I absolutely adore the Horizon series and have completed Zero Dawn many times over the last eleven years. When I started Rigged for Epic, this was the game for which I considered breaking my ‘PC only’ review rule. In the last few years, we have watched with excitement as games which were once Playstation exclusives have been unshackled on PC. In 2020 PC gamers were finally able to install the complete edition which also included the Frozen Wilds DLC. The port did not land without issues, but over time the crashing and poor performance was smoothed out into a solid PC port. In what now must surely be its swan song, Horizon Zero Dawn has now been remastered but in truth, this is bordering on a full remake.

Masterful

One of the best parts about PC gaming is that our favourite games improve over time, either with official updates/mods or because new hardware lets us access higher settings. Just look at Skyrim: that game has never been so popular thanks to a constant stream of improvements invigorating its old bones. It is also true that no two remakes are the same, some can even be a negative experience compared to the original, the GTA trilogy remaster is a good example. 

This year news emerged of a remaster for the original Horizon Zero Dawn and this came at a time when most are feeling fatigued by old titles getting a bit of spit and polish. Yet, very quickly, those who were paying attention could see this was not going to be a quick texture upgrade. The reveal trailer was a tantalizing glimpse of a living world reforged through the lens of this game's stunning sequel Forbidden West. The landscapes have now been overhauled with much more foliage that moves as you brush past it. Water has a much more lively appearance than the platicine soup of the prior version with beautiful caustics undulating under Aloy as she swims across its surface. 

Most of the materials you will see have now been upgraded to the ones we see in Forbidden West, but with a deft touch so it doesn't look out of place. A great deal of work has also been put into the many conversations, with custom tools being created to help update and enhance them. The results are very impressive; each time I approached a character I remember from the old version I would look forward to seeing how they had changed. Many lines of dialogue have also been rerecorded and this certainly makes side quests all the more memorable. The overall effect is that dialogue scenes now look more organic with a more cinematic presentation. 

Skin Deep

So if it wasn't clear so far, this remaster is purely aesthetic and as far as gameplay is concerned this is the same game we've always loved. While so much beauty has been lavished on this world, the bones of the old game are still what holds it up. A true remake, for example, could have added the ability to swim underwater like in Forbidden West, something I was secretly hoping for. Or we could have brought over the loot system which most would agree is better. Yet, the developers decided to leave the fundamentals of Zero Dawn intact and I think that was a good choice. Like the Last of Us Part One remake, this kind of update is a fine line between offering something new and not culling what made the original magic work.

Yet despite knowing the game is just the same under the skin, the way the game looks now has made every second of this review a joy. Each time I approach a place I know well, anticipation grows as I wonder how good it will look now and each time I'm not disappointed. The game's lighting has also received a complete overhaul and this benefits the entire gameworld from flickering campfires to sparking conduits in the cauldrons. Nixxes have also replaced the old cloud system with the Nubis Volumetric clouds from Forbidden West. This seems extravagant considering we can't fly in this game, but even from the ground, the results are stunning. 

Kansas is going Bye Bye

Horizon Zero Dawn is set in a futuristic version of our earth, the thirty-first century to be exact. As soon as you start to play it is clear that something catastrophic has happened to civilization as the people who now walk the earth have seemingly lost all the technology we take for granted today. Instead of being greeted by flying cars and neon-infused cities, the world resembles a time when early man would draw funny pictures on cave walls. Human beings now live a tribalistic existence, hunting off the land and trading with other settlements. Observing this game world without context, you could be forgiven for thinking this was somewhere way back in our past if it wasn’t for the massive mechanical beasts now roaming the wilds. 

There are other signs of the old world such as dilapidated skyscrapers standing defiantly on the horizon, now all but consumed by the onslaught of nature and the decay of time. Trees and vines wrap themselves around crumbling structures with the same tenacity as those wired headphones you used to fight with on the daily commute. The way the environmental artists fused the two worlds is one reason why visiting each location is so exhilarating. In most post-apocalyptic game worlds we usually see a devastated and polluted mess, but in Horizon we see a lush and beautiful world that captivates the imagination.

