't fully appear for like 10 seconds, after which everything worked perfectly fine.
Awesome review man. Honestly I don’t think there’s any channel that does reviews in this way and I love it. You also give the opinion in the first minute and I have to respect that. I feel like a kid, it’s been so long since I’ve been hyped so much. I know it’s a good thing they release reviews early but on personal level like damn, I need it now.
Good review. What made my day was "stack of x full, item sent to stash" made my day--huge pain in the backside that was inventory management just got better.
A really good example of how important the visual presentstion of a game is. Yeah, gameplay is key, but when something looks this incredible you really do invest more into all other components.
Not so much... I will play any bad looking games if the core gameplay is amazing, halo infinite by example. BUT if the game looks incredible...It's a big yes. I can't play RDR2 because of that... the game is really beautifull, but the gameplay is Sh*t...well FOR ME.
@@misterkevlax3852 bro you just compared a cash grab F2P shooter to RDR2. Holy shit do a crossword puzzle do some sudoku you need a BRAIN TEASE my goofie
The best review of this game on TH-cam by a country mile. Pretty much everyone else just lazily drew comparisons to an Ubisoft game when there's just so much more to it than the copy/paste checklist style. At worst you could say this is the apex of that kind of open-world game but that doesn't do it justice because everything feels meaningful unlike an Ubisoft open world. If Elden Ring hadn't come out so close to it it would have been appreciated a lot more. Elden Ring is also frigging fantastic, of course.
I love Elden Ring but I don't even think these games are even comparable because they're not even really that alike. Elden Ring is open world yes but it is still very much linear in a sense
You sir! These reviews are really getting to another level. Love the ME 1 and Me 2 reference which for anyone who adores those for their hits and misses this was very understable.
The game looks really good, i enjoyed the first game so im happy Guerilla is going strong. Unfortunately i cant afford Horizon and Elden Ring right now, so this one will have to wait a bit
@@creatorsfreedom6734 Big difference is that Elden Ring had a beta last year that alot of folks tried out & alot of positive stuff was said about the beta. Skill-Up had alot of great things to say about the Elden Ring beta as did other notable TH-camrs who tried it out like Maximilian Dood & YongYea. Elden Ring is really looking like it will indeed be the real deal unlike Cyberpunk 2077.
@@tazmanceltic no , most G game's are from Other studio's that are not cash cow's from grub trip AAA walking dead mongrel's - dunno much about elden ring , got hope's for it but i will wait , - better off reading Dinotopia
So happy this turned out well, I really enjoyed Zero Dawn. A bit sad that the story is seemingly not up to par but hey its a subjective thing, I will definitely be giving this a try regardless. I will likely wait with buying this, a lot of games to play right now but I hope it succeeds, we need more games like this for sure.
I'm sure the story is exactly what HZD fans are looking for.. I love skill-up, but dude said it was "too sci-fi" that it was "asking a lot expecting players to be familiar with the first game", more or less.. the writer of Horizon, wrote the entire story at once, it's a direct continuation by the same visionary 'author', I for one can't wait for questions to be answered.. who woke up Hades and unshackled the other subfunction AIs? what happened to the last ditch "ark" program that launched humans out into space? do they have anything to do with Hades reactivation? does Ted Faro have a hand in this from beyond the grave?? (or his clone, maybe even consciousness??) .. do those questions sound _too_ *SciFi* to you?? didn't think so..
Even if they intentionally went for not trying to one up the story of the first game, I think that’s smart. Because that would be hard to do anyway. Instead, they made sure to give us memorable characters and lots of other little stories along the way, which is just as good if not better for the overall experience.
they do make some good games but sometimes the level of circle jerk just because its PS is cringe. i mean cmon look at the over exaggeration of the response to deathloop. game of the year my arse. its a shame because i have to take game reviews of PS games with a grain of salt.
@@zorastin deathloop is not exclusive. So it doesn't apply. And critics are not to be trusted with any game. Look at Halo infinite reviews, 10/10 and 9/10 all over the place. The game is fun, but in no way is it 10/10 lmao
@@ThDragoomba deathloop was meant to be, i think some reviewers like to be the first to give a ps exclusive a ridiculously high scor.. halo is ok but not a 10 for sure. id give it an 8 maybe thats the single player. a lot of reviews around this time were a reaction to how bad other games were ie 2042 etc
@@zorastin I really don't think so there's any bias towards sony exclusives in particular. Look at hfw, it's getting worse reviews than Halo infinite lmao. What does that say ? It's getting 8 and 9s, someone even gave a 7. Look at igns Halo 5 review, it's really trying not to be harsh lol, and gears 5 was very overrated too by the critics. Sure some ps exclusives, were overrated by critics like TLOU 2, but that goes for xbox exclusives too and other random games too. Ass creed and cod games always get 9s and shit.
Playstation exclusive single player game. Did we expect any different. From last of us series to uncharted to God of war, to this. They come out almost perfect. Amazing gameplay, graphics, story and without little to no bugs.
@@V1CT1MIZED well then enjoy waiting 5 years bro. We'll just play the game and enjoy it when it mattered. Meanwhile play war zone or battlefield on pc. Enjoy the bug free experience lmao.
The first video of yours I had seen was your review for Ghost of Tsushima and I had commented saying how refreshing it was to come across a reviewer that offered such passion and honesty in their reviews. Whilst most TH-cam reviewers offer a ten minute video, you have always taken the time to go into depth and details about the pros and cons of what you’re reviewing. I truly do not understand how you don’t have more subscriptions as it’s my personal opinion you are the best at what many others are trying to do. Keep up the fantastic work and I applaud and appreciate you for it.
When Horizon Zero Dawn was first revealed it had immediately gotten my attention with its robo-dinos and inexplicably primitive wildlife setting which I thought would end up being a fun yet illogical fantasy game. Then the actual game surprised me in every direction from its sci-fi story that somehow managed to explain and justify everything to its extremely well crafted combat and enemy designs to a degree you wouldn't expect from a developer making a game like this for the first time. So I was super hyped to find out just how much Guerilla can improve on the solid foundation of the original as video games sequels tend to be really good at that but my expectations were quickly tempered seeing the sequel got a lower critic score than the original thinking Guerilla must have missed the mark somehow. So it is really amazing that one of my moat trusted reviewers Skill Up unexpectedly providing a 9.5 score for the game was enough to restore all my hype levels to its original state :D
I think the critiques mainly are centered around the narrative of this game where the first game had a much more compelling story than I think people bargained for as well as expectations were really low for the first game. The first horizon was expected to fail or be a minor to modest success but everyone including guerilla and Sony were surprised and just how great the game was received and how much people, including myself, adored it. With all the enhancements in this game it’s definitely better in every conceivable way except the main story but with a more fleshed out world refined combat system and added tools to the gameplay loop, it’ll definitely stand as a better product in the long run, and one of PS5s best games.
@@SoftNoize Looking at Open Critic where it is at 88 but 1 or 2 points don't matter of course. The thing is since the sequel is seemingly massively expanding on the scope and improving every shortcoming of the original I expected it to reflect on the general critic score (basically the way Skill Up praised the game at the beginning of this video) but that doesn't seem to be the case. Well in the end scores don't matter much, the ability of a reviewer to break down and explain what the game gets right or wrong matter more which is why I always come back to this channel.
I still remember I was at work on my lunch break in the computer room watching youtube and saw the trailer da first time and boy that trailer was absolutely amazing.And if you haven’t yet play the “Frozen Wilds” DLC of the first game absolutely kick ass.👊🏽👍🏽
Playing through right now..and honestly it's my favorite PS5 game period. I love it. I even prefer it to elden ring and I'm a souls guy through and through
Just gotta say, that more than appreciating the games you cover (for better or worse) the one thing I *always* appreciate after watching one of your vids, Ralph, is YOU. The love and care that you put into these videos, regardless of your take on a game, is something almost as special as the games you review. And, I hope that when people look back and gaming journalism and mention who were some of the great presenters of our era who captured a sort of magic and honesty in their words, I really expect your name to be on that list. I've been a long time viewer, and I'm finally able to join as a Patreon backer, just now! So I'm really excited to be offering my support there. Keep up the fantastic work and know that the effort and attention to detail you put into all of your content is incredibly appreciated and admired but many of us fans. Thank you for the years of great gaming content and superb video essays. Cheers, mate!
