Earlier this month, Guerilla Games announced two new multiplayer games set in their universe of Horizon. These titles include Hunter’s Gathering, a party-style combat simulator set within the timeline of the series, and Steel Frontiers, a mobile MMORPG. Not much is yet known about Steel Frontiers as the production company is mainly focused on Hunter’s Gathering.
The trailer for Hunter’s Gathering seemingly picks up right where Forbidden West left off, with Aloy (Ashley Burch) setting off on a new adventure, leaving Erend (John Hopkins) and her other companions to hold down the fort in her absence.
This will not be the first Horizon game to not feature our main girl, but fans are still skeptical.
The gameplay that’s been teased so far has been compared to other titles like Overwatch, Pathfinder, Dauntless, and others. The art style for Hunter’s Gathering is definitely a stark difference from the main games, being significantly more stylized, almost like a comic book.
When it was initially released on Youtube, the trailer received mixed reviews with a heavy pessimistic outlook from fans.
“This is disappointing,” one user commented. “Why choose the Marvel Rivals art style and not keep the realistic look of the Horizon games?”
Conversely, there are some players who even prefer this new breakaway from the original style.
“This is what a spin-off should be,” another user commented. “A new art style, a new take, and some new gameplay. I’m very excited.”
The game is still in beta playtesting, and has only announced three named playable characters. First is Sun, a young Carja Sun Champion with a focus on melee attacks, Axle, an older man of the Oseram who deals elemental damage, and Rem, a Nora brave with a ranged proficiency. There are other characters seen in the trailer, but none are named or confirmed.
With the massive success of the Horizon series so far, Guerilla isn’t about to be ruined by a few bad reviews. That being said, this game has taken the studio’s attention for eight years now, having pushed the third installment of Aloy’s story to the back burner for the foreseeable future, and fans are getting antsy.
At the end of the day, though, it’s Sony’s prerogative to determine the direction of Hunter’s Gathering and Steel Frontiers. Little to nothing is set in stone now, and with so many hands in this cookie jar, things are bound to change wildly from now to release.
