The enthralling gaming universe of Horizon Forbidden West has unveiled its Complete Edition for PlayStation, bringing forth a captivating narrative blended with realistic characters and scenic landscapes.
‘Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition’: Here’s what you can expect
The game, set in a post-apocalyptic world, reels gamers into a vivid realm filled with unique cultures, enormous machines, and a story revolving around the protagonist, Aloy.
The game’s narrative is built meticulously, ensuring that each character Aloy encounters has a well-defined personality, background, and a set of motives.
The narrative team at Guerrilla, the game’s developer, embarked on an elaborate journey to weave authentic personas, each adding a distinct flavour to the story.
The characters, hailing from different tribes with diverse beliefs and traditions, cross paths with Aloy, driving the narrative forward.
Central to the character development process is the quest to understand what each character desires, initiating a conflict that propels the storyline.
Annie Kitain, the lead writer, shares that delving into a character’s desires and the hurdles they face helps in crafting dialogue and subtext, thus adding layers to the narrative.
The narrative doesn’t just dwell on dialogues but also explores the unspoken, giving players a chance to understand the characters better. The characters’ attitudes towards Aloy evolve as the story progresses, influenced by her actions.
This dynamic interaction adds a touch of realism, enhancing the gaming experience. The narrative team’s efforts don’t stop at writing. They collaborate extensively with design, cinematics, art, and audio teams to ensure that the emotional beats resonate with the story’s pacing.
The journey from narrative creation to character implementation is a collaborative endeavour, aiming to strike the right chord with the players. Casting plays a pivotal role in character realization.
Jochen Willemsen, the associate cinematic director, emphasises the meticulous process involved in casting, ensuring that the chosen actors can resonate with the character’s essence and contribute to the narrative’s vision.
The acting in Horizon Forbidden West presents a unique challenge as it often happens without real sets or costumes, akin to green screen acting.
This necessitates a deeper level of engagement from the directors to provide the actors with the required context and keep them intertwined with the material.
A memorable scene mentioned by Jochen involves Aloy and Morlund, which, despite the challenge of recording voice-overs separately, was brought to life through a deep understanding of the scene’s vision.
Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition will launch on PlayStation 5 on Friday, 6 October 2023. The prized edition will only be available on PC in early 2024.