The PS5 controller is something else, ever since I experienced that haptic feedback + adaptive trigger wombo combo I have been buying every multiplatform on PS5 just for the controller features.
The idea of being frustrated with a sequel when you haven't played the first game is idiotic, I won't sugar coat it. There's tonnes of videos on YT recapping each and everything in HZD so newcomers have no real excuse to complain, either play the first game or get familiar with its plot because if you expect the second game in the series to inform players about the first one then you are deluded. A sequel needs to tell its own story not spend quality time explaining the previous one. I guarantee if they spent maybe half an hour recapping the events of HZD then we and you would be complaining about that aspect. You don't jump straight to the second part of the story and then wonder why you are confused about the plot, that's just stupid.
Just finished this one, god I miss it so much already. What a truly special testament to the talent and love the people and guerilla have for creating open worlds. This one is absolutely a huge step up above any other open world I've played.
Man, I feel like I'm having the exact opposite experience. The story is the only thing keeping me going. Exploration feels meaningless because the item you need to fully explore all map markers is ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MAP, which you acquire half way through the game. It totally kills my "explore every nook and cranny until I get around to the main story" playstyle. The combat is also worse, and a complete slog even on medium difficulty. I found myself getting 2 shot my basic bots on normal. Not to mention taking damage on takedowns, which defeats the purpose. The weapon variety is way too dense compared to the first game. Before every weapon had a clear purpose, now it feels like borderlands when trying to pick a weapon. All In all, the first game was better, aside from the stunning visuals.
Thanks for always being so absolutely thorough in your reviews. I really appreciate it. They're definitely some of the most well presented and well rounded ones out there. They're GREAT for making an informed choice before I buy a product. I've been looking forward to this game for ages. I happy that it's a product worth my time.
In the first game I think I threw in nearly 50 or 60 hours because I was so determined to go everywhere. It was the first open world game that captured me that much. Ghost of Tsushima came pretty close to that feeling. I hope this one can grab me like that
The only critical thing I can say about this game is not enough story! It’s so damn interesting and we focused on tribes a bit too much and not on the overall arc. Loved it though. I do agree the side missions were great. Greatly acted and interesting. Can’t wait for the next.
Love they've put so much into world design/side content etc. Really hope I enjoy the story tho. Love the story and lore of the first game and can't wait to learn more in this game.
I've watched a few, or many, Forbidden West reviews and this one is by far the best. After Playing 10 5-6 hours your have captured all of my thoughts so succinctly I couldn't believe it. All thoughts are absolutely true. Subscribed.
Exciting! And I love that “universal design” where accessibility options both open the game to more people but also improve the experience for everyone. ubiquitous examples IRL are the lever door handles (awesome when you have your hand full) or the Football huddle, which was invented by a deaf university football team that was playing another deaf university team, to hide their signing the plays.
This is a small detail. But as a French speaking human, EVERY SINGLE TIME I hear a english speaking person saying "coup de grâce" like "coup de gras", what I hear is "hit the fat". It is hilarious. (The "ce" in "grâce" is prononced more or less the same way as the "ce" in "grace")
Thank you for your honest reviews. I only found your channel a few months ago, but you are now one of my go-to trusted reviewers. Thank you for taking the time to REALLY review games.
I'm smiling ear to ear as I watch this:) I mean my goodness..Look at the level of detail in the environments...WOW. Just look at it! Thank you to Guerrilla Games and Sony for taking the time to craft and produce a game with this level of quality. After the dismal BF2042 and many others this is just the game i need to bring back that sense of wonder and awe which is what I love about video games.
As a PC gamer, I had to wait for Zero Dawn, and oh boy was it worth it. I can’t get my hands on a PS5, so I’m willing to wait until I do or it comes to PC, because I want as many bells and whistles as possible for this one. Can’t wait to play it!
If it's anything like the first game, waiting will pay off because there will be great DLC. Which does make waiting for the inevitable PC release in ~5 years a little less shit.
@@stysner4580 It’s a fair point, but then wouldn’t we have the original Spider-Man game on PC by now? Especially with No Way Home coming out? (Both were awesome, imo). I guess either way I’m just happy we’re getting Sony titles on PC. I literally just finished Days Gone a couple hours ago and that was another home run in my book; I can’t believe I almost threw it in the backlog!
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Potato
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Best review so far! I loved every bit of it, the praise and the criticism. Hats off!
Horizon Zero Dawn review when?
Yeah but... why's she fat now?
Be sure to keep in your thoughts Mike Andrew Nash who was the concept artist for this game and made some of the most iconic designs. Sadly he passed away roughly a year ago, leaving behind an incredible legacy of designs that make this game so unique
Wow that's so sad he wasn't able to see everyone go crazy with how beautiful the final result was
Sad to see such a talent go. RIP Mike. Beautiful work.
RIP Mike…tyvm for these masterpieces in gaming technology
🙏🏽😔
F
You’re so right about appreciating when something has this much love and care put into it. The level of creativity and technical achievement in video games like this deserves to be appreciated more than just sticking a number on it at the end. Love it when you say things like this. We should all think more like this. Nothing is ever perfect but my god there are some incredible achievements out there in our world of video games.
Sure, but what is the Worth behind it if its a typical structure
What kind of comment is this? Songs have typical structures but can conjure up emotions that are unique to them.most all movies have 3 act structures, but there are some amazing ones out there. What a stupid comment.
@@mikehess9458 To add to that, most groundbreaking music is extremely niche at best and anything becoming popular means a ton of copying will ensue if it had not already happened.
@@mikehess9458 someone salty about Bethesda and Activision. Hint: there’ will be more to come
This is a marketing bot
For anyone watching this review some time after launch, you'll be happy to know that a bunch of the technical issues mentioned here have been either improved or completely fixed. As of the big early June update (patch 1.14 and hotfix 1.15), the Performance mode has been *significantly* upgraded - Guerilla pulled some kind of crazy technical witchcraft and revamped how it worked, such that to my eyes on a PS5 with Samsung 4k TV, Performance mode is now pretty much visually indistinguishable from Resolution mode in terms of detail and clarity. Gone are the midground shimmering artifacts on foliage and other objects - everything is so much clearer and sharper. Guerilla have also stated that they're working on adding support for variable refresh rate screens as well. Beyond that, the pop-in problems have been in large part negated (especially with larger objects and structures), though it's still somewhat noticeable with smaller things like mass foliage. The overall technical performance of the game on PS5 is still not 100% perfect, but not by much. It's still very stable and now considerably better than it was at and just after launch.
In addition, several big new features have been added for free, including New Game + mode and new associated gear to get, Ultra Hard Difficulty, and a fantastic universal armor transmog system. The game is even better now than it was at launch. If you've been waiting, now's your time to jump in!
Great
Thank you! Been waiting for fixes before I'll buy the game.
A lot has been fixed, especially the performance mode fidelity, but keep in mind that not all the side content is very good or well balanced.
The side quests are mostly great, but things like The Arena and many of the Errands needed a ton of work to make them work well, and they're very frustrating to play through. Especially for the Arena, I highly recommend lowering the difficulty
You sold it :) thanks!
Just picked it up today after the DLC announcement and Multiplayer leak a bit back. Definitely excited as it looks absolutely stunning.
Man your reviews are really something. So many reviewers just focus on breaking the game into story/gameplay/graphics etc. and while you do that too you always manage to summarize the essence of every game you play. It's really astonishing and I really hope you'll do this for a long time in the future.
Thats why i always see Skill up's reviews before buying any game. I know I'll have a unbiased, detailed and well thought out review
I was sold as soon as you mentioned wanting to explore on foot. I got that experience from Ghost of Tsushima and hadn't realized before that how important is was to me that a game have good environment and exploration with a dense world. So many open world games feel empty and you just want to cross the lengths between objectives as quickly as possible. I'm glad to hear this game isn't one of them. :)
@@ramonandrajo6348 *Tom Hardy points at the comment*
“Thats bait”
@@ramonandrajo6348 weirdo found
@@ramonandrajo6348 how?
Totally agree, games like skyrim, fallout, botw, showed me how important and crucial exploration is in an open world games, random events, hidden quests, secrets, loot, etc are in my opinion mandatory for a great open world game, games like days gone, farcry, etc struggle with that stuff
@@ramonandrajo6348 huh? How?
