• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Horizon: Zero Dawn | Review Thread

Status
Not open for further replies.

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
Austin in his preview talk didn't like it because it was not super self ironic and fun but rather serious.

Not that you would have the answer but what does he mean it isn't super self ironic? Like I'm not even sure what the irony in the story is supposed to be?
 
It isn't apparent in the videos from Gamersyde.

Edit: But you know, the machines supposedly destroyed a lot of biological life, so that could explain in part the lifelessness. Still, if there's still small animals, why not small birds as well for instance?

The game has dynamic weather. There will be varying winds, dust storms, rain, etc.

Also, there are birds (among other things like fireflies). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwI6-jKlsO0
 

Tyaren

Member
It isn't apparent in the videos from Gamersyde.

Edit: But you know, the machines supposedly destroyed a lot of biological life, so that could explain in part the lifelessness. Still, if there's still small animals, why not small birds as well for instance?

There are birds, there are also dragonflies, fireflies and all kinds of insects flying around. You also mentioned the ants crawling up the tree yourself.

Can you by the way show us some gameplay scenes that show us how much more detailed and natural BotW's world is, as you claimed?
 

KZObsessed

Member
It isn't apparent in the videos from Gamersyde.

Edit: But you know, the machines supposedly destroyed a lot of biological life, so that could explain in part the lifelessness. Still, if there's still small animals, why not small birds as well for instance?

Environment video 3 for grass moving and video 6 for leaves. There are small animals and birds as well. To me the environments look pretty dynamic. Dynamic enough anyway. They can always do more. It is post-post apocalyptic tho.

I think once you're playing it and there's crazy battles going on, the world will feel much more dynamic. These videos are slow static videos just showing off some environments, the world isn't going to look too exciting in them.
 
There are birds, there are also dragonflies and fireflies flying around. You also mentioned the ants crawling up the tree yourself.

Can you by the way show us some gameplay scenes that show us how much more detailed and natural BotW's world is, as you claimed?
He can't, because it isn't.
They are both allowed to be good games. Why does Zelda constantly get brought up here?
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
It's technically impressive and gorgeous but it looks super static to me. Nothing moves from afar, it's a bit lifeless in those videos.
Sorry to bring Breath of the Wild here (again), but its world seem more natural and lively.
Pure technical prowess don't always make a world.
Zelda has more little details from what I've seen. The small ants on a tree is the only little touch that impressed me so far in Horizon (Only speaking about little details in the environment here).
Still an amazing looking (and playing apparently) game.

Did we look at the same videos? Some shots are of a fairly static environment but there are tons of others where all the vegetation is being whipped about by the wind, another where the fog is drifting through the trees, and another where the wind is being whipped up. I'm a little baffled by how you came to the idea from those vids that the game is lifeless.
 

hydruxo

Member
I think Austin's complaint at that point was that the game seemed humorless and overly self-serious, but that was when he'd only played about an hour of preview I think. After having beaten it his main complaints were enemy variety, how 1 strategy worked throughout the game for almost all encounters, and how the side content was repetitively structured. That, and how the game sort of plays its hand in the first 10 hours and the rest is fairly similar. I've heard vastly different opinions on all of this though, so I still think I'll enjoy the game when it comes out.

Bolded seems like a strange complaint to me. I've never felt like a game needed to have humor.
 
It's technically impressive and gorgeous but it looks super static to me. Nothing moves from afar, it's a bit lifeless in those videos.
Sorry to bring Breath of the Wild here (again), but its world seem more natural and lively.
Pure technical prowess don't always make a world.
Zelda has more little details from what I've seen. The small ants on a tree is the only little touch that impressed me so far in Horizon (Only speaking about little details in the environment here).
Still an amazing looking (and playing apparently) game.

Disagree completely.

My one big complaint about Zelda is how dead and devoid of life it looks. The games artstyle cannot save an otherwise medicore looking and bland world.
 
D

Deleted member 752119

Unconfirmed Member
Bolded seems like a strange complaint to me. I've never felt like a game needed to have humor.

Agreed.

But I do get that some people prefer things like Nintendo games that have cartoony art styles and don't take themselves seriously.

