Topic: Horizon: Zero: Dawn

One thing I would like to see fixed in the next game is less audio files. They sometimes throw a bunch of them in a room for story telling, and you're just sitting there, hoping for interesting plot points to be revealed. But it doesn't make for fun or good gameplay IMO. It should be integrated more seamlessly, and maybe less files close together in a room, so you can keep moving.

@Octane God, that’s a game mechanic I hate, especially when they’re missable (and even more so if they’re purposefully hidden).

Nothing will ever top MGS5 for that; having to find a quiet corner to hide in to listen to a ten minute cassette about hamburgers was not my idea of fun.

@Thrillho Yeah, I really tuned out of the story near the end because of it.

Audio files in general are an incredibly lazy method of story-telling. Sort of an evolution of the hand-written notes you'd find scattered around in Resident Evil, although even that usually showed more signs of creativity (I forget the context, but I really liked the diary where each entry became more animalistic as the T-virus gradually destroyed the researcher's mind).

@Gremio108 The game's combat became instantly forgettable whenever humans were involved. The game's mechanics are built around fights with the robots, and it shows.

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy I'm a master at messing around. I will get there eventually, promise.

@Ralizah Yeah I could live without the bandit camps. I quite like chucking rocks around and messing with their heads though

@Octane A room full of audio files is usually my cue to go and get a brew and/or a snack!

I've said it before and I'll say it again - I've never seen Aloy in the same room as Zac Effron. They have the same exact face.

@Gremio108 Its a pity you get quite some backstory from the collectables.

@Flaming_Kaiser Don't get me wrong, I do listen to them! I just go and get a cup of coffee because I know I won't be moving Aloy around much for a few minutes

@Gremio108 Ah ok i really dislike collectables but these add too the story its fun too get them. 😃

Did anyone else find The Frozen Wilds quite tricky? These 'Daemonic' versions of the machines are kicking my backside quite a bit. Thank God I've got this shield-weaver armour, or I might have to actually use some medicine.

@Gremio108 Yeah, the DLC is tricky. Those polar bear machines are definitely harder than a Thunderjaw. But you'll get the hang of it. I still think that preparation is key. I used to set dozens of traps and then lure the enemy around the battlefield into the traps I set beforehand.

I still find those robots that burrow under the ground to be way harder than anything in the DLC thus far. The daemonic frostclaws are a bit aggressive, but an upgraded Forgefire will melt them like butter.

Oh, btw, if anyone is struggling to find enough blaze for the Forgefire, I recommend using harvest arrows on grazers. The blast wire challenge in the first hunting grounds is a great way to farm a ton of blaze containers quickly.

Just equip sneaky-sneak armor, silently stealth kill the grazers, then shoot off the containers on their backs one at a time with those harvest arrows. You'll get 24 blaze per machine.

@RogerRoger @Octane I'm playing on normal, which has been just the right side of challenging so far. I think I'm getting the hang of these enemies by now (read: spamming the ropecaster) but yeah it all got a bit Dark Souls in that canyon at the start of the DLC.

The problem I seem to have in this game is that if I unequip a weapon for a bit, such as the trip wires, I forget about it. Not a problem I usually have. I must be getting old.

@Ralizah I found the underground guys manageable until there were two of them, then they were an absolute nightmare. There was a corruption zone with two of them and I had to come back to it after I'd got my fancy armour.

@Gremio108 Trip wires are the best! Seriously. I once OHKO'd one of those big birds (not the smaller ones) by setting up a big net of explosive trip wires near a cliff. I stood underneath it, lured the bird with an arrow, it flew into it, exploded and it was death. At that moment I realised nothing is impossible. Trip wires are the solution to life.

@Octane I can't think of a game which wouldn't benefit from the addition of trip wires. Maybe Fifa?

No, I stand by my original statement.

@RogerRoger I think the Rattler and Tearblaster are the only weapons I never bothered to use in HZD. The former because, well, I just don't see a use for it, and the latter because the Shadow Sharpshot Bow + Tearblast Arrows with powerful mods is infinitely superior when it comes to quickly stripping robots.

Otherwise, almost every weapon in my arsenal has a use.

@RogerRoger I only do that with enemies that literally won't relent, like Fireclaws. Otherwise, I enjoy going full Macaulay Culkin and designing arenas full of death traps for enemies to stumble into. It's good times stringing up 20 - 30 blast wires, in particular, and then watching robots awkwardly run around trying to find a way through them. Or stunning robots and them surrounding them with blast wires. You've gotta have fun in life.

I use the ropecaster primarily to anchor those annoying Stormbirds. Otherwise, I'd rather be doing damage.

I used them on the smaller birds for a long time before discovering that they're hilariously weak to fire.

@RogerRoger I won't lie. Anytime I see Glinthawks in the distance, I equip my sneaky armor and then squat walk around them as quickly as possible. I don't detest them as much as Watchers (walking piles of garbage that exist solely to be annoying when I'm trying to fight something actually interesting), but the way they fly around everywhere is still irritating.

But yes, combat against robots is THE area where this game excels. It has some of the best combat I've ever seen in a video game. Adapts well to varied play-styles. A large arsenal of unique weapons to employ. Actual strategy when it comes to defeating the various robots.

MGSV is another one of those games I kind of guiltily glance at every time I log onto my PS4 before going to play something else. Not sure why it's so difficult for me to convince myself to start playing it!

The DLC doesn't have any credits, btw. How far in are you?

@RogerRoger I haven't bothered with the balloons at all, maybe because I keep forgetting about them. I agree about tying the robots down - it instantly makes me feel sorry for them, even if they've been kicking my are for ten minutes. @Ralizah the DLC has forced me to expand my arsenal and as a result I'm glad I played it.

My eldest son had started playing it, and he's using tactics that I either didn't know about or once knew but have since forgot. This knowledge, coupled with the weapons I'll get from the Frozen Wilds, is making me eye up an Ultra Hard playthrough. By my reckoning that's the only trophy I won't have by the time I'm done, so I'm tempted to give it a go.

@RogerRoger Also I've never played the second Parappa, one of my biggest gaming regrets. I'm sort of waiting for a remaster that probably isn't coming.