FromHorizon Zero DawntoHorizon Forbidden West, Guerrilla Games expanded uponHorizon’s narrative and gameplay exponentially while remaining true to the series’ core elements. At a quick glance,Zero DawnandForbidden Westmay look fairly similar, but thanks to the power of the PlayStation 5,Forbidden Westwas able to introduce incredibly detailed graphics, more robust fighting mechanics, and improved maneuverability. However, there’s one element that wasn’t refined much during the transition fromHorizon Zero DawntoHorizon Forbidden Westthat needs bolstering inHorizon 3: the common NPCs that inhabit the 31st Century United States.
Horizon’s Post-Apocalyptic NPCs
As an action role-playing game, it was critical for Guerrilla to make the world ofHorizon Zero Dawnimmersive and believable with its intriguing lore and interactive NPCs. Fromthe isolationist Nora to the powerful Carja, these groups madeHorizonstand out among its contemporaries and helped envelope players in the game for hours. However, this was primarily thanks to interactions with a select few characters on quests such as Blameless Marad and Erend, rather than conversations with the common people. These NPCs would commonly repeat a set of about three lines that often made remarks on Aloy or made comments that had no connection to Aloy at all.
InHorizon Forbidden West, Guerrilla designed the coastal tribes to be more battle-hardened and technologically competent than their eastern counterparts. The number of interactive NPCs with names on quests and in shops were additionally increased to ensure that most interactions were memorable and informative. Despite these improvements and the intriguing natures ofthe Tenakth, Utaru, and Quen, most common NPCs still only repeated a select few lines that barely added toHorizon’s world building. While some would comment on Aloy’s actions inZero DawnandForbidden West, most would simply comment on their jobs or nearby machines.
Across theHorizonfranchise, seven tribes have been featured, including the Nora, Carja, Oseram, Banuk, Utaru, Tenakth, and Quen.
Horizon 3’s NPC Potential
Details aboutHorizon 3’s setting and tribes are still unknown, but in the Burning Shores DLC, it’s suggested Aloy and Sylens may venture east through the inland United States to look for 21st century weapons that could help take down the Nemesis AI. Erend further hints at prior tribes making a return as he plans on returning tothe Carja and the Oseramand training them with Focuses in preparation for Nemesis’ attack. If both new and old tribes make an appearance inHorizon 3, Guerrilla should expand common NPCs’ dialogue and abilities to increase immersion and make the threat of Nemesis more omnipresent among all tribes.
In terms of dialogue,Guerrilla could give most NPCs a brief dialogue treeto at least learn about nearby villages and small bits of local lore. This could work similarly to dialogue options inFallout 3orThe Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, since even minor NPCs in those games often had some unique dialogue options, even if they didn’t create or help complete quests. Oftentimes, villages and towns inHorizongames are filled with NPCs that don’t have diverse dialogue, but these new dialogue options could help players learn about new locations beyond scrolls and datapoints and more from the people themselves.
Potential New Horizon NPC Abilities
Unlike NPCs in the aforementioned Bethesda RPGs,Horizontribesmen don’t often venture beyond their village limits save for the occasional main quest battle, such asHorizon Zero Dawn’s The Looming Shadow orHorizon Forbidden West’s The Kulrut. Both wild and tamed machines are often blocked from entering villages beyond main quests as well, possibly to prevent collision issues. WithNemesis and the rogue AI HEPHAESTUSexpected to create an all-out war between humans and machines once more, machines could routinely raid villages, forcing tribesmen to defend their homes and move away from their stagnant positions. This could make visiting tribes more dynamic and help illustrate just how intense the conflict with Nemesis has become compared to past games.
Horizon Forbidden West
WHERE TO PLAY
Join Aloy as she braves a majestic but dangerous new frontier that holds mysterious new threats. This Complete Edition allows you to enjoy the critically acclaimed Horizon Forbidden West on PC in its entirety with bonus content, including the Burning Shores story expansion that picks up after the main game.Explore distant lands, fight bigger and more awe-inspiring machines, and encounter astonishing new tribes as you return to the far-future, post-apocalyptic world of Horizon.The land is dying. Vicious storms and an unstoppable blight ravage the scattered remnants of humanity while fearsome new machines prowl their borders, and life on Earth is hurtling toward another extinction.It’s up to Aloy to uncover the secrets behind these threats and restore order and balance to the world. Along the way, she must reunite with old friends, forge alliances with warring new factions and unravel the legacy of the ancient past.