I tend to prefer more serious tones in my entertainment, so I'm kind of opposite of them and prefer playing things like this or Gears or Mass Effect and use light hearted stuff like most Nintendo games as an occasionally palette cleanser.

Just different strokes for different folks and all that.

Disagree completely.

My one big complaint about Zelda is how dead and devoid of life it looks. The games artstyle cannot save an otherwise medicore looking and bland world.

Yeah, though I also don't like Zelda's artstyle much. So that game is deprioritized behind this and Mass Effect for me. Along with other things I worry I won't like in Zelda like weapon degredation, guardian one-shot kills of Link, having not seen how the dungeons stack up to the best dungeons in past Zelda games etc.
 
Bolded seems like a strange complaint to me. I've never felt like a game needed to have humor.
I think it's the notion that something as crazy as robot dinosaurs should be kind of silly and fun because robot dinosaurs are silly (and also reminiscent of campy 80s cartoons and toys)
 
They gave the game 4/5, so they can't really be too negative about it. Not listening though.

I only listened a bit before bailing due to fear of spoilers. Didn't seem to bad. Brandon started by talking about the things he didn't like but said he loved everything else.

10 min in he only seemed to have issues with parts of the story and one other thing.
 
Disagree completely.

My one big complaint about Zelda is how dead and devoid of life it looks. The games artstyle cannot save an otherwise medicore looking and bland world.

I think it looks quite charming (expected I guess) but also really empty, like if the console couldn't handle several models on screen at the same time.
Reminds me on those quests in some games: "oh I've been there, it's crowded, could barely see anything" and when you get there there's only five models and your characters say "oh look how many people are here"... -_-
 

KZObsessed

Member
Disagree completely.

My one big complaint about Zelda is how dead and devoid of life it looks. The games artstyle cannot save an otherwise medicore looking and bland world.

I feel the same but didn't initially want to continue the Zelda comparisons. But yeah, Zelda's overworld looks really dull to me, mainly because of the enemies and how barren it is. I'm not even that mad about the art style to be honest. I like muted colours and love the look of Team Ico games but Botw just looks bland to me. It's the dungeons where Zelda shines tho.
 

Servbot24

Banned
It's technically impressive and gorgeous but it looks super static to me. Nothing moves from afar, it's a bit lifeless in those videos.
Sorry to bring Breath of the Wild here (again), but its world seem more natural and lively.
Pure technical prowess don't always make a world.
Zelda has more little details from what I've seen. The small ants on a tree is the only little touch that impressed me so far in Horizon (Only speaking about little details in the environment here).
Still an amazing looking (and playing apparently) game.

Eh? Zelda looks completely dead. I don't hold it against the game since it's on bad hardware, but that seems like a really strange game to prop up as an example of an open world teeming with life.
 
My biggest problem with Zelda is how barren it looks. I'm fine with almost everything else.

I think it's the notion that something as crazy as robot dinosaurs should be kind of silly and fun because robot dinosaurs are silly (and also reminiscent of campy 80s cartoons and toys)
Yeah, this is probably what it is. Like, there is something goofy about the concept itself on paper. I could see something more zany and silly out of the concept but this shouldn't be docked for not going that route.
 
Yeah, this is probably what it is. Like, there is something goofy about the concept itself on paper. I could see something more zany and silly out of the concept but this shouldn't be docked for not going that route.

If written well there's nothing wrong with a game that takes itself seriously. I find the Tomb Raider reboot games way too self serious but that's mainly cause they're just poorly written.
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
My biggest problem with Zelda is how barren it looks. I'm fine with almost everything else.

Yeah, this is probably what it is. Like, there is something goofy about the concept itself on paper. I could see something more zany and silly out of the concept but this shouldn't be docked for not going that route.

I made this post in many other Horizon thread but a good amount of modern day robotics are based on actual organic designs and living creatures in our world right now. This isn't a new concept either as the original planes were partially inspired by the wings of birds and now a days you have stuff like the Big Dog robots. There is no need to reinvent the wheel when evolution and nature did a wonderful job of providing us with the basic templates for how things like locomotion, swimming, flying, climbing, etc. So I never saw the robodinos/creatures in this game as a silly notion but one that is reinforced by our very modern day technology and designs.
 

