What do you get when you cross Tomb Raider with Far Cry? This game! Although, many people have regarded this as an evolutionary game of our time, I don't really see the light that others have. Is it the Wow! Glasses that everyone tends to keep on? Or is it because I just I'm differen? I don't know, but I think this game is a bit overrated. Hello and welcome to this Pet Peeve filled thought blog.
My sister was desiring a game for this spring break to rent and there were two games: Mass Effect Andromada and Horizon Zero Dawn. We both were confused which one to get since both would have a wild ride when we get it, whether it be bad or not. My sister thought it would be better to get Horizon. Reading the tiltle, you probably already knew the game she got. Anyways, we got it and our expectations were almost destroyed. Although, the gameplay is great (I'll talk about that later), and the game looks great (Later as well), but there is so much wrong with the game's features. "Not again! He's going to crap on the game because he wants to be different!" No, just minor opinions and things like that.
When, you start the game, you are a child named, Aloy. An awful name to give a legendary protagonist, but okay! The one thing I couldn't get over in this game's beginning is the way your character looked as a kid. She just looks like a Little Person. "Well, that's what she is, StarterPack." No, I mean, she looks like a little guy. "She's not a guy!" She's a Midget! She looks like a freaking god damn midget! I know she is a kid, but whenever I looked at her, I didn't think of a kid, I thought Professor Evil's little sidekick! I really don't know what it was, is it her face? The facial features? I don't know, but the devs could have done better with this little girl model.
Besides that, the talking animations look awful in both my sister and I's opinion. You know how you have hand gestures when you talk or sway your head a bit while speaking? Well this game doesn't do that well. "But StarterPack, this is a PS4 Exclusive! They are always great!" Well, I would like to stomp on that since that can be highly untrue, and not because I had the Xbox first. This game isn't Andromada bad, but the faces can look robotic. The Lip-Sink can be off at times and the facial modeling can freeze from time to time. You don't know how many times I caught somebody talk with a gaping mouth. And it seems that people with beards can't speak without flapping their lips like a fish.
Again, not Andromada bad, just something can need some fixing, otherwise, the game looks great, not awesome, but great. Other than that, the story is a bit bland. "But StarterPack, the game has a rich history and a great backstory that draws in many people into the science fiction genre!" I can tell that is true and that's what lured most people in this game, it's just the game shows the typical parents of different blood leaving their baby, only one of different blood, to a common man to train him and soon grows up to find out her origin story. I know stories can be retold in many ways, but it just feels like they took the concept of the original story and placed robots in it. speaking of which, the game tries to lure the player in to get him to reveal the secret of the robotic animals' origins. I think that is a cool concept and a good little mystery to put in a story. I really makes it satisfying to reveal more secrets or more info on these unfamiliar creatures and learning who made them and why.
Besides that, the game really doesn't want you to forget your place in the game. Head into a town? Your character will shove the fact that you're an outcast in your face. When you're sneaking and are caught, you character saying "I'm caught!" I know this is something that I shouldn't be mad at, but it just feels like the game is mocking me, that's why I like it when the character is completely silent in the matter and only speaks when he's around people.
Anyways, that's all I hate about the game's story and animation. Now to the gameplay. It is actually as fun as people have said. The sneaking is fun to engage and combat feels very fluid. The mechanics of the bow are well organized and the game just makes everything you use feel right! Shooting a bow at something just feels so good! The only thing I kind of don't like is how it feels like Tomb Raider. "But StarterPack, that game is an Xbox Exclusive!" It use to be, but the game has large similarities to each other, just one of them has guns. At least as far as I know. I just think it's funny how people say the gameplay is very original, but it feels and looks like the newest Tomb Raider. The only difference between the two (Besides guns) is that Horizon is open world.
The game's enemies so far are fun to take out, they can be annoying, but they can be fun. The Watchers, although the easiest, are fun to take out as you hide in the grass. I like how each beast and creature has a weakspot on it that you can see through your earpiece thing. Each one being either more difficult or easy to shoot, but some are weakspots aren't as effective than others. I like that, but it kind of makes it too easy for some creatures. I mean, some you can just shoot twice and your done. "You haven't see the rest of the beasts yet, StarterPack!" I know, but can you at least condition me to that kind of difficulty? Show me a common enemy that is tough to tackle to force me to choose between attacking or sneaking past one, because most games don't seem to do this well. You are suppose to at least give me clear choice or make me plan on how I should go out on this enemy infested field.
To add to that, the game doesn't give you a proper tutorial. "But StarterPack, it's just simple controls that most players don't need a run down of!" Well, when you introduced to a game, you have to give the player a full map of the controls. Maybe not all of it at once, but slowly give the player something to grasp and understand, but if you don't tell the player how to jump, I have to complain. "But StarterPack, it's X, the button commonly used as Jump!" I know, but I played three games where that's not the case! Most games won't even add a jump function either, so how was I suppose to know. And they don't even show you how to climb stuff as well! I know that Uncharted has done gotten players to know how to climb up stuff, but this is a new IP, why would I compare this to a different IP? "Well, they show you this in the trailers." Well, I keep myself away from trailers and some reviews since I like to play my game in a complete unknowing of the game's surface or gameplay. It really brings a genuine surprise if the game is great. Anyways, I just think they should have at least given me the basics of the game instead of hoping I would know how you made the game.
Well, that's all I have to say about the game. It's not a perfect game, but I would give it for it's props. Does not deserve a solid ten, but it's good, I would recommend this to someone. I hope you enjoyed this little blog and I hope you understand this is an opinion. I will say that before all the comments roll in. Again, I hope you enjoyed and 'til next time...
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