Horizon Zero Dawn

Horizon Zero Dawn
Developer(s) Guerrilla Games
Publisher(s) Sony Interactive Entertainment
Director(s) Mathijs de Jonge
Producer(s) Lambert Wolterbeek Muller
Designer(s) David Ford[1]
Artist(s) Jan-Bart van Beek
Writer(s) John Gonzalez
Composer(s)
Engine Decima
Platform(s) PlayStation 4
Release date(s)
  • NA: 28 February 2017
  • EU: 1 March 2017
  • UK: 3 March 2017
Genre(s) Action role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player

Horizon Zero Dawn is an upcoming action role-playing video game developed by Guerrilla Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 4. It is set to be released on February 28, 2017 in North America, March 1 in Europe and March 3 in the United Kingdom.

The plot revolves around Aloy, a hunter and archer who lives in a world overrun by robots. Having been cloistered her whole life, she sets out to discover the dangers that kept her sheltered for so long. The character makes use of ranged, melee weapons and stealth tactics to combat the mechanised creatures whose remains can also be looted for resources. The game features an open world environment for Aloy to explore, divided into tribes that hold side quests to accomplish while the main story guides her throughout the whole world.

Development of Horizon Zero Dawn began in 2011. Mathijs de Jonge, the director, considered it "the most risky" idea of those the developer had pitched. The concept explores the contrast between the beauty and danger of the world. Guerrilla Games emphasises trial and error as the basis for playing the game, choosing not to implement a tutorial. The game engine, Decima, was previously engineered for Killzone Shadow Fall and altered for Horizon Zero Dawn. It is the first intellectual property developed by Guerrilla Games since Killzone in 2004, and also the studio's first attempt at developing a role-playing game.

Horizon Zero Dawn won the award for Best Original Game at the Game Critics Awards in 2015 and 2016.

Gameplay

Players can use weapons, such as a bow and arrow or the Ropecaster, to attack and immobilise enemies.[2]

Horizon Zero Dawn is an action role-playing game played from a third-person view.[3][4] Players take control of Aloy, a hunter and archer, as she progresses through a post-apocalyptic land ruled by robotic creatures known simply as "Machines".[5][6] The Machines' components, such as electricity and the metal they are composed of, are vital to Aloy's survival, and she can loot their corpses to find useful resources for crafting.[7][8] Aloy can use a variety of ways to kill enemies, such as setting traps like tripwires, shooting enemies with arrows, using explosives, and melee combat. She can essentially hack a selection of creatures, turning them into makeshift vehicles or travelling companions. Aloy can also hide in foliage and ambush nearby enemies to ensure immediate takedowns.[9][8] Using a "focus scan" allows Aloy to determine her enemies' susceptibilities,[10] identify their location, the particular level they possess and the nature of loot they will drop.[6]

The game features an open world with a dynamic day-night cycle and weather system that can be explored without loading screens.[11][7][12] The quest structure unfolds to accommodate the exploration of tribes while the main story covers the entire world. Aloy can come across stories that require her to solve individual cases as well.[13] A dialogue wheel is used to communicate with non-playable characters.[10]

Development

Guerrilla Games began developing Horizon Zero Dawn in 2011, following the release of Killzone 3.[14] When conceiving the idea for a new game, about 40 concepts were pitched. Among these was Horizon Zero Dawn, which game director Mathijs de Jonge considered "the most risky" of the concepts.[15] When this concept was chosen, a team of 10–20 began building prototypes of the game; many of the elements featured in the prototypes remained in the game throughout development. Approximately 20 different stories were written for the game, exploring varying concepts for the game, such as different player characters. John Gonzalez, who previously acted as lead writer for Fallout: New Vegas (2010), was hired to write the game's story. The main elements of the story have also remained intact since early development.[15] Upon the completion of Killzone Shadow Fall in late 2013, the remainder of the team began working on Horizon.[16] The team also cancelled work on another title so as to allow the entire team to focus on the development of the game.[17]

The game's concept explores the juxtaposition between the danger and beauty of the world, particularly analysing the concept of humanity not being "at the top of the life list".[15] The team aimed to emphasize the game's exploration element by featuring a quest system, as well as including items throughout the world that can be used to craft or replenish health.[15] The game will not feature any tutorial, instead requiring players to learn the methods of defeating enemies through trial and error.[18] The team wished for the game to have a simple user interface design, specifically avoiding complicated menus for crafting. The team found the game to be a technical challenge.[19] They felt that the game engine, which was designed for games such as the Killzone series and was previously used for Killzone Shadow Fall,[20] was difficult to alter for Horizon, in terms of draw distance and loading. To discover how some game elements work differently in open world games, the team sought help from talent in the design, art and technical fields.[19]

The game's soundtrack is being composed by Joris de Man, The Flight, and Niels van der Leest.[21]

The concept art, which feature robotic dinosaurs, as well as the game's codename, were leaked on 14 September 2014.[22] Horizon Zero Dawn was officially announced during Sony Interactive Entertainment's E3 2015 press conference.[23] Originally set to be released in 2016 for the PlayStation 4, the game was later delayed to February 2017 so as to give additional time for the development team to polish the game.[24] The game will be forward compatible with the PlayStation 4 Pro,[25] allowing it to run up to 4K resolution.[26] At PlayStation Experience 2016, the game was announced to be using a proprietary game engine named Decima, along with Kojima Productions's Death Stranding.[27]