I didn’t expect the adaptive triggers and haptic feedback to be as great as it is. It feels excellent to use in ratchet and clank and returnal. tactile feedback makes every weapon feel different.
So true, I figured it’d be a neat gimmick but nothing more, but Astroworld had me very excited for the possibilities. I wish more games used them more heavily, but those that do (including those you’ve mentioned) add a whole new dimension to the game.
@@christopherlowery3797 Yep. I totally expected it to just be a gimmick. But they really nailed the feedback. When you're firing a rapid fire weapon, you get that buzzing sensation in time with the rate of fire. You feel the tension when you pull back an arrow or charge a shot before firing. I can pretty much tell what weapon i have equipped in ratchet and clank with my eyes closed and the sound off just by the feel of the triggers, where they resist, how it vibrates. Very cool hardware.
Astroworld demonstrates all the new features very well but it's also just a straight up fun game. If they expanded that into a full length game, I would buy it. It's kind of nuts how much polish, effort and design expertise went into a glorified tech demo.
Just wait for Gran Turismo 7
When a developer gets the triggers right it feels so good, haven't played Returnal, but I agree on Rift Apart, it felt so good there, and actually made some of the weapons easier to use since how far the trigger gets pulled can change how they fire.
They remind me of when Nintendo released the Rumble Pak and it just seemed like a stupid gimmick, but now games feel weird without rumble. I already miss these triggers when I'm playing with another controller.
God I fucking love it when games turn out well. I don't care if they're exclusive or multiplatform, indie or AAA or whatever, it's just great when there are nice games. I wish all games turned out amazing.
Also love the acknowledgement for MonHun, I'm glad they managed to borrow many good elements from it and made it much more accessible
I feel the same but this is sad actually, it mean we're already used to developer lies. I believed way to many times but deep inside I knew horizon an dying light (I waited for both over 5 years) will deliver.
well to be fair, console exclusivity is just a losing situation for the gamer... its bullshit
@@raidermaxx2324 tell that to Nintendo, if console exclusive constantly provide good game, buying a console is the smallest price to pay.
@@kokroucz dying light 2 really nerfed the volatile I fidnt like only that part of the game other than that I loved most of it definitely 9/10
@@kokroucz dying light 2 really nerfed the volatile I fidnt like only that part of the game other than that I loved most of it definitely 9/10
This is what you get when devs just focus on a single player experience and not fuk around with ongoing live games to milk customers for $$$$. Good stuff.
The thing is this game is one and some. Gamers massively prefer multiplayer experienced
@@brickweathertop7907 a lot of people still enjoy these single player games. i had to go to 4 different stores to find a copy yesterday.
Hot reddit take
Exactly. Some people think that every game needs multiplayer, but a multiplayer mode would've just taken time and effort away from creating an amazing singleplayer experience. I'd much rather have a great single player game that makes me want to play it through 3-4 times, over a multiplayer game that just wants you to grind for the next shiny piece of gear. But that's just me.
@@Scattman101 why can’t they focus on the single player first then the multiplayer? That is a possibility lol. It’s not one or the other. Souls games have done well with it. Uncharted and last of us are usually considered underrated multiplayer games because people don’t think they’ll be good.
I played through HZD + Frozen Wilds with the dynamic HUD on.
This is where the HUD completely disappears and at the touch of the track pad it'll reappear.
I highly recommend this for full immersion and enjoyment of the games visuals, uninhibited 🙏
yeah my enjoyment of the game skyrocketed after putting dynamic HUD on. It feels so much more immersive
I wish more games would adapt a dynamic HUD
@@Dryvlyne i absolutely agree. So simple yet so effective. Absolutely changed the game for me.
Yeah, same. Definitely a big improvement over having the HUD always active
@@Dryvlyne especially since the touchpad is rarely utilized
32:38
Skillup: "It still feels like the *red-headed stepchild* of range combat..."
Aloy: "... and I took that personally."
You want to Elizabet? Lol
For anyone wanting to enjoy melee combat in this game, either in the late game or NG+… get the legendary Oseram Artificer armor. With the warrior tree filled out it makes melee extremely effective against everything other than large machines.
Also in response to Skill Up’s point on picking up items and crafting… it is super in depth and takes forever to max weapons out and collect resources. Since the game released they added an option to remove the pick up animation which makes collecting resources much quicker. And they did add the unlimited stash and anything you pick up beyond your capacity goes to your stash automatically. This was a HUGE improvement over Zero Dawn where you constantly had to be going to sell inventory or just leave items behind.
I'm about 10 hours in, and i absolutely love this game. It's basically Horizon zero dawn on steroids. just killed my first thunderjaw, it was a pain in the ass on hard difficulty, but holy crap was it superb, so much fun. Horizon's combat is so freaking good and satisfying. Can't wait to jump back in later.
The robots designs are really awesome, the snakes are my favorite, they look and fight really cool!
Idk about all that combat is iffy
@@ghostkiller25190 nah it’s simple in a way but also with many options to go about that
i cant aim for shit with the controller
@@jaypiry2506 I hate that I can’t lock on it’s annoying when I’m trying to end a fight with a r2 or even hit them with a full charged rn and she doesn’t want to do the lunge attack
As a disabled person, I'm glad to hear about Accessibility Options, as these can literally mean the difference betwixt being able to play a game or not for some of us. Thanks for both covering & encouraging!!
betwixt
Do a flip.... Oh wait u cant
What's your disability, just curious?:)
@@crashingcoyote neither can I lol
Well said. I'm also disabled from my combat injuries and can't play certain games anymore. It's great to hear some game devs care about us.
I thought the combat loop of Horizon Zero Dawn was seriously overlooked. Once you got used to it you figured out that every different machine had its own unique way of taking it on. Then you pair up certain machines and it changes again. Can't think of many games the require a different tactical approach and execution for every enemy. I know it had its issues as far as resource collecting went and a few other issues, but it's combat and story were so good that, for me, the rest was easy to put up with.
I'm so pleased Forbbiden West lives up to its promise. This is the first game I've taken the risk to pre order in a long time. Roll on Friday!
100% agree. It's one of the only games in recent memory for me where I couldn't be a "one trick pony" with the combat.
It’s a game that succeeds on the monster hunting philosophy.
... Monster Hunter.
Demon’s/Dark Souls, Bloodborne and Sekiro has amazing combat mechanics.
The Witcher 3 has a wide spectre of enemies and all of them require different tactics to fight with
So unlike any other reviewer! Revealing your hand upfront with the score. Confident in knowing that your audience aren't here to scroll to the bottom of the page to glance at the score like many do on IGN. We're here for your insight and opinion. I can't think of another reviewer who I trust and respect more. Thanks for all the work you do! 👍
Just want to say that you're coverage of the options available and how that impacts gameplay is a small example of how your reviews are above and beyond most others in the industry. It's a small thing but it shows how much you care, the effort you put in to understand what this game can give to a wide variety of gamers. Kudos.
I appreciate that in all of these reviews, you acknowledge the artistry, where other reviewers treat things as though a monolithic company creates them. Nah. It's art. This is art.
Guillermo Del Toro agrees
Xbot here, Horizon Forbidden West looks incredible. Congrats on it coming out and enjoy your time playing.
Now this is how it's done. Take note, that one corner of PS fans that make PS fans look bad >_>
Yeah I'm an Xbox guy as well, and when I posted in one of the comments once about how incredible I think Horizon Forbiddent West looked and that it made me want a PS5 just to try it out, I instantly got marauded by Playstation fanboy telling me how Xbox sucks and they will never have good game. Just sucks that we can't have a conversation about these amazing games without it turning into some toxic console war shit. It's so exhausting now, I just want to have fun chats with my fellow gamers after such a horrible couple of years in the real world
@@audiolatte Legit, 'Xbots' are nowhere near as insanely oppressive with this shit as the ponies are. This is why I don't talk about console games on the internet unless it's on discord.
@@MrTalithan oh in my experience i think all pc, ps and xbox toxic sides are all equally bad, but i'd rather not ignore the good ones because of them
@@TheTruem4n They all have their toxic portions, but ponies are the only ones I have seen where they will start trashing Xbox on posts that are praising how a PS game looks. Which is absolutely freaking insane that they can't go 5 minutes without needing to dunk on Xbox
I really like the number of accessibility and UI options they've added, along with the various gameplay, visual and controller options - I hope this is a trend we see in more and more games!
