Though the last game ended with a battle against the rampant AI Hades, humanity’s victory did not repair the lethal machines that were originally part of a terraforming project meant to save the Earth. These landmarks punctuate Forbidden West’s story about climate crises and the excesses of the ruling class.

Joshua trees and scrub-speckled flatlands give an immediate sense of place - and Forbidden West even lets players explore decaying ruins of actual American cities. This gives players incredible freedom in their journey westward, exploring gorgeous vistas bursting with giant sequoias, expansive lakes, and crumbling ruins swallowed by desert sands. On PS5, you can regularly walk from interiors right into the wide world, without loading screens. Horizon Forbidden West, especially on the PlayStation 5, is breathtaking it’s one of the most impressively realized wilderness games I’ve ever played.

Image: Guerrilla Games/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon That said, Aloy is still a character I love, and her world is one I enjoyed spending time in - and one I plan to explore indefinitely. Both mechanically and narratively, it suffers under the weight of its sequel ambitions, trying too hard to be grand, and sometimes losing sight of its strong world-building and storytelling heart. But Forbidden West also stumbles over this “more is better” ethos. The game’s many expanded traversal tools and combat options deeply enrich the time you spend in this gorgeous, nearly photo-real wilderness. It’s a buffet you might graze on forever, filled with quests, characters, encampments, environments, and collectibles - and battles against new deadly machines. Horizon Forbidden West has delivered on the promise of more on just about every level. Three years later, I went on a road trip through Utah and Colorado, to see this part of America myself. I played every quest, completed every Hunting Ground I got the Shield Weaver armor, and collected most of the metal flowers I played through the Frozen Wilds expansion. All of it was filled with robotic foes, which I fought with just bows, arrows, and a spear. I went slack-jawed as I roamed red rock plateaus, admiring the topographical fidelity to the natural world. I still remember the moment when Horizon Zero Dawn opened up past Nora territory, and I took my first steps into the vast wilderness.

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