Horizon Probably Should Have Ended with Forbidden West: Take the Win

I just finished the Horizon series on PlayStation 5 (Zero Dawn and Forbidden West). These definitely aren’t new games. When I bought the PS5 in hopes of Jurassic Park Survival (still hoping), I got both games on discount and they sat in my backlog for a while. Eventually, I worked my way through both games and their DLC. In short, the series was a win. The story was compelling sci-fi action. Visually, it was top tier.

What follows is some criticism, but please understand, I’m happy to have played these games and I wholeheartedly recommend them.

The studio set itself up for another sequel in this game. I’ve said it before - every good story needs a beginning, middle, and end. When you set yourself up for a sequel, you’re leaving the end hanging and that’s a fantastic way to undermine your previous work. If you’re promising another part of the narrative, you better deliver. Also (I know this is a hopelessly naive thing to put in writing), it should be driven by the story.

I won’t spoil it here, but the setup for the third installment in the Horizon series was avoidable. The story didn’t require it. That can’t be said for number two. The second video game really needed to happen - there was more story and it was earned. With some editing and a small rewrite toward the end of Forbidden West, however, number three could be avoided. Take the win - a fantastic two-part series.

Even more questionable, the studio announced another game set in this universe that doesn’t continue the previous story. It’s a multiplayer game, using a different art style, and as far as we know, is standalone—a side quest. This is frustrating, given how long it takes to bring a AAA game to completion. If I’m correct and the promise of Horizon 3 was shoehorned in, I wonder if the writers have put themselves in a creative corner without a satisfying way forward. No spoilers, but the DLC for Forbidden West does nothing to dispel this suspicion. The downloadable content for Zero Dawn (Horizon one) expanded the lore and added details that mattered in Forbidden West. I don’t feel the same way about the sequel (though it was a fun play-through, with lots of spectacle).

All that said, they could still blow me away and I’d be happy to admit I was wrong. Nothing I’ve said here makes me regret playing these games. Forbidden West was cinematic storytelling and fun gameplay—a satisfying conclusion to an arc started in Zero Dawn. Let’s see if they can land number three.