There is a full day and night cycle to enjoy and the shifting sun can make some very special moments indeed. Now with the new lighting system, the world just glows with vibrant color no matter what time of day it is. As the light ebbs away you will see the sun catching distant mountains which rise into pink clouds that soon give way to a sea of bright stars. Rivers snake across the land which often turn into cascading waterfalls, before ending the journey in serene lakes. The world also does a wonderful job of showing the natural elements with grass swaying in the wind and early morning mist drifting through the trees. Snow and sand also now deform under your feet and new weather systems make the minute-to-minute gameplay even more varied. 

Red Dead

The opening few chapters of Horizon set the stage very nicely for the events that will come to pass. Aloy is an outcast from the Nora tribe and as such lives on the fringes of the village with her guardian Rost. We actually start the game when Aloy is a young girl which also doubles as an introduction to some of the basic stealth and combat mechanics. Here we also see her happen across a lost underground bunker from the old world where she discovers something that will change her destiny forever. The focus is a small wearable device that snaps onto Aloys temple and gives her advanced augmented reality. Not only does it grant her access to the knowledge of the old world, but acts as a real-time heads-up display: giving her a wealth of environmental and combat data. This introduction closes with Aloy using her Focus to save a boy from the tribe which convinces Rost to allow her to keep her new toy.

In an effort to discover information about her origins and parents (or lack thereof), she asks Rost to train her for the proving. This yearly right of passage for young braves is open to anyone (even outcasts) and the winner is granted a wish from the leaders of the Nora tribe. Not surprisingly, Aloy wins the proving but the wheel truly comes off and our plucky heroine is catapulted into an adventure nobody saw coming. While the outcast becoming the chosen one formula isn’t a new concept, Guerrilla Games has woven a wonderful coming-of-age story around Aloy and her journey to save the world.

As a character, I like Aloy as she is both fierce and compassionate. Some have questioned how she became so articulate while being ignored by all but one person for her entire life. I would say this can be easily explained by her focus, which has been an almost unlimited source of information and the reason she understands tech so well. When in conversations you can often choose an emotional reaction to round things off with but rarely are there real consequences. I don’t mind this lack of agency so much as the game is heavy enough without cause and effect weighing in. 

Heavy Metal

So what would happen if an advanced artificial intelligence tried to replicate some of the most awesome creatures of the natural world, complete with their temperament and behaviour? Well in Horizon (for reasons revealed later in the story) we get a pretty good idea because that is exactly the world we are greeted with. These machines inhabit the natural world and until recently would leave humans to themselves. The design of these robotic giants has clearly taken inspiration from specific creatures, such as crocodiles or big cats, but with a little something of their own. Obviously being fashioned from technology they also come with many additional methods of defence such as ranged weapons, powerful shields and advanced scanners. Yet despite these ‘creatures’ being powered by a self-sustaining energy source, they still go through the motions of foraging, grazing and acting in a territorial manner.

It is interesting that despite the obliteration of technology many of the humans of today will hunt these metallic beasts and even worship them. As you wander around settlements you can see how spare parts have become trinkets, trophies or building materials. Some of the more interesting side stories do explore the relationship that has developed between man and machine. In the remaster we can see a decent upgrade in the models used for each machine, this combined with the new lighting and post-processing makes combat look even more impressive. 

You Break it you Buy It

As the machines become more aggressive most you meet will attack you on sight. Some of the deer-like machines will flee at the first sign of danger but even these can turn on you if pushed. Fortunately, Aloy has spent her entire life being taught to fight and she would give Legolas a run for his money with a bow. You will come across many weapons on your travels and each will fire different kinds of ammunition. The Sharpshooter bow, for example, is your long-range sniper bow but can also fire specialist arrows which break pieces off the machines. Ammo for your weapons can be expensive to buy so your best course is to make your own from the parts you gather. 