Sony exclusives of the last few years have had a lot of great accessibilty options, I think it's a requirement for them now.
Good idea but that only works if you stop pre-ordering games
@@BorderlandsBoy0 I'm not sure how pre-ordering games has an impact on what accessibility features are implemented. Usually it's more so about developers feeling comfortable releasing an unfinished game because they already have people's money.
This is one of the best looking worlds I’ve ever seen. It’s stunning I can’t get over how good it looks! Give the concept designers at Guerrilla a raise.
Horizon zero dawn was the first game I ever 100% completed because I loved every aspect of the combat and movement, the side quest, and the little bits of lore you can get from the collectibles, sounds like when ever I get my hands on a ps5 I'll have more to look forward too
I was always going to buy Forbiden West. They went all in what i'll call "Smoothness" that I haven't experienced many times. where you just play and it's almost theriputic or meditative. Can't Wait.
So true. Minecraft used to be like that for me, and still is on occasion. HFW is an alluring escape from reality that won't let you go, and I personally don't get that out of a ton of games
100%. Horizon pulls off what almost no other game does. It just feels so free and fluid. You can go almost anywhere you like, its easy to move, easy to play and it's not stiff if you know what I mean
Zero Dawns story was the biggest surprise to me. Not a lot of people seem to talk about it but I LOVED it. Something about the setting being in a distant future Earth, following a major apocalypse of modern society, and how the human remnants still alive in that world fit into the typical high fantasy castes. I loved their explanation for how the world became what it is. It's not just robot dinosaurs with missile launchers for the sake of being metal. It's one of my favorite sci-fi post apocalyptic stories in general. Can't wait for forbidden West!
Horizon reminds me a lot of James Camerons Avatar. Especially, the fact that HFW has more emphasis on water and Avatar 2 as well. And I'm all for it.
I love the controller co-op idea. My young son who sometimes gets overwhelmed fighting these things tends to throw the controller to me! he loves dinosaurs and we played the first one together. This way I can just take over if its above his skill level, well done!
Thats so awesome. Parenting done right!!
UPDATE: I played the first open area with my boy and he was fighting those burrowers, flipping LOVE the coop controller idea I could instantly assist him with healing and using items. I was glorious.
I will be doing the same with my baby girl
The way you shoot off and disable enemy weapons and body parts reminds me of those old arcade shoot'em ups where the bosses were just big masses of weapons and you could either go for their weak spot or disable they weapons. It was always very satisfying to break each small part of the boss first.
Sounds like you didn’t play zero dawn? It’s especially awesome shooting off their specific weapons so they can no longer use them against you. And then even more awesome than that when they’re weapons you shoot off and can then pick up to use against THEM
I'm glad to see the scores on the game and to see the reviews saying it's good because I'm not a big fan of Open World games.
I like open worlds but they are never made right. Except botw and rdr2
If you don’t like open world games, this game won’t change your mind.
elden ring says hello
@@-Scrapper- TES 3 Morrowind, The Outer Wilds (NOT Worls, WILDS), and Subnautica are other good open world games.
@@-Scrapper- What about Witcher 3? It did have wonky controls sometimes but it's pretty great.
I feel so much the same about open worlds and infinite map markers. It's encouraging to hear what it actually feels like and your perspective on the experience.
As far as the story is concerned with Horizon Forbidden West, I felt the same with Mass Effect 2's story not being as good as Mass Effect 1 was... which the trade-off was more character development (Aloy and Shepard), side content, and companions you meet or reunite with to face a lesser but important threat that's not about saving the world... but saving others and yourself in more ways than one. Aloy and Shepard didn't need another epic tale outside their control (initially), but rather a more condensed tale that adds onto and polishes on what was missed before.
And guess what? I look forward to all that.
aloy is still a blank slate, boring as hell. she's just a player avatar.
@@whodatninja439 blank slate maybe but how can you play even 10 minutes of either game and call her boring
The script is horrible. Aloy is not a well written or well acted character..graphics and gameplay though are superb
TF are you on dude? ME1 was the forgettable intro to the series and ME2 is one of the greatest rpg's of all time.
I never had any doubts on how good the game would be, I loved the first game alot so I knew this would be great.
*a lot
@@LıǎmYeǎħ *unnecessary 😂
@@LıǎmYeǎħ *Aloy
I’m so happy Erend is a returning character in Forbidden West. He was a character that really made the last game for me. Guerilla has really made side characters a joy to interact with and talk to rather than a chore.
There were characters?
@@Exel3nce yes....many.
@@Exel3nce in Halo there weren't.
Who?
@@SparkySpice0911 Eren Jaeger
36:00 My father is very close friends with the art director of the game, Jan Bart, I got to see the inner developement and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remakable the way the team works, I have no idea how other AAA games are made, but here there are enitre 3-10 person teams working on a single thing, there is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive
36:00 My father is the art director of the game, Jan Bart. I got to see the inner development and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remarkable the way the team works. I have no idea how other AAA games are made but here there are entire 3-10 person teams working on a single thing. There is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive.
36:00 I’m the art director of the game, Jan Bart. I got to see the inner development and the people actually at work making forbidden west months before it was released to the public. It is truly remarkable the way the team works. I have no idea how other AAA games are made, but here there are entire 3-10 person teams working on a single thing. There is a team that only works on the way grass reacts to you. Super impressive.
@@OfficialCrowMauler also, how’s it hangin jan jr
One thing I think needs to be more recognized is Sony’s game studios’ commitments to accessibility options and their willingness to be inclusive and give options to EVERY gamer of differing abilities. Makes me want to buy this more just for this.
Agreed, i did not like the first game, but i think accessibility options are important.
It's such a joy to hear the excitement in your voice about this title man. I was a HUGE fan of the original game and I can't *wait* to get my mits on this one! Thanks for the fantastic review!
The point of the crafting ammo was to have a set number of resources and the ability to leverage the resources to define the attack strategy since the resources were shared between the ammo types. Doing so would allow you to focus on particular resources to fit your fight style. Like gathering additional wood to compensate for using the Rattler which takes a ton of wood.
Exactly. For me it was less "why do I have to craft all the time" and more "how cool it is to be able to craft without a full pause menu?"
@@ryo-kai8587 exactly.. pretty nit-picky imo.. it's literally two buttons held for a couple seconds max to completely top your reserves (of a specific type).. it's intuitive and smooth, it's not an inconvenience, and can give you a moment to catch your breathe in the middle of a hectic battle.. I do wish you could loot while moving though..
@@StayFractalesque Yeah, the moment to catch your breath might even help pacing-or at least it helps with that _Horizon feel_ anyway.
You totally should be able to run by and snatch stuff. And while mounted! I could see it being a skill in the skill tree.
Fully agree. You see most other games crafting where you may not need a lot of resources but usually the resources end up being rare and you have to completely pause the game and wait for it to craft or wait for an animation to complete or you have to be out of combat to craft. I love Horizons crafting because of how much depth and yet simple the system can be.
Imagine if it was realistic like this dude want. Imagine you're fighting a Storm Bird, or ThunderJaw or Slitherfang and you run out or arrows, you wodulnt just run away and take your time to craft more, you'll be fucking dead. Logic has to be left out sometimes, for the sake or ruining immersion.
There is no such thing as too much sci-fi. I actually am more excited for the story by the way you described why you didn't quite liked it! Nice review!
Agreed and I don't think good sci-fi necessarily have to be about how technology affects humans as Skill Up claims. You can envision a future where technology makes humans gradually irrelevant to the point of not being the main subject and it could still be just as interesting.
What I'm gathering here from a lot of these reviews is that the story of this game really requires you to know this first one in and out. Like all the lore and foreshadowing that the logs set up, and since a lot of the reviewers played zero dawn a while ago....it flies over their heads.
Same here. What he described didn't sound like a bad thing at all
This game world feels like a love letter to the artistic scenery we envisioned as a child on how video games should be. It’s beyond breathtaking can’t imagine how it will look my LG G1 Oled tv. Your statement about sony in the intro is also so much true.
