Horizon Forbidden West Has Its First GOTY Award Already

After playing Horizon Forbidden West for the second time, I’m really surprised people aren’t thinking this masterpiece can go head to head with Elden Ring and GOW Ragnarok for game of the year. The amazing open world and growth of Aloy is one of the best things I’ve experienced in this medium so far!

I've tried to go back to it a few times after borrowing it, but it feels like a chore to get through. I think I might be over this Sony open world format now.

Elden Ring is overhyped. Horizon deserves more attention just like GOW Ragnarok will

God of war and elden ring will fight for it all.and horizon forbidden west will be there also.word up son

Feel a bit bad that it’s sat in its box since Elden Ring came out. I meant to go back to it but I wasn’t really enjoying the by-the-numbers open world stuff despite being absolutely the kind of sucker who spends 100 hours on a Ubisoft game:

This is unfortunately one of those games that I grow colder about the longer time goes on. It's a good game, but it didn't have the same lasting impact on me as Zero Dawn did. I honestly expected much more after five years in development.

I Hope We Can Get An Expansion Or 2 For This Game.

im still playing this game taking it all in.
110+ hours and counting on hard difficulty this game is a masterpiece and quite frankly my favorite game of all time for me personally.

this is GoTY for me no question. Nothing comes close .. not even GoT R when it comes out... this game is just a cut above for me.

GG!

Congrats to the team. I liked Horizon 2 well enough for the most part. It was definitely the victim of Elden Ring's success but it was still okay. Elden Ring is still the GOTY by a mile so far for me personally.

Guess they couldn't get passed the Tree Sentinel in Elden Ring

Btw this is a European conference, run by European devs, and their best game was made by a European studio. This is nothing more than a glorified pat on the back

I loved forbidden west but I already know god of war Ragnarok is going to be my goty really excited for the re village dlc aswell

Massive travesty if Elden Ring doesn't essentially sweep GotY.

Well they are begging us to not take their opinions seriously when they are preemptively basically saying " yeahh don't care how amazing GOW2 turns out to be or any of the other junk left to release this year, Horizon 2 rules even over those yet to release games" 😑

@PSfan4Life22 "Elden Ring is overhyped"

Be honest with yourself and all your fellow gamers, if Eden Ring was a PS5 exclusive you would be saying it was one of the most underrated and attacked games in gaming history.

To be frank, Horizon 1, while having quite unique story and gameplay, felt like a bit of a slog to get through. I haven't even had interest in Horizon 2, as a result. Maybe I'll pick it up when it's cheap, but with so many games coming out, plus having a substantial backlog, I'm not sure I want to put in the time. And that's coming from someone who put in over 300 hours on Elden Ring and 80 hours on Triangle Strategy, back-to-back.

It was great to actually play and the whole Vegas section was fantastic, highlight of the game for me. Personally, I much preferred the story and pacing of the first game.

The first Horizon was one of the best games I've ever played. On paper, Forbidden West is better in every category, but my enjoyment was not. It was still a very good game and I had a good time but I didn't even feel motivated to do all the sidequests, and this was my most hyped game EVER.

I legitimately like the first Horizon better. Pacing, world layout and size, weapon versatility, and a variety of other things just feel better.

Wish I could start my 2nd run of this masterpiece but as a completionist type gamer, I feel overwhelmed with the number of games I have in queue waiting for 2nd runs or platinums, and there's always RDR2 distracting everything. Plus people who think they prefer the HZD, no, it's just first time experience. If you experienced HFW first, you'd be saying the same thing. HFW is just the complete definitive polished Horizon available.

GOTY?? Nope. GOTD!!! (Game of the decade) haha.

Well deserved win for True Colors on best narrative. I was skeptical of the emotions schtick in this one but, idk, the story really hit for me. Kinda wanted to spend more time with those characters in a way that I didn't with the first.

As for HFW, really enjoyed the game but it was also so marred by technical issues that I definitely wouldn't make it my GoTY. Wanted to, but just way too many glitches. And the story was honestly only so so if I'm being honest.

I wasn't even that into Elden Ring and I think it's leagues ahead of Forbidden West. Ghostwire: Tokyo had a TON of problems, but I enjoyed my time with it immensely more than Forbidden West. Kirby and the Forgotten Land was far from cutting edge, but was the most fun I've had with any game in a long while — including Forbidden West.

