Horizon Zero Dawn

[poing]

I got this for free when I bought another PS4 from Argos this week (I only wanted to buy a new controller but got a 500gb ps4 slim, spare controller and free game for £200 so full on man maths at work) and it's not my normal style of game.

It's stunning looking but I'm struggling with the controls as it's not my normal thing which means I keep screwing up. Even playing it on normal mode I'm finding it hard to play and I do get bored of all the cut scene things, pretty as they are, I just end up skipping them.

I'm not sure it's for me but I'll give it another hour or two.

[Civpilot]

I got this on release day but didn't get to play it until Friday afternoon.

Now I have never got on with the Tomb Raider games as I never felt fully 'connected' to the main protagonist. I was just controlling a character. With the way this game sets up 'Aloy' from a young girl It's worked in getting me caring about what happens. (That moment with the 'Jump' transition to adult hood was very clever). So although there are a few cut scenes in the story I'm not actually minding them. For once I feel like I am indeed part of a 'Story' so I really want to know what happens next. And if I fancy a break from that there is so much to do away from the main quest it's easy to lose an hour just hunting machines and trying out new methods of downing them. Every single 'hunt' is different.

I got a great kill on some grazers.... Shot one with a flaming arrow and hit his Blaze tanks... he went into a panic and ran into the others just as he blew up, instantly killing two more. The final survivor was so badly damaged it could only hobble and I easily caught up to it on foot. I felt bad taking it down with a single swipe of my spear. I also met my first 'Stalker'.... utter bd !. Being able to override Sawtooth's is also pretty handy They get a bit annoyed if anyone is near you once they are on your side . Had one charge off and take down an entire heard of Broadhead's and the three watchers guarding them.

All in all I think it's a fantastic game and I'm actually enjoying the story more than I did Fallout 4

[Sir Snaz]

bought this on a bit of a him on saturday ...really really enjoying it ....as has been said already ....I think its better story-line that Fallout 4 too

[rockford22]

SimianWonder said:

Any body got any feedback on the game's PS4 Pro enhancements? Just ordered a Pro to replace my vanilla PS4 and looking for something to help showcase the upgrade.

I play on a Pro and KS7000 55" - it looks absolutely stunning. It's the first game I have had that has full HDR support and the contrast as a result is the best I have seen. Switching the game off and going back to a normal 1080p image looks blurry, dull and washed out. If you want a game to showcase the PS4 Pro look no further than Horizon Zero Dawn.

In terms of the game, I'm hooked. Great combination of combat, gathering, upgrading, story and visuals. Climbed my first tall neck yesterday and spent a good few minutes just riding around on its head enjoying the sunset!

[SimianWonder]

rockford22 said:

I play on a Pro and KS7000 55" - it looks absolutely stunning. It's the first game I have had that has full HDR support and the contrast as a result is the best I have seen. Switching the game off and going back to a normal 1080p image looks blurry, dull and washed out. If you want a game to showcase the PS4 Pro look no further than Horizon Zero Dawn.

Exactly what I wanted to hear, thank you!

[SimianWonder]

I'm barely an hour in - Aloy has only just completed her Rocky-esque training montage and emerged into adulthood - but this is easily the best looking console game I've ever seen. It's genuinely breathtaking, and a real showcase for PS4 Pro.

[Doodlebug87]

SimianWonder said:

Any body got any feedback on the game's PS4 Pro enhancements? Just ordered a Pro to replace my vanilla PS4 and looking for something to help showcase the upgrade.

I have an LG OLED E6 65 inch and on the pro in 4k HDR it is the best graphics you will see full stop, including pc... Epic game too!!

[SimianWonder]

Doodlebug87 said:

SimianWonder said:

Any body got any feedback on the game's PS4 Pro enhancements? Just ordered a Pro to replace my vanilla PS4 and looking for something to help showcase the upgrade.

I have an LG OLED E6 65 inch and on the pro in 4k HDR it is the best graphics you will see full stop, including pc... Epic game too!!

Appreciate the response, but a few days late; as per previous posts, I'm playing the game on PS4 Pro as we speak!

(Yes, it really does look as good everyone says!)

[callmedave]

PW said:

I don't have a PS4, but have a feeling I'm going to eventually end up with one at some point, so was keeping an eye on this because the whole "robot animals" looked like a neat idea.

Looking at some gameplay over the weekend - it looks like the whole "it's the future, something bad happened, there's robots!" theme didn't really get past the "cool concept art" stage and is an incidental backdrop to another "Run around in tribal gear with a bow, killing things and looting to upgrade your equipment" game.

Ok, nothing wrong with that - I played similar things and enjoyed them - but it looks like you could swap the skins to be whatever animal they are impersonating and nothing about the game play would really change, and I was really hoping/expecting something more in the way of funky ideas and mechanics that justify and exploit having robot animals to the fullest, given all the hype and the rave reviews.

Ive played about 15/20hours of this so far, and your not wrong, it is that type of game. but that not to say it isnt enjoyable. The character you play is quite unique, not a typical lara croft type. some of her comebacks in the dialogue are very witty and enjoyable. The robots do express characteristics of animals, but then have other things too (shooting from their mouths for example) the scenery is absolutely beautiful and there are time you stop and just look around.

Its not for everyone and its not my no.1 game either, but personally, Im really enjoying it.

[Doofus]

How are you supposed to destroy the camp alarms?

ETA: and what's the point of so doing?

I take it I can't hack all robots without getting something extra. I've got a horsey, but can't seem to hack tigers. I'm a level 8, I think. Do I need to find a doorway thing?

Edited by Doofus on Monday 13th March 13:57

[callmedave]

Doofus said:

How are you supposed to destroy the camp alarms?