This game is like you put makeup on your girl with ugly personality. Sooner or later you realize that putting makeup didn't improve her personality.
@@Contractor48 wth are you talking. I have played 30 hours so far and didn’t even scratch the surface yet in terms of major story content. It’s open world is that good and side quests in general are similar to main line quests.
@@vishalbharadwaj570 you must be a fan of game of thrones 8th season since the story, art and visuals are at the same level.
Tell me what can this game be remembered for? Like what is a thing that this game does better than any open world trash?
@@Contractor48 1. Combat it’s better than any other open world games 2. Enemy variety , I don’t ever recall a open world which has this much enemy variety and how they have expertly their own characteristics 3. Side quests, it’s so polished with every character animations, details which it makes it equal to main missions. 4. Enemy AI is clever and improved upon than any other open world games 5. Underwater exploration it goes beyond any game did 6. Aerial exploration using flying mounts to explore every nook and cranny of the map is miles beyond than any other game. 7. It’s scifi story is so deep and thought provoking and epic if you combine both games story and lore in general is massive. 8. Visuals ofcourse is best in the biz with some of the best character details and voice acting 9. Geographical diversity in terms of regions to explore is better than many games. 10. Environmental story telling and the way it pays homage to our world and its creators with even some of the basic collectible items like vistapoints, metal flowers and stuff.
I am not a fanboy who is not blinded by these consoles or gaming systems. I appreciate games for what they are and what they’re trying to separate themselves from others. So if you don’t like the game , good for you. Just because you didn’t like it meaning everypeople has to. Be self aware of others opinions as well dude.
@@vishalbharadwaj570 1. You just shoot with a bow at weak point and dodge. And you claim that this is the best combat you have experienced? Dude, what games are you playing? Ever played souls game or bloodborne? Its like people saying red dead combat is the best out of all the open world games.
2. Enemy variety and combat are much better in Monster hunter and combat is much better over there as well.
3. Side quest sucked hard. Not sure you and me played the same game. I just remember one or two memorable side quest.
4. Enemy AI is again decent. A lot of open world games have the same AI. It is nothing to rant about.
5. Underwater exploration is great. But that is not the main highlight of the game.
6. Aerial exploration is copied and decent. Nothing to boast about.
7. 1st game was thought provoking. This game story is generic at best. All the reviewers claim that story is the weakest point of this game. Not sure what you liked. 1st game was way better in that aspect.
8. Visuals are stunning and ground breaking. Only aspect that i felt was best.
9. Geographical diversity can be added to 8th point.
10. Now you are just putting bullcrap.
I agree that everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I just want the person who watch this review and scroll down to your comment know that there are people who thought this game play was average. My comment was for them. If you enjoyed the game, good for you. I think just watching a playthrough on youtube is good enough. This game can entertain you for 30 hours at max. Worth only 20 dollars. Buy elden ring and destiny 2 witch queen rather than this crap with your money.
100% agree on the crafting system. Doesn’t work well with the incredible machine combat. It’s as if they tailored it for hunter/human gameplay, as opposed to designing ammo capacity for the amount it would take to take on machines. Still really looking forward to this one.
It works better if you DON'T set time to slow down massively when in the menus, because then you'll get hit while making more ammo, making you consider changing weapons instead, like it did in the first game DLC quite a bit.
But if you set it to essentially stop time while crafting the ammo, I can see why it'd be annoying.
100% disagree on the crafting system. And the fact that it has not changed in this game is a testament to how good it is. I never found crafting materials too difficult to find in HZD nor was it immersion-breaking to craft more in the midst of battle. Also, I rarely had to craft more in the middle of a battle because when you learn how to efficiently take down enemies, you simply don't need to
@@violentpursuit exactly, people expect unlimited amount of ammo just cuz their ass can't get a straight shot. All while some people play this game without crosshairs for added realism.
@@violentpursuit I'm with you here. I loved how they handled the combat and crafting in the game. I never had issues in crafting bc I always grab everything I see. I even had to start discarding a lot of items bc I didn't realize how much I had hoarded until I look at my inventory, and I played it on ultra hard difficulty lol. I think the issue comes in when people aren't that skilled but then again, they could play it on lower difficulties.
@@caos024 Yeah and they added a stash with would fix my problem with getting too many resources. Imagine fi everything you pick you will have in the stash or on you troughout the game
I beat the first game back in January for two weeks straight, it was seriously that fun for me, so I’m definitely hyped and prepared for forbidden west.
@@ramonandrajo6348 a pity that you're putting the same comment on every message 🤔
@@ramonandrajo6348 How is it woke?
@@ramonandrajo6348 how, exactly? I’m genuinely curious.
If it’s because the characters aren’t 99% white men that isn’t called woke. That’s called reality.
@@ramonandrajo6348 so I guess you don't like Redheads
@@ramonandrajo6348 I didn’t notice that earlier but you are right. I guess I am going to pass on the game.
Now that the consoles has gotten much more powerful, I am extremely looking forward to the RPGs that are going to come.
We're already there, and if Tales of Arise is anything to go by, game design, originality and characters/narrative are gonna take a pretty big hit in favour of eye candy.
@@ChrisStoneinator I don't think the Tales of series was what the OP was thinking of. Maybe ones that don't sell xp boosters because there is way too much grinding. Actually I doubt he was thinking of JRPGs at all. Just a hunch given the context of the video you may or may not have watched but are commenting on.
@@ChrisStoneinator and a "next Gen" tales of game is usually like a last Gen normal game
@@mvhess now THAT I can agree with. Last half decent one was Graces which could have easily been on PS2 to be honest.
And to be honest JRPGs are more or less the only rep that the proper RPG genre gets in the AAA or AA space these days. No one's making a big budget follow up to Titan Quest, or Shadowrun, and god knows Bethesda isn't planning on making a decent Fallout anytime soon haha. I don't necessarily think the context of the video implies that this comment is about western open world action games with token RPG elements.
@@ChrisStoneinator depends on what you label an rpg. I'm guessing in the context of the review the OP was reacting to the fact that NPCs are conversationally reacting to your actions and more quests open up in places you've already been. We're all waiting on the promise of reactive worlds and barely any really live up to it. Hoping for a huge rebound from Bioware and Bethesda this Gen... Although bethesda will probably only get one game out in that time.
Awesome review. I bought a PS4 for the first HZD and never regretted it single second. To hear that they improved almost everything is enough for me to buy a PS5 with this game. My biggest complaint was melee combat so I'm glad you covered it. Kinda sad it's still not up to par but atleast they improved it.
I had no doubt in my mind that this game would fall under nothing short of amazing. I am just in awe of the improvements that this game has made especially those larger-than-life character animations that blow zero dawn out of the water. It has been a long time coming but now we are finally here this Friday we all get to experience the wonderful world of Horizon Forbidden West that you had the joy of playing. As always, great review.
Video: Game has auto loot to avoid material grind.
[Everybody liked that.]
People that behind this game have amazing talent. They are artists.
This is why I will get this game at launch, even if I have a massive backlog I want to support this guys and this kind of quality so that we'll continue to get this in the future
@@coolsteve1342 i love people like you. people don't realize how much money and effort it takes to make the games that sony makes. nice to see people buy it and support it otherwise we would be stuck half-baked ubisoft games
@@VIP-ov1qo same here. I always say if a developer deserve support, support them. Don't be a cheapskate. I pre-ordered the PS5 special edition.
Just wanted to say a really big thank you for highlighting the accessibility features of the game. So few reviewers do this and it really matters to those of us who need them. I can't tell you how annoying it is to spend £60 on a new game, only to realise you can't play it! Glad you enjoyed the game, I'm so psyched for Friday!
Yes, it really is awesome he gives it decent coverage. And, I’m not certain about this, but it seems we may soon have many more older/senior gamers that previous generations, because a much larger percentage of the public now plays. And as they get into their 50s, 60s and beyond, many more will need accessibility options. I’m in my 50s and one of the few gamers in my age group. Most of my friends NEVER played past elementary or junior high. But my sibling is in his 30s and ALL his friends still play.
@@ShiningEyeBrigade Really interesting point, I hadn't thought of it like that but it totally makes sense and I really hope games keep moving in the right direction for all players! It's also crazy important for folks like me with disabilities. Games can be a fantastic way to keep your brain engaged, be social, and have fun when you're dealing a condition that makes everyday activities challenging. Gaming with pals on discord has been an absolute lifeline when my health has been bad so its great that accessible options are becoming more common.
I like that cheats are coming back in games. I remember the 90's where you would get stuck on one level or fight, and never ever finish the game that you paid $60 for. It does absolutely nothing to the gaming community to have these "story" modes, or be able to disable certain gameplay systems like turning on "auto heal" or turning concentration on for every aim. There are a few things to that. Some gamers simply don't have the time to dedicate to playing the game with all of the dying on every encounter. It also let's them change that difficulty at any time. Cheats on PC have been provided by programs called "trainers" and that's why they are called that. In single-player games, I would like to see more and more options around accessibility from the perspective of allowing people to skip puzzles, bosses, or difficult encounters so they can experience the exploration and story. Accessibility options start with those that are differently abled, but they should end where it simply allows more people to play and complete the game that otherwise wouldn't. (I have to insert this disclaimer here because someone will say it, I'm not advocating for cheating in multiplayer games, but for offline single-player experiences; and I would rather see actual developer support for these options, over having to hack the game on PC after it eventually releases there.)
Out of curiosity, what accessibly options in this game are the most helpful to you? I feel that quite a few of the settings are preferences rather than helping someone play the game. I can understand stuff like holding for qtes, but I’m just wondering what helps and why? You don’t have to share background if you don’t want to but i would love to hear your take.
Just imagine being a game dev and watching ShillUP praising you like this. Heart explodes with joy!
So much hard work praying off
Skill Up:
*Spends hours upon hours creating a youtube video detailing and reviewing a massive game*
Me:
*Spends 2 seconds liking the video after watching*
"Whew..you deserve this hard work ShillUp."
Loved the first game and I'm glad to see and hear that the second one doesn't dissapoint. I know I've had nothing to do with creating this game, but seeing (and eventually playing) this in an industry dominated by American and Japanese studios, makes my chest swell with Dutch pride.
Hell yeah, we Dutchies have impact everywhere in the world
I don't know if anyone will see this but there's an option in the settings to turn off the animation for every time Aloy picks up a resource and it saves SO MUCH time and I can't believe it's not the default setting. Dramatically makes the game better in such a simple way.
"It would take me a whole video to say why Horizon Forbidden West has the best combat of any open world" 29:36
Please do! I'd watch that, probably multiple times too.
Also amazing review!!!
I second this!
I watched one and an half minutes of this review before I stopped. I’m getting too excited for this game. I still remember finishing the first game and going to Reddit to see if there are any news on an sequel. People on Reddit have came out with concept arts that got me so excited at times. I can’t believe it’s coming out and the praise you gave in the first two minutes. I’m going to enjoy this game so much and I’ll come back and finish the review when I’m done with the game!
So relieved to see this review - after Cyberpunk I've learnt to set expectations super low for expected titles from "good" studios. Glad to see I'll be able to enjoy this entry :D
Sony don’t play around like that
Difference is this is a Playstation exclusive from one of Sony's top studios, I haven't seen anything to tell me it wouldn't be loved, even Days Gone which scored a 72 has a cult following and like a 8.3 user score.
Just saying, Playstation exclusives are on another level.
Absolutely. My only problem is that I have to squeeze this in, without feeling too rushed, b4 Elden Ring....
You're right, it's a first world problem. 😉
@@newtonslore Don't even squeeze it in, just wait a week and play it after elden ring.
@@newtonslore I have Elden Ring as my lock screen and home screen, I'm a huge FromSoft fan but what I played in the Network Test was jawdropping.
Horizon Forbidden West is phenomenal, excellent review SkillUp!
This is the fourth review I have watched and no other previous review that I watched mentions the pop in, accessibility options or the dual sense, bizarre. Great review as always, thank you.
Cause they’re Sony plebs
Skill Up reviews are the best reviews I’ve found. Was really hoping this one didn’t have all that pop in. Oh well still looks amazing.
Wait till digital foundary. I saw John's tweet thread he mentioned pop ins
Yeah this guy and acg are the most fair reviewers I've found.
@@smokeemifyagotem8851 and he doesn’t sound like a Sony pleb in this? I don’t score games but it’s a 9.5 even though the story stinks, major pop in and way to much looting. How does that even make sense? Just because you gloss over problems doesn’t mean they don’t exist. I’m sure it’s a great game I love the first but you can’t score it a 9.5 with the shit I saw.
Bought HZD on PC two weeks ago. Started playing and after a few hours, I knew the game is AWESOME. Still plenty of hours left in that one (gladly :-)), I will definitely buy this one when it comes to PC :-)
it's never gonna come
Or if it does come to pc.. you'll be waiting at least 3 years
Good luck avoiding spoilers for 4+ years
@@nexgenbong3146 yeah it will eventually. Not trynna buy aps5 for one title
@@idk2865 it’s on ps4
Best Game Reporter so far, gives more details (ex: haptic feedback) than other game review sites (IGN), that's important to me. I always come here for a deeper review. thanks Skilly
To be fair, ign's review of horizon forbidden West was pretty great
New PS owner here, after about 30 years of PC and later, Xbox gaming… the Horizon games and DLC’s have changed what a great game is for me. I’m obsessed, and still playing Forbidden West (platinum), and plan to go back to Zero Dawn to platinum that, too. Ticked all of my boxes tbh, and can’t wait for the next game in the series. 10/10 for me.
For anyone watching this now (Sep 2023), I experienced ZERO pop-in on PS5, and I also didn’t experience the frame rate issues described here. I literally had ONE instance where a machine didn’t fully load, in over 100 hours of game play. So I guess they have fixed these issues by now.
HZD’s side quests could have used some work, and some of the main characters didn’t really leave an impression on me either, so I’m looking forward to what they do different this time.
I enjoyed Death Stranding as just a casual fan of Kojima and his work. I honestly wish The Elder Scrolls and their encumbrance systems would work that way. Anyway, This game looks absolutely incredible. I remember buying my own dreamcast like it was yesterday and drooling over Soul Calibur. Red Dead and Horizon are the only franchises I really do pay attention to anymore these days.
Are there casual Kojima fans?
Yea if you think your a casual Kojima fan I got some bad news for you especially if you enjoyed death stranding lol
Casual fans don't know the game director's name
Hideo Kojimas name has been synonymous with expert storytelling since the ninety's so yes i am aware of him. I have decent anxiety now in my life and games like Death Stranding really helped me calm down. I haven't ever played thenoriginal metal gear solid or the third or 4th ... so yes, casual fan. Other games like Deus Ex and Shadow of Mordor are some of my all time favorites.
The side content in the first game was the same way for me. I loved it so much that towards the end of the game I was so OP. I did everything before moving on. Cannot wait to play this.
Wasnt it Just generic ?
@@Exel3nce no it was not....
@@Exel3nce Another person that quit before finishing the Nora lands. (tutorial area)
@@Exel3nce Depends how you define generic. I didn’t feel it was personally. Regardless, it was all good fun.
@@Exel3nce not at all lol.
About the arrow crafting mechanics, they underexploited the futuristic theme in my opinion. They could have implemented an advanced quiver, that crafts ammo on demand, as long as you have the materials. It would have provided a cool visual effect, explained the upgrades and ammo variety and be a lot more inmersive.
22:10 just gonna casually not mention they made a freakin' board game?! I love when devs flesh out a board game, because its physical content we can always buy later and appreciate rather than be milked by arbitrary DLC
Board game is meh in terms of board games. Mechanics are quite weak and repetative.
Not all DLC is dumb. Sometimes developers can do DLC right. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a perfect example of DLC done right.
the board game is a giant cash grab based on a successful IP. It needed a lot more.
@@moltenbullet What's so wrong with Horizon getting a boardgame based on it??? Boardgames are always a ton of fun. Alot of great games have received boardgames based on them thru out the years.
Sid Meier's Civilization, The Witcher, Dark Souls, Street Fighter & Doom are just a few examples of great games receiving boardgame adaptations.
@@DragonHeart613 monster hunter iceborne is one great expansion
The grinding for resources, once you moved to higher level difficulty, you will start paying attention. Enemies take more hits to die, the ammo cost more resources, to the point that you are conscious of that on every shot.