I loved Horizon Zero Dawn quite a bit — even though Breath of the Wild shined far brighter — and was hoping Forbidden West would evolve the series and rival BotW. But instead, it spelled out everything wrong with modern AAA gaming. The level design bloated beyond sense and the action design marred by excessive complexities. And a mediocre story with narratives that felt half-baked. It was not a bad game by any means, but I hesitate to call it good. I'd call it aggressively average with one hellova budget. GotY? Not by a longshot.

Edit: Also, if they're including titles from the last half of 2021 (as Deathloop, Unpacking,etc. implies), then how on Earth Forbidden West bested It Takes Two is beyond me.

Edit-edit: Or PSYCHONAUTS 2! WTF.

I think elden rings will won most of the goty for 2021 games, it's a very special games. Horizon fw on the other hand, is just an evolution of ubisoft style open world games filled with icon, it's a tired trope. And the writing (dialogue) is kind of bad too.

It's my game of the year so far.

Congrats to Horizon II. I can’t say it’s the best game I’ve played this year, because Gran Turismo 7 is by far giving me the most enjoyment out of any game in 2022 so far.

But Horizon: FW is a very good game and I can see how it would be some people’s GotY.

@RoomWithaMoose I just noticed a couple of the winners are games from last year 🤦 so this was completely pointless and they just wanted an excuse to get in a room and enjoy each other's company apparently.

No surprise there. One of many of a long list of awards and game of the year awards this game will win

I’ll never understand why some people care so much about these award things. There are hundreds of them from different sources. There was another drama the other day with people harassing Geoff as if their life was at stake 😅

I finished HFB yesterday actually and it's a bag of mixed things for me. The graphics were just GORGEOUS and i have never seen a game looking nearly as good before. I totally loved it, each scene was a pleasure to see. Gameplay, similarly to HZD was also great. Fights felt very satisfying, any gameplay additions that were there felt good. I never really thought that a puzzle was not scaled fairly, if i had issue with something it was because i was missing a visual cue, which was there, so i felt it was on me. The story, however, just lacked the punch of the first game of a series. HZD was pulling us through politics of the world, and at the end answered a question that we ourselves starting asking - what made a world this way, and then it answered it in a jaw dropping manner. In HFW the ending plot twist and reveal seemed a bit out of thin air. In my opinion it just can't compare. And because of it I would not call it a Game of a Year.

That being said, if you feel otherwise, its fine and i respect that. What i wrote above is just what it is - a subjective opinion. Cheers!

@Tecinthebrain
"Be honest with yourself and all your fellow gamers, if Eden Ring was a PS5 exclusive you would be saying it was one of the most underrated and attacked games in gaming history."

Strawman at its finest. People are allowed to have different opinions. In fact many said they were excited to play the game, due to the hype or their previous experience with Souls, but they never truly enjoyed Elden Ring even after they beat it.

This game is a mixed bag for me, on the one hand the combat is just as fun as the original and its very pretty. I just don't find it's story as interesting and it's open world isn't rewarding to explore with Ubisoft stay markers everywhere and often it's just the most basic crafting materials that are there. I got the platinum for HZD but doubt I'll even return to finish this one

I prefer ER, but I know HFW took more man power to make and it's a very goty material game.

@wiiware
Hfw doesn't recycle missions like Ubisoft does. Every side quest from hfw felt very different. I wouldn't put both in a sentence. Ever.

@Constable_What @Tecinthebrain

A year can also be any period of 12 months, Develop: Brighton run theirs in the summer, rather than the winter, and consider the games released during the preceding 12 months.

Edit: just saw that themightyant already made this point, but somehow not all the comments had loaded.

I would absolutely expect other devs to see and appreciate what they acieved with HFW, its a fantastic game thats technically cutting edge.
I understand those that dislike the narritive nature of its design, but its clear they achieved exactly what they were aiming for.
Whilst its a close call, it just gets beaten by Elden Ring for me despite its technical superiority. Good as it is, ive played other games like HFW, but ive never played anything like ER before..

@Mikey856
Not at all. All their previous games were linear designs around a hub. ER is very significantly different and the way they designed their open world was very significant. If you have a genuine interest then there are many well written pieces and podcasts examining what makes the design special from many lumanaries with more insight than me. If you dont recognise the difference then you simply havent played the games.
Horizon is a 10/10 game for me, took me 138 hours to platinum it and I loved everything, including the story. Its the best looking open world to date and a fantastic achievement.
I normally dont play souls games, never finished one before. I platinumed ER after three play throughs and 280 hours. Its a completely different experience to HFW, but no less amazing because of it and another 10/10 game for me.
With them both being so different I would expect people to have their own firm favourite, and theres nothing wrong with that.

