Horizon Forbidden West: 10 Things To Know Before Starting The Game (2024)

In Horizon Forbidden West, Aloy travels deep into the Forbidden West, a vast territory where survival requires mastery of the game's combat, exploration, and traversal mechanics. With dozens of side quests and lots of new machines, the sheer scale of Horizon Forbidden West can be overwhelming. However, a few tips and tricks can help you and Aloy find your feet in this dangerous new frontier.

Assuming you've beat Forbidden West's challenge to your storage space, you can complete the game's tutorial mission and exploreThe Daunt. This relatively peaceful border region serves as an extended tutorial space where you can practice these beginner tips and tricks.

Don't Count On Shield Weaver

Horizon Zero Dawn's Best Armor Set Isn't The Best Anymore

Following an unspecified mishap, Aloy's Shield Weaver armor has been depowered and no longer has the energy shield that made it the best armor set in Horizon Zero Dawn. In Horizon Forbidden West it functions as basic starting armor with limited upgrade potential. As you progress through the game, it just won't compare to your new enemies or other available armor sets.

Each armor set can be upgraded at workbenches. It has its own resistance and weaknesses to specific types of damage and unlockable slots for installing Armor Weave upgrades. Different armor sets also benefit different playstyles; some might boost Aloy's ranged weapon attacks, while others are designed to augment machine overrides, stealth, or the effects of potions. In summary, find and upgrade some new armor quickly.

Don't Worry About Missing Collectibles And Secrets

Some Secrets Are Hidden By Design

As you explore the Forbidden West, you will come across quite a few dead ends: puzzles that can't be solved, collectibles you can't reach, mysterious areas that can't be explored, and more. Often, the solution is to walk away. If you can't figure out how to reach something, Aloy doesn't yet have the right tools to get it.

Some collectibles and secrets, such as The Daunt's Relic Ruin and the Signal Lenses collectibles, can be solved or obtained when you first encounter them. However, this is not always possible, so feel free to progress the story and come back later. Major points of interest will be marked on your map for convenience, and over time, the main story's events may provide exactly what you need.

Use Your Skill Points Wisely

Settle On One Playstyle Early In The Game

Earning skill points in Horizon Forbidden West is pretty straightforward, but deciding what to use them on is hard. There are six separate skill trees, each with its own passive skills (buffs), active skills, unlockable weapon techniques, and Valor Surges. There are some skills you should unlock first, as they benefit Aloy regardless of playstyle.

However, even though all of the trees have useful skills, it's worth settling on a broad playstyle early in the game. Trapper skills aren't the best use of skill points if you want to focus on ranged weapons or stealth or vice versa.

Use Multiple Weapons And Experiment With Weapon Types

Be Prepared For Surprises

Forbidden West expands on Horizon Zero Dawn's already impressive arsenal by introducing new weapon types and elemental damage. Some weapon types are better than others, but ultimately, you determine how Aloy fights based on your preferred playstyle. Experimenting with new weapons such as the Boltblaster, Spike Thrower, and Shredder Gauntlet gives you exciting options for hunting machines.

Having multiple weapons in your weapon wheel is essential. The machines of the Forbidden West are just as varied as your weapons; to be effective, you should completely fill your weapon wheel. Damage-dealing bows are great, but you should also have weapons capable of dealing most if not all, elemental damage types.

Glue bombs, explosive-tipped spears, and sonic arrows are all bonuses. By the mid-game, the challenge is more about figuring out which weapons deserve a slot on your weapon wheel.

Scan Machines With The Focus

Fight Smarter, Not Harder

Every machine, from the smallest Burrower to the mammoth-sized Tremortusk, has strengths, weaknesses, vulnerabilities, and resistances. Scanning them with Aloy's Focus reveals all of this and more, giving you vital information about what you're up against. This helps you decide which weapons to use, which elemental damage types to use, and which weak points to hit for maximum damage.

Scanning is also more critical in Horizon Forbidden West than Horizon Zero Dawn. To upgrade weapons and armor, you must hunt machines to harvest specific parts. However, certain machine parts can be destroyed if Aloy targets them during battle or if she doesn't knock them off before the machine is killed. Scanning tells you where to hit a machine, but you may also need to use that information to learn where not to hit it.

Make Tallnecks A Priority

Get The Lay Of The Land

Tallnecks are peaceful machines that roam certain areas of the map, and Aloy can climb up to their heads and override them to obtain map data. Unlike in Horizon Zero Dawn, where Tallnecks were relatively easy to override, Aloy now has to solve elaborate environmental puzzles to reach each Tallneck.

These puzzles are different, but the rewards for overriding Tallnecks are always worth the effort. Their map data gives you information about your local region, highlighting nearby points of interest and pinpointing nearby settlements. You also receive XP and Skill Points as a bonus reward.

Hunt And Loot Everything

Harvest Resources From Machines And The Environment

Horizon Forbidden West's world is filled with resources, ranging from the machine parts you need for upgrades to potions and medicinal plants. Everything that doesn't fit inside Aloy's inventory automatically goes to the Stash: a kind of camp inventory that you can use to restock and rearm.

The Stash has unlimited space, so you should loot everything you find. You might need machine parts for future upgrades, and collecting lots of berries means you can easily refill Aloy's medicine pouch.

All resources you find are useful in some way. Once you have late-game armor and weapons, your approach will change towards challenging big machines like the Tideripper for a chance to harvest specific rare parts. However, hunting different machine types and harvesting everything means you will be less likely to run out of the resources to heal, craft ammo, or upgrade gear.

Tackle Side Quests (And Errands If You Have Time)

They're Worth The Rewards

Horizon Forbidden West divides its side activities into two categories: Side Quests and Errands. Side Quests tend to be longer and offer the most significant rewards, including XP, Skill Points, and unique weapons and armor. In contrast, Errands takes less time but still gives rewards, including unlockable face paint for Aloy.

It's highly recommended that you complete any side quests you find. Forbidden West's side quests respect your time by offering some of the game's best side stories. They also give Aloy the chance to connect with allies old and new. Errands can be fun diversions, with one even teaching you how to play Machine Strike.

Use Valor Surges

Unlock Aloy's Best Abilities

Valor Surges are Aloy's most potent abilities. As you defeat enemies in combat, you gain Valor Points, eventually allowing you to trigger a Valor Surge ability. This includes abilities such as Warrior's Vigor, which doubles Aloy's spear and bow damage, and Overshield, which gives Aloy an energy shield that absorbs damage.

Figuring out how Valor Surges work is the key to success in Horizon Forbidden West. However, they're also expensive to unlock. Each Valor Surge requires you to unlock the three skills around it in the skill tree. This usually costs 5 Skill Points, but to get the most out of Them, you will have to spend even more Skill Points to upgrade them.

Finally, Aloy can only have one Valor Surge equipped at any one time. When it comes to spending skill points, it's important you choose wisely.

Tweak Your Exploration Settings

Balance Immersion With Ease Of Exploration

Horizon Forbidden West introduces a few settings you can toggle to tweak your experience. Under Settings - General, you can choose between Explorer and Guided modes for Quest and Waypoint Pathfinding. Explorer mode marks your current objective or waypoint but leaves you to figure out your exact route. Guided mode marks the objective and shows you a route towards it. Guided mode will show you markers at intersections and turns if you're riding one of Forbidden West's machine mounts.

You also have the option to choose whether you want Climbing Annotations Always On. This determines whether climbing handholds are always marked with yellow outlines or whether Aloy has to scan for them first with her Focus. These settings let you find the right balance between immersion and making exploration more accessible.

Horizon Forbidden West isn't the easiest game to pick up and play. However, knowing a few important tips and tricks can help you find your feet in the Forbidden West.