Guerrilla offers a closer look at Horizon Forbidden West’s abilities

As the release of Horizon: Forbidden West approaches in February, Guerrilla has updated fans on some of the new abilities that players will be able to use in combat and exploration in the game, including a claw and glider, as well as some fun new combat techniques. .

In a post focused on the route published in the PlayStation BlogGuerrilla talked more about some of the new tools players will have, as well as the factors that have influenced Forbidden West’s new combat decisions. Lead Systems Designer David McMullen explained that a new high jump mechanic “essentially allows Aloy to soar over any tall object that can be jumped with room to get up. Combined with the ability to scale freely and add grapples to our environment, the potential for exploration is greatly increased. “

He also explained more about Pullcaster and Shieldwing, two new tools that were shown in June. The Pullcaster is multi-functional and primarily works much the same as you would expect a grappling hook to work in a game. However, it has a second function as a winch, which means that “the player can dynamically manipulate, move and destroy objects in the environments,” according to McMullen. “Consider pulling a hidden loot chest off a ledge or opening a vent to create a new climbing path,” he adds.

McMullen also explained that additions to the climb and tour mechanics can be mixed in with Aloy’s new Shieldwing glider. “The Shieldwing pairs well with many other mechanics both in and out of combat, such as landing on your mount, zip lining, the ability to hit from above and more …”

In another part of the blog post, the studio discussed the changes it is making to combat. Guerrilla has completely redesigned the Horizon skill tree and included workbenches that allow players a greater degree of customization when upgrading weapons.

In addition to changing the way players modify their weapons to suit a given playstyle, the study is also bringing close combat and ranged combat closer. Guerrilla Chief Combat Designer Dennis Zopfi offered an example of how the two work together in the Forbidden West combat system: “A new example of a skill that does this is Resonator Blast, where you charge the spear with Melee hits and when fully charged, energy can be placed on enemies (humans and machines alike) and followed with a projectile, resulting in a large damaging blast! ‘”

In Horizon Zero Dawn, Aloy will have several of her old weapons to fight the various enemies and machines that the game throws at her. Zopfi says Forbidden West will seek to give these weapons a “stronger personality” that allows players to take advantage of their strengths in certain situations. New weapons will also be added, such as the Spike Launcher, which Zopfi said is a “new high-damage weapon that, when launched at the right time, makes it easier to hit bigger targets.”

To learn more about Horizon Forbidden West, be sure to check out this article that looks at how Aloy’s new gear will provide the character with a variety of new abilities.

Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow it on Twitter.