When Sony and Guerrilla Games showed off Horizon Forbidden West last week, fans were only given a glimpse at Aloy’s next adventure. Details about the story and release date were kept tightly under wraps. Thankfully, this is already beginning to change. Despite not having a release window in the reveal trailer, the studio has confirmed plans to launch the Horizon Zero Dawn sequel sometime next year. Moreover, new information about the narrative and setting are starting to emerge.
Game Director Mathijs De Jonge shared the news in a recent video, “Guerrilla Talks.” According to the developer, Guerrilla aims to launch Forbidden West in 2021. De Jonge makes note of this near the end of the video below:
Before the brief talk on a release window, the Game Director teased the mystery that lies ahead. Forbidden West as a title “refers to a mysterious new frontier,” which stretches from Utah to the Pacific Ocean. Players will apparently get to explore this world free of slow downs, too. Thanks to the PS5’s impressive SSD, there will be “virtually no load times,” De Jonge divulged. Plus, fast-traveling and restarting from a checkpoint should prove “super fast” occurrences.
In terms of scope, the map in Forbidden West is bigger than that of its predecessor. Guerrilla’s added depth to it, as well. As seen in the reveal trailer, Aloy will have the ability to explore what’s hidden beneath lakes and rivers.
The franchise’s new western setting is home to a variety of machines, dozens of which are new–such as the Shell Snapper and Sun Wings creatures, both featured in last week’s teaser. Similar to the series’ first entry, Aloy will need to scan and study machines to fully understand what she’s up against.
New tribes also call the forbidden west home. Some will come across as genuinely peaceful, while others are far more hostile. One hostile tribe in particular has discovered how to override machines to use as war machines. This is where another new beast enters the fray. The “mammoth-like Tremor Tusk” will be nothing short of dangerous in the wild. However, it can become even more of a threat when taken over by tribes.
Finally, De Jonge noted that westward lands are plagued by a “collapsing biosphere,” due to a “red blight” that’s infecting the land. Wildlife is endangered, leaving tribes and other animals starving and at great risk. Supercell storms are out of control, too, ravaging the ecosystem at every turn. It seems Aloy may be humanity’s best chance at enduring whatever is wreaking havoc upon the world.
Horizon Forbidden West will come to the PlayStation 5 on an unspecified date next year.
[Source: PlayStation on YouTube]