As you discover each ‘species’ of robot with your focus you will get information including behaviour and weaknesses. These can be elemental vulnerabilities such as fire or even specific parts you can target. For example, if you hit the fuel canisters on a Grazer's back with a fire arrow, they will rupture and explode devastating the surrounding enemies. For a short time after scanning them, you can then see the most vulnerable components highlighted in yellow. There are many more ways this can come in handy, even as far as smashing heavy weapons off the bigger foes and turning them on their previous owner. One of my favorite weapons has to be the rope caster, which will tether enemies down leaving them at your mercy. This weapon is particularly fun on winged robots which can be a real problem.

Like Monster Hunter World, enemies have a tangible weight to them as they crash around smashing trees and rocks like balsa wood. The first time you see a Saw Tooth come bounding at you full tilt you will be glad Aloy can leap so far. As you hit home with explosives or lead them into traps you will get a huge feeling of satisfaction as chunks of metal tumble off. Not only will machines look visibly damaged but they will also limp and change tactics as the fight progresses. Another twist to combat is the ability to take over some robots which will then fight on your side for a limited time. The further you progress through the game the larger machines will also be available for domination which can lead to some truly epic rumbles. There are even a few robots that resemble bulls and horses, which can be used as temporary mounts once converted to your cause. I love how many times I’ve been just about to bite the dust and my mount has come charging in and backkicked my enemy into spare parts.

Hop Skip and Faceplant

If the traversal in Horizon was a person, it would be that grumpy in-law that once you get to know is pretty alright. Aloy can run, jump, swim and climb to her heart's content. She is a nimble lass and can make short work of most obstacles. The terrain in Aloy’s world is varied as I have covered and there are many things to climb, such as sheer rock surfaces and man-made structures. Here we see a Mirror's Edge approach where the game lets you know exactly what can be grabbed by colouring it in with yellow or white. This works fine and while a little bit on rails, it can lead to some very dramatic leaps that would put Spiderman to shame. There is a decent amount of verticality to your exploits which will see you scaling old buildings to access secrets or the always impressive Tall Necks. These are the biggest robots in the game and while they don’t attack will roam in a set path waiting to be hopped onto. Once you override them they will reveal items of interest in that area, effectively becoming Horizon's version of ‘Ubi-towers.’

The issues in traversal come when you stray off the beaten track and start trying to navigate large rock formations. Here we see our red-headed warrior handle like a shopping trolly and it isn’t pretty. Ironically if you don’t try and jump Aloy will sometimes remember she is a nimble sort and vault up or over the object. However, this doesn’t work often enough and will see you rubbing your face across hard granite. These issues are minor and like I have already said, once you get used to the way she handles certain obstacles you will get the hang of it. The game world is quite substantial and so I was thankful to see a fast travel system in place which allows you to whisk Aloy to any of the campfires you have previously unlocked.

The Fluff

So aside from relieving machines of their essential parts, what else is there to do in the world of Horizon? On top of the main quest, there is also a wealth of side quests to pick up from the various settlements. These usually boil down to the same basic tasks, i.e. find an NPC and fight a bunch of machines but on the plus side, the stories attached can be entertaining and hearty. There is also a substantial hunting quest which will see you testing various abilities and weapons. Aloy will also need to delve deep into the cauldrons, which are the birthplace of the machines and these will allow you to dominate even more machine types. 

I do like the vantage points which give you a glimpse of how a view looked before everything got buggered up. Other secrets include hunting for power cells to unlock a shielded set of armor which is from the old world and offers Aloy a unique advantage in combat. The collectable cups, figurines and metal flowers don’t really add anything other than a reason to visit a certain place in the game world but can offer rewards once handed into the right NPC. I have rarely played an open-world game which doesn’t have some of this padding, at least in Horizon it does give you more backstory about the world that came before. There is a leveling system in Horizon and pretty much everything you do feeds into it. As you gain levels and complete certain tasks you will unlock skill points which can in turn give you access to new abilities. Some of these can be small effects such as picking up more resources or the ability to sprint silently. However, some are also game changers such as being able to nock three arrows at once or being able to repair friendly machines.

