GamesActionLego Horizon Adventures isn’t the crossover I ever expected, but it works incredibly wellWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesActionLego Horizon Adventures isn’t the crossover I ever expected, but it works incredibly wellWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
I’m hiding in the long grass, a deer-like Grazer machine in my sights and my bowstring taught. Aiming directly for my quarry’s weakpoint, I shoot - just as my Lego Horizon Adventures co-op partner flings an explosive barrel in the same direction. The two attacks land at once, blasting the Grazer into the distance. It’s just one moment of several in my Lego Horizon Adventures demo that surprises me in its ability to capture something ofHorizon Zero DawnandHorizon Forbidden West’s worlds, despite this unlikely blocky setting.
There’s little denying that Lego Horizon Adventure is a peculiar pitch. There are few, if any, other modern PlayStation franchises that you would dream of adapting into something so family-friendly; imagine God of War or The Last of Us sanitized via the medium of plastic blocks. While Horizon is the most likely contender for that fate, that’s only because it falls slightly short of the distinctly adult nature of the rest ofSony’s line-up.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Summer Games PreviewDive into the hottest upcoming games out of Summer Game Fest. To find all of our coverage, visitGamesRadar’s What’s Hot 2024 hub.
Block bots
(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
Perhaps that faithful recreation should come as no surprise, given the pre-existing link between these two companies. “There was definitely a passion to do something with Lego,” Guerrilla narrative director James Windeler tells me. After all, the studio has already collaborated with the iconic toymaker on a Horizon set, and “there are many devs who have rooms full” of the stuff. But for all the affinity between the two companies, Windeler also admits that adapting the story of Horizon Zero Dawn into this new format “was the primary focus and challenge” for the team.
(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
Lego charm, Horizon world
(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
There’s an undeniable child-like charm to Lego Horizon Adventures. Over-the-top cosmetics allow Aloy to dress as anything from a game-accurate NPC to a hotdog mascot. Larger-than-life powerups grant Gatling bows and explosive food vendors with little concern for collateral damage. Aloy is friendlier, more excitable, than ever before, and the rules of the world has been changed to enable a funnier, more cooperative story - in Horizon Zero Dawn, Aloy’s Focus is an incredibly rare piece of tech, but in Lego Horizon Adventures, the characters make light of the fact that they’re handing them out like candy.
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(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
That visual authenticity extends to more than the characters - it can be found across the entire world. In an apparent first for a licensed Lego game, “every single asset in the game” is made of real blocks. And it has been - Windeler says that Lego’s Master Builders helped craft machines and locations in such a way that a fan could recreate them, as long as they had the right pieces.
For all its childish charm, there’s still plenty here for longer-term Horizon fans. The co-op system provides room for surprising complexity in combat; stealth systems offer a means to approach encounters in different ways; exploration takes advantage of multiple tools at once for those who want to see everything - an arrow shot through a campfire into a patch of red grass might be the only way to open up a specific route. Five difficulty levels mean that those who are only looking for a story will be fine, but those seeking a genuine challenge should find it.
(Image credit: Sony/Lego)
I still wonder, however, exactly what it is that makes Horizon the target for not just this game, but the entire suite of other projects that have come along since Zero Dawn. A sequel and a VR spin-off have already expanded this world, and a TV series and an MMO are set to push those boundaries further. So what is it that’s turning Horizon into one of Sony’s broadest franchises? “You can start with the color of the world,” Windeler says, “and the themes, and all these elements. We want it to be more approachable, we want more people to come into it. And then there’s Aloy, who’s a strong character, she’s a role model. She doesn’t believe in dogma, and hierarchy, and all that stuff, and those are all things that I think people really connect to.” Whether that connection is enough to turn Aloy into the mascot of a series that’s fun for the whole family, I’m not sure, but Lego Horizon Adventures certainly makes a surprisingly good case for Guerrilla to give it a try.
Lego Horizon Adventures is dropping this Fall on PC, PS5, and Nintendo Switch.
TOPICSSummer Game Fest
TOPICS
CATEGORIESPS5PC GamingNintendo SwitchPlatformsPlayStationNintendo
CATEGORIES
PRODUCTSLego Horizon AdventuresSummer Game Fest 2024
PRODUCTS
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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension"2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package"3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure"4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years"5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths"1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show"2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie"3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action"4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien"5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite"1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat"2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses"3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist"4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands"5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
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Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2
Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3
Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5
Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
1
Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3
Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”