Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered Review

by Guerrilla Games 0 text

Aloy’s dino-hunting gets a shiny new coat.

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered brings Guerrilla Games' acclaimed 2017 action RPG into the current generation, offering enhanced visuals, refined mechanics, and a more immersive experience. Set in a post-apocalyptic world where robotic creatures roam, players follow Aloy, a skilled hunter uncovering the mysteries of her past and the world's downfall. This remaster aims to align the original game with the visual and technical standards set by its sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, providing both newcomers and returning players a refreshed journey through a richly detailed world.

Gameplay 8

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered retains the core gameplay mechanics that made the original a standout title, focusing on exploration, combat, and crafting within an open-world environment. Players control Aloy, utilizing a variety of weapons and tools to hunt mechanical beasts and navigate diverse terrains.

Combat and Mechanics
The combat system emphasizes strategic planning and adaptability. Aloy’s arsenal includes bows with various arrow types, slingshots, and traps, each suited for different enemy types and situations. The remaster maintains the original's emphasis on targeting specific weak points on machines, requiring players to study enemy behaviors and plan attacks accordingly. The inclusion of new accessibility options, such as gyro aiming, enhances control precision, catering to a broader range of player preferences.

Exploration and World Design
The game's open world is expansive, featuring diverse biomes ranging from lush forests to arid deserts. The remaster introduces more dynamic environmental interactions, such as deformable snow and sand, adding depth to exploration. The addition of more non-player characters (NPCs) and wildlife populates the world, making settlements and wilderness areas feel more alive and immersive.

Crafting and Resource Management
Crafting remains integral, with players collecting resources to create ammunition, traps, and potions. While the core crafting system is unchanged, the remaster benefits from improved inventory management, streamlining the process and reducing downtime during gameplay.

Performance and Technical Enhancements
The remaster offers multiple performance modes, including options prioritizing resolution or frame rate, allowing players to tailor their experience. The game runs smoothly on PlayStation 5, with faster loading times and stable performance, enhancing the overall gameplay experience.

Accessibility Features
In addition to gyro aiming, the remaster includes options to adjust weapon wheel speed, remap controls, and modify difficulty settings, making the game more accessible to a wider audience.

Conclusion
While the core gameplay mechanics remain largely unchanged, the technical enhancements and quality-of-life improvements in Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered provide a more polished and immersive experience. The game successfully balances maintaining the original's strengths with modern updates, offering both new and returning players a compelling adventure.

Graphics 9

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered delivers a significant visual overhaul, aligning the game's aesthetics with contemporary standards and enhancing the immersive quality of its world.

Environmental Enhancements

The remaster introduces higher-density foliage, improved terrain textures, and more detailed water reflections. These enhancements create a more vibrant and realistic environment, with dynamic lighting and weather effects adding to the atmospheric depth. The inclusion of deformable snow and sand further enhances environmental interactions, making the world feel more responsive to player actions.

Character Models and Animations

Character models, particularly Aloy’s, have been updated with higher-resolution textures and more detailed facial animations. The remaster incorporates over 10 hours of new motion-capture data, resulting in more natural and expressive character interactions. NPCs exhibit improved behaviors and animations, contributing to a more lifelike world.

Lighting and Visual Effects

The game's lighting system has been reworked to provide more realistic illumination and shadowing. While the remaster does not utilize ray tracing, the enhanced lighting techniques effectively create a visually compelling experience. The updated cloud systems and atmospheric effects add to the visual richness, making the world feel dynamic and alive.

Performance Modes

Players can choose between performance modes that prioritize resolution or frame rate. The game supports 4K resolution at 30fps or 1800p at 60fps, allowing players to select their preferred balance between visual fidelity and smoothness.

Conclusion

The graphical improvements in Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered elevate the game's visual presentation, making it comparable to modern titles. The enhanced environments, character models, and lighting effects contribute to a more immersive and visually stunning experience.

Storyline 8

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered retains the original's compelling narrative, following Aloy's journey to uncover her origins and the mysteries of a world overrun by machines.

Narrative Structure
The story unfolds through a combination of main quests, side missions, and environmental storytelling. Players gradually piece together the history of the world and Aloy's place within it, with revelations that are both personal and impactful.

Character Development
Aloy's character arc is central to the narrative, showcasing her growth from an outcast to a key figure in the world's fate. The remaster's enhanced character animations and facial expressions add depth to her interactions, making emotional moments more resonant.

World-Building
The game's world is rich with lore, conveyed through collectibles, audio logs, and environmental details. The remaster's visual enhancements make exploring and discovering these elements more engaging, as the world feels more alive and detailed.

Inclusion of The Frozen Wilds Expansion
The remaster includes The Frozen Wilds expansion, adding a new region, characters, and storylines. This additional content expands the narrative and provides further insight into the game's world and its inhabitants.

Conclusion
The storyline of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered remains a strong aspect of the game, with its engaging plot and well-developed characters. The visual and performance enhancements of the remaster serve to deepen the narrative experience, making it more immersive and emotionally impactful.

Multiplayer N/A

Multiplayer section not found

Issues and Community Feedback

The release of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered has sparked discussions within the gaming community regarding the necessity and value of remastering a relatively recent title. Some players appreciate the enhanced visuals and performance improvements, noting that the remaster provides a more polished experience for newcomers and returning fans alike. The inclusion of updated character models, improved lighting, and additional accessibility features has been well-received by those who value technical advancements.

Conclusion 8

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered successfully brings a beloved title into the current generation, offering enhanced visuals, improved performance, and additional accessibility features. While the core gameplay and narrative remain unchanged, the technical upgrades provide a more immersive and polished experience. The remaster serves as an excellent entry point for newcomers and a worthwhile revisit for fans of the original. However, the necessity of remastering a relatively recent game may be a point of contention for some players.

Player Quotes

Please note that this review is based on the feedback and sentiments of players on various Reddit threads and does not represent the views of all players.

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