Is it PC? 

After losing access to the Fox Engine, Hideo Kojima was on the hunt for a platform on which to build his new game. After visiting many developers he was particularly impressed with the engine over at Guerrilla Games and in a surprisingly generous move, Guerrilla presented Kojima Productions with a wooden box containing the source code for the Decima Engine. Death Stranding does run like a dream on PC which was a good sign for Horizon. Given it was Guerrilla who made the Decima engine it was almost a given that Horizon would run like butter.

When first developing Horizon the team at Guerrilla spent a lot of time converting the engine (which would later be named the Decima Engine) that had originally been used on the FPS Killzone. This process was revealed in the excellent Noclip documentary which I will link below. Many of the original features had to be vastly overhauled and techniques like Frustum Culling were employed for perforce gains. In this remaster we don't see any of the issues that plagued its original PC release and Nixxes have done themselves proud. On my 3080ti playing at 1440p I am able to play with everything maxed out at 95-120 fps. The load times are almost instantaneous and I haven't seen a single frame stutter in my entire play-through. All the extra bells and whistles you would want in a PC game are here such as key rebinding and ultrawide support (which looks stunning).

One aspect of the PC version that is a game-changer is the ability to play with a mouse and keyboard. It is so much more fun fighting the machines with pinpoint accuracy and being able to spin my view around in a split second. When I was looking at the PS4 version for comparison I also noticed that we are more pulled back from Aloy on the PC version, allowing a greater sense of what is around you during tense fights. The interface has not been changed at all for PC gamers which is a shame considering how cumbersome the whole thing is. That said, thanks to Nixxes being in the driving seat all the menus and interface controls are responsive.    

The sound design in the original release was exceptionally well done. In the thick of the action, you can hear the bigger machines spooling up ready to pounce which allows you that all-important cue to dodge. Other great sound effects include the rope casters' steel tethers snapping when the captured machine breaks free and the roar of a Thunder Jaw blaster. In this remaster they have now added Spatial Audio which is a real treat for those of us who play with headphones. Once enabled you can judge to a greater degree which direction a threat is coming from. Ashley Burch leads the charge and does a fantastic job of bringing Aloy to life whether with sass or sarcasm. We are also treated to the amazing performance of the late Lance Reddick in his role as Sylens, a rum chap who initially helps Aloy uncover her past. The music of Horizon is another huge success with both haunting pieces as you explore the ruins of the old world to foreboding tracks that kick in when danger is near.

Conclusion

The amount of misfortune that this series has seen over the years is bordering on farce. When the original game launched it was up against a little game called Breath of the Wild. Then when Forbidden West arrived it was up against the behemoth release of Elden Ring. Even the Burning Shores DLC got overshadowed by Zelda Tears of the Kingdom, that pointy-eared little bastard seems to have a thing for Aloy. The other issue this remaster is facing is that Sony has used the remaster to pull the original version and add their idiotic PSN requirement. In a recent financial call the company president Hiroki Totoki insisted they have learned a lot (they haven't) and forcing PC gamers into the PSN was for their own safety (it isn't). At the time of writing the rating on Steam is mixed and as far as I'm concerned this is a travesty and Sony is the culprit. 

This remaster has been an absolute joy to play from start to finish. To see a game you love enriched and enhanced in a way that also leaves the original framework intact is a wonderful thing. The team at Nixxes continue to bring excellent ports our way and they have earned their reputation as a safe pair of hands. My hope is that work on the next single-player Horizon game is well underway and we will soon see news of Aloy's next adventure.