I did my first Bandit camp. i didnt touch the alarm, But i think its there for you to draw their attention to. i.e. get them all in one place.

[JohnStitch]

Doofus said:

How are you supposed to destroy the camp alarms?

ETA: and what's the point of so doing?

I take it I can't hack all robots without getting something extra. I've got a horsey, but can't seem to hack tigers. I'm a level 8, I think. Do I need to find a doorway thing?

Edited by Doofus on Monday 13th March 13:57

You can destroy the alarm by sticking your spear in it or shooting it - if guards see you as you're trying to take over the camp they'll activate the alarm and then more people will come to get you.

With regards to hacking the robots, you'll unlock more as you go along - try to get into the 'cauldrons' as they become available as I think that's where you unlock different robots

[Doofus]

JohnStitch said:

You can destroy the alarm by sticking your spear in it or shooting it - if guards see you as you're trying to take over the camp they'll activate the alarm and then more people will come to get you.

With regards to hacking the robots, you'll unlock more as you go along - try to get into the 'cauldrons' as they become available as I think that's where you unlock different robots

Thank you. Cauldrons is what I meant by 'doorways', but I couldn;t remember the name. Are they easy to spot?

I can't destroy alarms by hitting or by shooting, and neither can Mrs Doofus. Do they require specific arrows?

[Doofus]

callmedave said:

I did my first Bandit camp. i didnt touch the alarm, But i think its there for you to draw their attention to. i.e. get them all in one place.

That's what I'm doing, except that it's one of your objectives when you approach a camp.

[Doofus]

And why, exactly, do the horsey ones eat grass and say "Neigh"?

[JohnStitch]

Doofus said:

Thank you. Cauldrons is what I meant by 'doorways', but I couldn;t remember the name. Are they easy to spot?

I can't destroy alarms by hitting or by shooting, and neither can Mrs Doofus. Do they require specific arrows?

Ive only found one cauldron so far and can't remember how I came across it - I think it might have been a side mission but could be wrong - quite impressive though, would imagine on PS4 Pro/UHD it would look awesome - very 'alienesque' inside...

As for the alarms, I seem to remember getting close to one and having to press triangle which then stuck a spear through it, but I'm sure an arrow worked (could be wrong though, my memory is ste when it comes to how I've done things in computer games)

[Civpilot]

callmedave said:

PW said:

I don't have a PS4, but have a feeling I'm going to eventually end up with one at some point, so was keeping an eye on this because the whole "robot animals" looked like a neat idea.

Looking at some gameplay over the weekend - it looks like the whole "it's the future, something bad happened, there's robots!" theme didn't really get past the "cool concept art" stage and is an incidental backdrop to another "Run around in tribal gear with a bow, killing things and looting to upgrade your equipment" game.

Ok, nothing wrong with that - I played similar things and enjoyed them - but it looks like you could swap the skins to be whatever animal they are impersonating and nothing about the game play would really change, and I was really hoping/expecting something more in the way of funky ideas and mechanics that justify and exploit having robot animals to the fullest, given all the hype and the rave reviews.

Ive played about 15/20hours of this so far, and your not wrong, it is that type of game. but that not to say it isnt enjoyable. The character you play is quite unique, not a typical lara croft type. some of her comebacks in the dialogue are very witty and enjoyable. The robots do express characteristics of animals, but then have other things too (shooting from their mouths for example) the scenery is absolutely beautiful and there are time you stop and just look around.

Its not for everyone and its not my no.1 game either, but personally, Im really enjoying it.

Also to add.... the story line itself is all about why things the way they are. It doesn't start that way (it's quite a simple motivation early on) but as you get further with the main storyline missions things start to unfold and it's very much about what happened to make things the way they are and why it all happened in the first place.

I actually think the story is very much one of its strong points about the game and not just a back drop by any means, it's genuinely interesting.

[Having A Barth]

I'm up to level 37 so have been going for quite a few hours now. I've got a good way through the story and have found it very immersive. The arc develops really well the more hours you invest in it. I must admit I'm not a huge fan of the machines but they've been beautifully designed and once you get on in the game and unlock more weapons you can take them down in loads of interesting ways.

My tips would be:
Don't invest too heavily into the rope casters, the sling shots and bows are more effective.
Keep crafting to get up your ability to carry more ammo, weapons, potions and traps
Invest in really good armour early, some of the bigger machines can kill you off really quickly
Buy the maps for the relics, viewpoints, flowers and Banuk figures early on

[Civpilot]

Having A Barth said:

I'm up to level 37 so have been going for quite a few hours now. I've got a good way through the story and have found it very immersive. The arc develops really well the more hours you invest in it. I must admit I'm not a huge fan of the machines but they've been beautifully designed and once you get on in the game and unlock more weapons you can take them down in loads of interesting ways.

My tips would be:
Don't invest too heavily into the rope casters, the sling shots and bows are more effective.
Keep crafting to get up your ability to carry more ammo, weapons, potions and traps
Invest in really good armour early, some of the bigger machines can kill you off really quickly
Buy the maps for the relics, viewpoints, flowers and Banuk figures early on

Funnily enough I rate the Carja Shadow Rope caster (the heavy rope one) to be a great tool to use. Works wonders when you meet 3 or 4 Snapmaws. Rope cast 3 of them down and hit the other with tear arrows. and while he is reeling from that quickly lay down some fire trip lines. The Rope caster also helps quite well with Stalkers. I got two tied down and they couldn't cloak or charge me. Tear arrows took off their ranged weapons shortly after.

It shows one of the games strong points though, we have completely different tactics and both are perfectly fun and effective ways of playing.

Really like this game.

[callmedave]

I have 'vantage' marked on the map, but when I goto the point indicated, there is nothing there, any ideas?