Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds Review – RPG greatness expanded

Aloy has returned to Gorilla Games’ smash hit, Horizon Zero Dawn, with the release of the games first expansion, The Frozen Wilds. Not only is she back but she’s reminding everyone exactly why we fell in love with her and this game in the first place. There’s no denying that Horizon Zero Dawn captured gamer’s hearts and blew critics away when it first released with its beautifully designed and expansive open world. Not to mention a strong female protagonist and a diverse supporting cast that work to create an empowering and positive example of women in gaming. The game not only set standards for positive representation but set standards for open world RPGs in general.

The Frozen Wilds takes place within Horizon’s main campaign and is accessible around the middle of the game. For this reason alone it’s worth noting that The Frozen Wilds is NOT end game content, but rather an extension to the main story itself. Adding a new location called “The Cut“ where the nomadic tribes of the Banuk live, the expansion very aptly suggests that you be level 30 before attempting to venture there. With this I can fully agree. After coming across the first new creature of The Cut (A Scorcher) I struggled, even with my end game character. It was definitely a shock to the system and something I wouldn’t want to attempt at a lower level. Also included in the expansion are new items and a new skill tree called traveller.

As I mentioned earlier, my first experience in The Cut was against one of the new creatures, a Scorcher. Essentially the Scorcher is a giant wolf like machine that spits fireballs. This makes for a deadly combination for those not levelled high enough to traverse The Frozen Wilds or for players returning to the game after an end game hibernation like myself. It was at this point I was suddenly extremely thankful that I’d taken the time in my previous playthrough to get the shield-weaver armour that is obtainable in the main game via the Ancient Armoury quest.

Despite the allure and danger of these new creatures, there’s also a bunch of familiar ones from the game’s main campaign to worry about as well, however they aren’t as you remember them. Now hyper aggressive and tagged as Daemonic Machines, you’ll do well to keep your wits about you.

The introduction of the Daemonic taint upon the machines is a premise that Horizon players will recognise and be familiar with from the main game where Aloy was battling the Corruption. Although here in The Frozen Wilds it’s Daemonic Machines Aloy must be concerned with and all this disturbance and machine aggression appears to be linked with the mysterious Daemon.

Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds’ new cast of misfit characters has particularly captured my heart this time around. Whilst there were particular stand outs in the main game, characters in The Frozen Wilds definitely have a much better sense of humour and seem more endearing. It’s true that it’s simple enough to forge on with the main game of The Frozen Wilds, however the side quests really shine through with some excellent comedic moments which for me were lacking in Horizon itself. Moments such as  a haphazard and lovable explorer called  Gildun and a bumbling yet hilarious new Werak of Banuk trying to make good on a deal and looking to make a name for themselves, temporarily known as ‘The Burning Turkeys’.

As you progress through these quests and the new locations you’ll begin to notice that the Banuk deal mainly in a currency known as Bluegleam. This is a pretty frozen gem that’s located on fallen mechanical beasts scattered through out the Frozen Wilds. Sadly it also renders the hoard of shards you’ve been stockpiling away since the main game basically useless. Thankfully Guerilla Games have made up for this by providing enough Bluegleam in The Cut for all your needs, you’ll just have to get a map first.

Looking at that map of The Cut and the world laid out before you in The Frozen Wilds will have you awestruck by how much detail the developers have put into the environment here.

For all that I’ve raved about the graphics and visuals of Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds, graphics do not make the game. Whilst The Frozen Wilds doesn’t contain the same level of depth in its story as the main game did, it’s most definitely filled with enough powerfully written and emotional moments to satisfy.