KooopaKid

Banned
The game has dynamic weather. There will be varying winds, dust storms, rain, etc.

Also, there are birds (among other things like fireflies). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwI6-jKlsO0

This looked more dynamic than any of the gamersyde videos.

There are birds, there are also dragonflies, fireflies and all kinds of insects flying around. You also mentioned the ants crawling up the tree yourself.

Can you by the way show us some gameplay scenes that show us how much more detailed and natural BotW's world is, as you claimed?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rPxiXXxftE&t=3m2s

More things are moving. Also the environment sounds are more elaborate I think.

Environment video 3 for grass moving and video 6 for leaves. There are small animals and birds as well. To me the environments look pretty dynamic. Dynamic enough anyway. They can always do more. It is post-post apocalyptic tho.

I think once you're playing it and there's crazy battles going on, the world will feel much more dynamic. These videos are slow static videos just showing off some environments, the world isn't going to look too exciting in them.

On the third video, the grass is moving but beyond that everything is very static. The clouds aren't moving and so on. The footage from Zelda I shown earlier looks more alive for me.
Anyway, you're right, I won't be too noticeable during action, it doesn't matter too much. I just prefer Zelda's rendition of a living world.
 

bombshell

Member
Platinum trophy achieved.
Pretty amazing experience.
Already want a sequel with multiplayer coop!

image.php


Congratulations :)
 
This looked more dynamic than any of the gamersyde videos.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rPxiXXxftE&t=3m2s

More things are moving. Also the environment sounds are more elaborate I think.



On the third video, the grass is moving but beyond that everything is very static. The clouds aren't moving and so on. The footage from Zelda I shown earlier looks more alive for me.
Anyway, you're right, I won't be too noticeable during action, it doesn't matter too much. I just prefer Zelda's rendition of a living world.
You convinced me. 7 seconds of a splash screen in a trailer have proved that Zelda is way more dynamic for sure than the myriad videos out there for Horizon.
 
I think it's the notion that something as crazy as robot dinosaurs should be kind of silly and fun because robot dinosaurs are silly (and also reminiscent of campy 80s cartoons and toys)


But its the universe, and its tone works - in keeping with some of the savagery of the world. There are bits of humour here and there. The dialogue for one, Its occasional and it works. Horizon doesn't need to be humourous.
 

KooopaKid

Banned
Not to harp on this but your own point about nothing moving in the background of those Horizon videos applies as much to this BotW clip. Not much is really happening outside of grass blowing.

The clouds, fog and flag in the distance? Horizon's skyboxes are quite static, or maybe its day cycle is way longer than Zelda?
 
If written well there's nothing wrong with a game that takes itself seriously. I find the Tomb Raider reboot games way too self serious but that's mainly cause they're just poorly written.
Yep, agreed. The writing is definitely crucial.

Platinum trophy achieved.
Pretty amazing experience.
Already want a sequel with multiplayer coop!
Congrats!

I made this post in many other Horizon thread but a good amount of modern day robotics are based on actual organic designs and living creatures in our world right now. This isn't a new concept either as the original planes were partially inspired by the wings of birds and now a days you have stuff like the Big Dog robots. There is no need to reinvent the wheel when evolution and nature did a wonderful job of providing us with the basic templates for how things like locomotion, swimming, flying, climbing, etc. So I never saw the robodinos/creatures in this game as a silly notion but one that is reinforced by our very modern day technology and designs.
I see what you're saying but I can also see how it could be viewed in that silly kind of way. I think it just depends on which direction you want to go with it. Either way could work and it is fine with things being more serious here.
 

Unknown?

Member
It isn't apparent in the videos from Gamersyde.

Edit: But you know, the machines supposedly destroyed a lot of biological life, so that could explain in part the lifelessness. Still, if there's still small animals, why not small birds as well for instance?
Then do more research? Like real life, there will be times there isn't any wind!
 

HStallion

Now what's the next step in your master plan?
The clouds, fog and flag in the distance? Horizon's skyboxes are quite static, or maybe its day cycle is way longer than Zelda?

Its not even that, there are some incredible weather effects like sandstorms in the dessert that reach out into the distance.

giphy.gif


You can also see tons of machines in the valley below Aloy in this gif all moving about.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom