It would have been relatively easy for Guerrilla Games to rest on its laurels and put out a Forbidden West-like Horizon expansion. In some ways, the Burning Shores DLC is just that: a distilled helping of what made the core game so great – a sci-fi story heightened with pulpy wrapping built from high-octane action. You will once again battle machines, solve puzzles, and climb tall structures. But Guerrilla has done a lot more here, discovering new machines to add surprises and introducing even more fun ways to defeat them. Aside from the designed ending, it’s a worthy addition to the Horizon series.
After the main campaign ends, this DLC summons you to LA to find clues that may help you against the looming threat introduced at the end of the Forbidden West storyline. The famed Burning Shores is an archipelago roughly four times the size of the San Francisco area on the main map and shares much of that area’s visual identity. While it’s a wise decision to echo the Forbidden West’s prominent location (sand still glistening, water shimmering), lava flowing here is a natural representation of the growing dangers lurking in Burning Shores. It wastes no time throwing you into that danger and plunges straight into the exciting rhythm of Horizon combat.
At first, I found myself scrambling in the sand to rediscover half-buried techniques like floating in the air and slowing down time, but I soon found myself back in the Zone and tectonic plates. styled to slide under me. Burning Shores doesn’t dangle when it introduces new methods of machine destruction, such as explosive crystals that collapse ruins onto nearby enemies. Due to the clustered island nature of this new area, the level design naturally tends to create large, contained spaces that are perfect as action-packed arenas. The combat encounters that unfold in these spaces are as fulfilling as any Guerrilla has ever created in the Horizon series, with a wide variety of enemies to combine and environments full of opportunity. increase.
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Several new threats have joined the party to further strengthen that mechanical menagerie. Exciting new weapons are being introduced to your arsenal, and the odds are even. I don’t mean to spoil what’s here, but it’s a very fun and powerful addition that I quickly came to rely on in subsequent fights.
There are also new abilities added to the skill tree, some of which are very effective and, importantly, fun to use. Grapple Critical Strike solves the previous lingering problem of dispatching downed but distant enemies, and one of the new Balor Surge ultimate abilities sends surrounding machines into berserker mode, causing frenzy with each other. Forcing it causes gleeful chaos.
The rendering of the city itself is excellent, further highlighting that Forbidden West is one of the most beautiful games ever made. Some landmarks still remain, such as the crumbling shell of the Capitol Records building. These days, the music is just a rattling mash-up of metal and electronic to the hum and crackle of machines.
The new environments not only look beautiful, but they also bring new quirks to the gameplay. Erupting geysers offer the opportunity to glide high in the air, providing effective combat options when pouncing on unsuspecting threats. Ballistas are used as much for their puzzle-solving abilities as they are for their destructive abilities, as they create new paths in cliffs with bolts. It’s this smart arrangement of multiple, versatile equipment that serves as a further display of the clever level design shown here (ending aside).
Most of the fight is a thrill, and when Burning Shores flattens out a bit in that big moment, it becomes a deflating anti-climax. . Then there’s the grand final encounter. The jerky action can’t match the spectacle as you bounce around the arena like a ragdoll while trying to find a window to deal damage.When compared to Horizon’s trademark fluid combat , is a sin of stuttering and a disappointing finale that doesn’t sit well with most of Burning Shores’ runtime. It’s a fun adventure that ends in a clunky sound, both mechanically and narratively, and defies some of Horizon’s sci-fi trappings.
However, it never forgets to focus on the humanity of the situation, further fleshing out Aloy as a lovable and relatable character. Brought to you thanks to the introduction of , the duo help each other unlock themselves. Seika proves to be a valuable companion to her, not just in combat, but by offloading the plotting burden from Aloy. Definitively giving her someone to talk to, be merciful and spend less time telling you about what she keeps in her stash. Special mention must be made of Lia Paige.
Great scenes of both quiet and loud places are interspersed between the two scenes, and some highlights are Horizon’s lens on our history through old-world architecture. It’s time. One area in particular, he’s gleeful, as an amusement park-like vein through LA is reexposed hundreds of years later.
The two protagonists are cut from the same cloth, both outsiders who have learned to be part of a larger whole, and as they navigate Burning Shores together, there is a sense of fun between them. dynamics are created. If Forbidden West is all about her Aloy learning to work with others, Burning Shores feasts on the fruits of those efforts thanks to her competitiveness, but the dynamics with Seyka are gradually becomes softer. There’s no doubt that there will be debates about how their chapter ends together, but even if this particular finish line seemed rushed so far, we’re still learning about Aloy as a character in the series. I felt that it was almost consistent with that, slightly.
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Burning Shores is basically one long side quest, and a similar diversion was part of Forbidden West’s high point, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s a worthwhile addition to character development and the inevitable sequel. It sometimes struggles to balance the feel of a bridge. Despite the villain’s slight influence, Burning Shores ultimately feels like an important chapter in Aloy’s story, not necessarily one for the entire Horizon universe.
Of course, this side quest also has a side quest. Each is often tied into a personal tale of intrigue and anguish delivered by a once again solid supporting cast. The design is the best in its class, sparing no detail.