You do not waste shot on higher difficulty, not even when you are farming resources. Actually, ESPECIALLY when you are farming resources since if you do, it takes more resources than you gain farming it, netting you net loss.
Congrats on 800k!
We went from two rectangles playing ping pong with a square dot to THIS?!
That ending though... Such a good review congrats! Amazing review for an amazing game (nice timing with the music too bro).
The review I was waiting for. Only discovered your channel a couple of months ago and I'm now a fan. Thank you and keep up the great work
Welcome to the skill up fam bud 👏🏿
@@SPACECOWBOY705 thanks man.
I never heard anyone say that dualsense is just a gimmick.
I agree that this is a fantastic feature.
Never bothered me that i had to craft the arrow mid combat. I dont get that complaint.
I think it's set the standard for true immersion for console players aside from audio
Tbf, you spend a LOT of time crafting mid-combat in Horizon, I totally see his point
I love the dualsense features to death but I definitely have seen people say they find them annoying and turn them off immediately. Different strokes 🤷♂️
People that say the dualsense is a gimmick, dont own one
@@YeOldeMachine trend , like tide pod swallowing
FYI to anyone interested, the pop in issue is almost completely gone now. Like, it's probably happened once in awhile, but nowhere near as bad as this and I can't remember any specific instance except for one boss fight where a Thunderjaw's model didn't fully appear for like 10 seconds, after which everything worked perfectly fine.
Awesome review man.
Honestly I don’t think there’s any channel that does reviews in this way and I love it. You also give the opinion in the first minute and I have to respect that.
I feel like a kid, it’s been so long since I’ve been hyped so much. I know it’s a good thing they release reviews early but on personal level like damn, I need it now.
Good review. What made my day was "stack of x full, item sent to stash" made my day--huge pain in the backside that was inventory management just got better.
A really good example of how important the visual presentstion of a game is. Yeah, gameplay is key, but when something looks this incredible you really do invest more into all other components.
Not so much... I will play any bad looking games if the core gameplay is amazing, halo infinite by example.
BUT if the game looks incredible...It's a big yes.
I can't play RDR2 because of that... the game is really beautifull, but the gameplay is Sh*t...well FOR ME.
Just No your opinion is cancer and trash gaming companies cashing on it by producing good looking garbage.
@@misterkevlax3852 bro you just compared a cash grab F2P shooter to RDR2. Holy shit do a crossword puzzle do some sudoku you need a BRAIN TEASE my goofie
@@Splenetic- Ok...it's just an example... I Just like the gameplay before insane graphic, dude... chill out.
@@critical-thinker666 Then its better when companies like Game Freak do less as possible, stamp a $60 on it and cash in ? lol
The best review of this game on TH-cam by a country mile. Pretty much everyone else just lazily drew comparisons to an Ubisoft game when there's just so much more to it than the copy/paste checklist style. At worst you could say this is the apex of that kind of open-world game but that doesn't do it justice because everything feels meaningful unlike an Ubisoft open world. If Elden Ring hadn't come out so close to it it would have been appreciated a lot more. Elden Ring is also frigging fantastic, of course.
I love Elden Ring but I don't even think these games are even comparable because they're not even really that alike. Elden Ring is open world yes but it is still very much linear in a sense
Don't know what like more, the unbelievable work they put in to make this game, or your review of it...
You sir! These reviews are really getting to another level. Love the ME 1 and Me 2 reference which for anyone who adores those for their hits and misses this was very understable.
Ty, yeah, it's really funny)
Sony make a great PR for mass effect 2, and it's free))
The game looks really good, i enjoyed the first game so im happy Guerilla is going strong. Unfortunately i cant afford Horizon and Elden Ring right now, so this one will have to wait a bit
I went with elden ring myself lol
look's good, so did cyber punk
@@creatorsfreedom6734 hahaha dude g games are most definitely not cdpr c'mon now
@@creatorsfreedom6734 Big difference is that Elden Ring had a beta last year that alot of folks tried out & alot of positive stuff was said about the beta. Skill-Up had alot of great things to say about the Elden Ring beta as did other notable TH-camrs who tried it out like Maximilian Dood & YongYea. Elden Ring is really looking like it will indeed be the real deal unlike Cyberpunk 2077.
@@tazmanceltic no , most G game's are from Other studio's that are not cash cow's from grub trip AAA walking dead mongrel's - dunno much about elden ring , got hope's for it but i will wait , - better off reading Dinotopia
For those watching in the future, they added a setting to skip the animation when collecting items.
So happy this turned out well, I really enjoyed Zero Dawn. A bit sad that the story is seemingly not up to par but hey its a subjective thing, I will definitely be giving this a try regardless. I will likely wait with buying this, a lot of games to play right now but I hope it succeeds, we need more games like this for sure.
I'm sure the story is exactly what HZD fans are looking for.. I love skill-up, but dude said it was "too sci-fi" that it was "asking a lot expecting players to be familiar with the first game", more or less.. the writer of Horizon, wrote the entire story at once, it's a direct continuation by the same visionary 'author', I for one can't wait for questions to be answered.. who woke up Hades and unshackled the other subfunction AIs? what happened to the last ditch "ark" program that launched humans out into space? do they have anything to do with Hades reactivation? does Ted Faro have a hand in this from beyond the grave?? (or his clone, maybe even consciousness??) ..
do those questions sound _too_ *SciFi* to you?? didn't think so..
Even if they intentionally went for not trying to one up the story of the first game, I think that’s smart. Because that would be hard to do anyway. Instead, they made sure to give us memorable characters and lots of other little stories along the way, which is just as good if not better for the overall experience.
PlayStation exclusives just keep banging out quality. That’s one thing you can always bet on!
they do make some good games but sometimes the level of circle jerk just because its PS is cringe. i mean cmon look at the over exaggeration of the response to deathloop. game of the year my arse. its a shame because i have to take game reviews of PS games with a grain of salt.
Lmao it’s the same Ubisoft ripoff bs Sony usually produces
@@zorastin deathloop is not exclusive. So it doesn't apply. And critics are not to be trusted with any game. Look at Halo infinite reviews, 10/10 and 9/10 all over the place. The game is fun, but in no way is it 10/10 lmao
@@ThDragoomba deathloop was meant to be, i think some reviewers like to be the first to give a ps exclusive a ridiculously high scor.. halo is ok but not a 10 for sure. id give it an 8 maybe thats the single player. a lot of reviews around this time were a reaction to how bad other games were ie 2042 etc
@@zorastin I really don't think so there's any bias towards sony exclusives in particular. Look at hfw, it's getting worse reviews than Halo infinite lmao. What does that say ? It's getting 8 and 9s, someone even gave a 7. Look at igns Halo 5 review, it's really trying not to be harsh lol, and gears 5 was very overrated too by the critics. Sure some ps exclusives, were overrated by critics like TLOU 2, but that goes for xbox exclusives too and other random games too. Ass creed and cod games always get 9s and shit.
Playstation exclusive single player game. Did we expect any different. From last of us series to uncharted to God of war, to this. They come out almost perfect. Amazing gameplay, graphics, story and without little to no bugs.
The pop in is a game breaker, so I’ll be waiting for the PC version as it’s far from perfect
True
@@V1CT1MIZED well then enjoy waiting 5 years bro. We'll just play the game and enjoy it when it mattered. Meanwhile play war zone or battlefield on pc. Enjoy the bug free experience lmao.
@@V1CT1MIZED the pop in will get patch soon i have no worries.
@@V1CT1MIZED because horizon zero dawn is perfect bug free on PC even 1 year after release isnt it ;)
The first video of yours I had seen was your review for Ghost of Tsushima and I had commented saying how refreshing it was to come across a reviewer that offered such passion and honesty in their reviews. Whilst most TH-cam reviewers offer a ten minute video, you have always taken the time to go into depth and details about the pros and cons of what you’re reviewing. I truly do not understand how you don’t have more subscriptions as it’s my personal opinion you are the best at what many others are trying to do. Keep up the fantastic work and I applaud and appreciate you for it.