Accolades

Year Award Category Result Ref
2015 Game Critics Awards 2015 Best of Show Nominated [28]
Best Original Game Won
Best Console Game Nominated
Best Action/Adventure Game Nominated
2016 Game Critics Awards 2016 Best of Show Nominated [29][30]
Best Original Game Won
Best Console Game Nominated
Best Action/Adventure Game Nominated
Golden Joystick Awards 2016 Most Wanted Game Nominated [31]
The Game Awards 2016 Most Anticipated Game Nominated [32]

References

  1. ↑ "Horizon: Zero Dawn - David Ford Interview". Gamereactor. Gamez Publishing A/S. July 6, 2016.
  2. ↑ Welsh, Oli (30 July 2015). "Looking to the Horizon: how Guerrilla moved on". Eurogamer. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  3. ↑ Donaldson, Alex (27 June 2016). "Horizon: Zero Dawn appears to be a proper RPG, and an exciting one". VG247. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  4. ↑ Farokhmanesh, Megan (24 June 2015). "Horizon Zero Dawn aims to fill the open-world gap between GTA and Skyrim". Polygon. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
  5. ↑ Conditt, Jessica (16 June 2015). "Robot dinos, archery and mystery in 'Horizon: Zero Dawn'". Engadget. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  6. 1 2 Makuch, Eddie (14 June 2016). "Horizon Zero Dawn and the Thrill of the Hunt". GameSpot. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  7. 1 2 Fulton, Will (17 June 2015). "Horizon Zero Dawn is even better than the mind-blowing trailer made you think". Digital Trends. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  8. 1 2 Hulst, Hermen (16 June 2015). "Horizon Zero Dawn announced for PS4, from Guerrilla Games". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  9. ↑ Mahboubian-Jones, Justin (22 June 2016). "Horizon: Zero Dawn's monsters can become your BFF". Digital Spy. Retrieved 24 June 2016.
  10. 1 2 O'Connor, James (14 June 2016). "Horizon Zero Dawn gameplay demo shown at E3". VG247. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  11. ↑ Te, Zorine (16 June 2015). "Horizon: Zero Dawn Is Prehistoric and Modern All At Once". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  12. ↑ Hillier, Brenna (16 June 2015). "What is Guerrilla Games' Horizon: Zero Dawn?". VG247. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  13. ↑ Lemne, Bengt (6 July 2016). "Guerrilla Games on Horizon: Zero Dawn's quest structure". Gamereactor. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  14. ↑ Sliva, Marty (17 June 2015). "E3 2015: Horizon: Zero Dawn's Incredible Balance of Action and RPG". IGN. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Kato, Matthew (26 June 2015). "The Origins & World Of Horizon Zero Dawn". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  16. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (30 September 2013). "Killzone dev Guerrilla confirms work on new IP has begun". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  17. ↑ Scammell, David (September 19, 2016). "Guerrilla cancelled work on a second project to focus on Horizon: Zero Dawn". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
  18. ↑ Scammell, David (18 June 2015). "Horizon: Zero Dawn won't be 'tutorialised'; RPG systems detailed". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  19. 1 2 Kato, Matthew (26 June 2015). "The Origins & World Of Horizon Zero Dawn". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  20. ↑ Scammell, David (18 June 2015). "Horizon: Zero Dawn is 1080p/30fps, runs on modified version of Killzone: Shadow Fall engine". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  21. ↑ McMillan, Emily (16 June 2016). "Composers revealed for Horizon Zero Dawn". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  22. ↑ Karmali, Luke (16 September 2014). "Guerrilla Games New Project Could Feature Robot Dinosaurs". IGN. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  23. ↑ Hilliard, Kyle (15 June 2015). "Killzone Creators Announce Horizon: Zero Dawn". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  24. ↑ Sarkar, Samit (6 June 2016). "Horizon Zero Dawn delayed to February 2017". Polygon. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
  25. ↑ Prell, Sam (9 September 2015). "Horizon: Zero Dawn in 4K is the trailer you need to see if you're thinking about a PS4 Pro". GamesRadar. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  26. ↑ Sinha, Ravi (21 October 2016). "Uncharted 4 PS4 Pro Being Retooled, Horizon Zero Dawn And Days Gone To Support Upto 2160p". GamingBolt. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  27. ↑ Pereira, Chris (December 3, 2016). "Kojima Partnering With Killzone, Horizon Dev Guerrilla for Death Stranding". GameSpot. CBS Interactive.
  28. ↑ Makuch, Eddie (5 July 2015). "Fallout 4 Gets E3 2015 Best of Show Award; Full List of Winners Revealed". GameSpot. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
  29. ↑ Hussain, Tamoor (29 June 2016). "All of 2016's Best of E3 nominees.". GameSpot. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  30. ↑ Pereira, Chris (5 July 2016). "Here Are E3 2016's Game Critics Award Winners". GameSpot. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  31. ↑ Loveridge, Sam (September 15, 2016). "Golden Joystick Awards 2016 voting now open to the public". Digital Spy. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
  32. ↑ Stark, Chelsea (December 1, 2016). "The Game Awards: Here's the full winners list". Polygon. Vox Media.

External links

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