Horizon FW is my current Game of The Year of 2022
When Horizon Zero Dawn was first revealed it had immediately gotten my attention with its robo-dinos and inexplicably primitive wildlife setting which I thought would end up being a fun yet illogical fantasy game. Then the actual game surprised me in every direction from its sci-fi story that somehow managed to explain and justify everything to its extremely well crafted combat and enemy designs to a degree you wouldn't expect from a developer making a game like this for the first time.
So I was super hyped to find out just how much Guerilla can improve on the solid foundation of the original as video games sequels tend to be really good at that but my expectations were quickly tempered seeing the sequel got a lower critic score than the original thinking Guerilla must have missed the mark somehow. So it is really amazing that one of my moat trusted reviewers Skill Up unexpectedly providing a 9.5 score for the game was enough to restore all my hype levels to its original state :D
I think the critiques mainly are centered around the narrative of this game where the first game had a much more compelling story than I think people bargained for as well as expectations were really low for the first game. The first horizon was expected to fail or be a minor to modest success but everyone including guerilla and Sony were surprised and just how great the game was received and how much people, including myself, adored it. With all the enhancements in this game it’s definitely better in every conceivable way except the main story but with a more fleshed out world refined combat system and added tools to the gameplay loop, it’ll definitely stand as a better product in the long run, and one of PS5s best games.
What lower critic score are you referring to? Metacritic stands at 89, exactly like Zero Dawn
@@SoftNoize yeah I’m actually not sure what he’s referring to. IGN gave it the same score as zero dawn as well.
@@SoftNoize Looking at Open Critic where it is at 88 but 1 or 2 points don't matter of course. The thing is since the sequel is seemingly massively expanding on the scope and improving every shortcoming of the original I expected it to reflect on the general critic score (basically the way Skill Up praised the game at the beginning of this video) but that doesn't seem to be the case. Well in the end scores don't matter much, the ability of a reviewer to break down and explain what the game gets right or wrong matter more which is why I always come back to this channel.
I still remember I was at work on my lunch break in the computer room watching youtube and saw the trailer da first time and boy that trailer was absolutely amazing.And if you haven’t yet play the “Frozen Wilds” DLC of the first game absolutely kick ass.👊🏽👍🏽
Playing through right now..and honestly it's my favorite PS5 game period. I love it. I even prefer it to elden ring and I'm a souls guy through and through
You remind me of that one part in Tiger King when that one guy found out he wasn't as straight as he thought he was lol.
Just gotta say, that more than appreciating the games you cover (for better or worse) the one thing I *always* appreciate after watching one of your vids, Ralph, is YOU. The love and care that you put into these videos, regardless of your take on a game, is something almost as special as the games you review. And, I hope that when people look back and gaming journalism and mention who were some of the great presenters of our era who captured a sort of magic and honesty in their words, I really expect your name to be on that list. I've been a long time viewer, and I'm finally able to join as a Patreon backer, just now! So I'm really excited to be offering my support there. Keep up the fantastic work and know that the effort and attention to detail you put into all of your content is incredibly appreciated and admired but many of us fans. Thank you for the years of great gaming content and superb video essays. Cheers, mate!
The PS5 controller is something else, ever since I experienced that haptic feedback + adaptive trigger wombo combo I have been buying every multiplatform on PS5 just for the controller features.
Same. The DualSense was the smartest thing Sonys made in a longtime.
If I use it for PS4, did they still had the haptick feedback?
@@NikLoveGaming obviously not
@@andymontanez56 ah, I though so. Thank you
@@NikLoveGaming no problem
The idea of being frustrated with a sequel when you haven't played the first game is idiotic, I won't sugar coat it. There's tonnes of videos on YT recapping each and everything in HZD so newcomers have no real excuse to complain, either play the first game or get familiar with its plot because if you expect the second game in the series to inform players about the first one then you are deluded. A sequel needs to tell its own story not spend quality time explaining the previous one. I guarantee if they spent maybe half an hour recapping the events of HZD then we and you would be complaining about that aspect. You don't jump straight to the second part of the story and then wonder why you are confused about the plot, that's just stupid.
Just finished this one, god I miss it so much already. What a truly special testament to the talent and love the people and guerilla have for creating open worlds. This one is absolutely a huge step up above any other open world I've played.
Maybe you shouldn't have blazed through it then...
@@OtterloopB I spent 100+ hours on it and got the Plat trophy lmao, it's just so good that it makes me miss it the second I finished it
Man, I feel like I'm having the exact opposite experience. The story is the only thing keeping me going.
Exploration feels meaningless because the item you need to fully explore all map markers is ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MAP, which you acquire half way through the game. It totally kills my "explore every nook and cranny until I get around to the main story" playstyle.
The combat is also worse, and a complete slog even on medium difficulty. I found myself getting 2 shot my basic bots on normal. Not to mention taking damage on takedowns, which defeats the purpose.
The weapon variety is way too dense compared to the first game. Before every weapon had a clear purpose, now it feels like borderlands when trying to pick a weapon.
All In all, the first game was better, aside from the stunning visuals.
Looks amazing. Def picking this up. Another hit for Sony proving why their studios are a cut above
@Адвокат Дьявола keep hating dawg
@Адвокат Дьявола there are good open world games and some shitty ones like cyberscam 2077
@Адвокат Дьявола keep crying bro
@Адвокат Дьявола not a fan eh?? "Superb" from Skillup... 89 metacritic. You do you, but its a buy from me
@Адвокат Дьявола I have to agree. Modern open world games except for rdr2 are just exhausting and time wasting
Thanks for always being so absolutely thorough in your reviews. I really appreciate it.
They're definitely some of the most well presented and well rounded ones out there. They're GREAT for making an informed choice before I buy a product.
I've been looking forward to this game for ages. I happy that it's a product worth my time.
In the first game I think I threw in nearly 50 or 60 hours because I was so determined to go everywhere. It was the first open world game that captured me that much. Ghost of Tsushima came pretty close to that feeling. I hope this one can grab me like that
Uh, obviously it’s gonna be grabbing you in ways you’re probably not comfortable with.
The only critical thing I can say about this game is not enough story! It’s so damn interesting and we focused on tribes a bit too much and not on the overall arc. Loved it though. I do agree the side missions were great. Greatly acted and interesting. Can’t wait for the next.
Not enough story? WHAT THE F. This game is all story and little action.
Love they've put so much into world design/side content etc. Really hope I enjoy the story tho. Love the story and lore of the first game and can't wait to learn more in this game.
I've watched a few, or many, Forbidden West reviews and this one is by far the best. After Playing 10 5-6 hours your have captured all of my thoughts so succinctly I couldn't believe it. All thoughts are absolutely true. Subscribed.
Exciting! And I love that “universal design” where accessibility options both open the game to more people but also improve the experience for everyone. ubiquitous examples IRL are the lever door handles (awesome when you have your hand full) or the Football huddle, which was invented by a deaf university football team that was playing another deaf university team, to hide their signing the plays.
This is a small detail.
But as a French speaking human, EVERY SINGLE TIME I hear a english speaking person saying "coup de grâce" like "coup de gras", what I hear is "hit the fat".
It is hilarious. (The "ce" in "grâce" is prononced more or less the same way as the "ce" in "grace")
Thank you for your honest reviews. I only found your channel a few months ago, but you are now one of my go-to trusted reviewers. Thank you for taking the time to REALLY review games.
I'm smiling ear to ear as I watch this:) I mean my goodness..Look at the level of detail in the environments...WOW. Just look at it! Thank you to Guerrilla Games and Sony for taking the time to craft and produce a game with this level of quality. After the dismal BF2042 and many others this is just the game i need to bring back that sense of wonder and awe which is what I love about video games.
As a PC gamer, I had to wait for Zero Dawn, and oh boy was it worth it. I can’t get my hands on a PS5, so I’m willing to wait until I do or it comes to PC, because I want as many bells and whistles as possible for this one. Can’t wait to play it!
If it's anything like the first game, waiting will pay off because there will be great DLC. Which does make waiting for the inevitable PC release in ~5 years a little less shit.
@@stysner4580 It’s a fair point, but then wouldn’t we have the original Spider-Man game on PC by now? Especially with No Way Home coming out? (Both were awesome, imo). I guess either way I’m just happy we’re getting Sony titles on PC. I literally just finished Days Gone a couple hours ago and that was another home run in my book; I can’t believe I almost threw it in the backlog!
Just get Elden ring and play it until Forbidden West releases on PC.