Congrats to Guerrilla! H:FW is my GoTY so far, GoW: Ragnarok can make me change my mind though👌👌👍👍

@Luvstagrind You want some salt with that chip? 🤣

And what is GotY of 2023??? And isn't it too late for voting of 2025 GotY???

@RBMango That's the problem with sequels to successful games. I think Elden Ring will be crowned GOTY because it was fresh and had a great open world realisation for the souls format.

Not sure how this can win game of the year when Balan Wonderworld is still available for purchase. Who cares what year it is when we could all be playing that instead 🥺

As much as I love Forbidden West… I’m not sure if I’d say it’s game of the year.

@Juanalf a year doesn't have to be Jan to Dec, it is any 12-month period. The award period for the Develop:Brighton covers April to March with the results announcing at the conference in July. It's actually quite smart, they get a bit of media coverage that otherwise would be lost in the noise of all the GOTY awards in December.

@naruball ... due to the hype or their previous experience with Souls, but they never truly enjoyed Elden Ring even after they beat it....

You think people played and beat Elden Ring and did not enjoy it? Interesting.
With so many games available to play now a days, I doubt many people play a 150 hour to complete game and not like it.
Do you have any certifiable evidence of this?
Or if it is your opinion, you are certainly entitled to that statement.
There are so many flame wars of whether HFW or ER are better or worse than each other.
They both are excellent games and worthy of attention as this year's best game.
We just don't have to argue back and forth on this point.
Now THAT is my opinion.

I haven't finished H:FW yet. And yes, the devs can choose any period of time within 12 months, so it doesn't have to be a calendar year.

BUT...I want to note that nowadays, seems that every comment section, be it on a post about Bayonetta, Kirby or GoWR, will end up being about "Is Elden Ring the true GoTY of 2022?". LOL

Better win those tiny awards now. Once the year ends, elden ring and ragnarok, are going to absolutley nuke this "amazing" game. I actually enjoyed zero dawn but forbidden west is just too boring for me to even think about continuing or even playing it again.

I beat HFW, honestly it burnt me out. I didn't feel like it provided the imapct like first one did. Dont get me wrong its a good game, just not great. Also we have half a year left for other games to make a mark.

@Old-Red
the only way I could see it would feel like a chore is if you want action all the time, you're just bad at the game, or you're constantly comparing it to other completely different games.

and there is no sony open world format...there is just open world format. since people like to talk about souls games...it has a formula and that doesn't change just because one is open world.

@CieloAzure bruh....why would you try to do everything in it when you don't have to? people can say anything can burn them out if they do too much of it at once lol. that's not the games fault

@RedRiot193 didn't finish the game therefore your opinion taken into account but nonetheless rejected

@HarmanSmith it's all they have until god of war or horizon wins it. I'd say let them embarrass themselves

@RBMango these type of comments are to be expected from somebody who overhyped themselves to unrealistic standards. I have no doubt I will see these comments for god of war ragnorok too. keep your expectations low and you will never be disappointed.

also I think zero dawn was a good game but it wasn't like masterpiece level imo. I think nostalgia has gotten you but I could be wrong if you have played it recently.

@middyone

It was the story that burnt me out, not exactly me trying to do everything. The game just didn't feel that great like the first one, where I did do everything.

I had more fun playing Ghostwire Tokyo than HFW. It is just one those sequel that didn't pan out for me. The same feeling for GOW, after 3, I was done with the franchise.

@CieloAzure lol ok...that's a shame then. gow 2018 is great as well.

The first one was great, but the second one was ruined by political correctness

@middyone Yeah I'm sure you've finished every single game you found boring or bad. I'm not going to force myself through something that I find as boring as ubisofts games. Also stop with your damage control. You reject people opinions that don't like your game but respond to all of them? Come on dude.

@RedRiot193 I have actually because i know not to judge something I barely played unlike you. something this new generation is not smart enough to figure out. it's not just winning the "tiny" awards...it's gonna win some of the big ones too along with ragnorok. both games will nuke elden ring if anything. if you not gonna "force" yourself through something and play more than 40 minutes then no one will take you seriously when you say it's boring or bad. simple and not hard to understand. I wouldn't even think about talking or commenting about a game I haven't finished yet as to mislead others but I know alot of kids don't think that way. damage control? where? I reject people opinions that have no value or anything to add to the conversation. go finish the game then come back dude.

@middyone "something this new generation is not smart enough to figure out." Who are you talking about? My first console was an nes.

" both games will nuke elden ring if anything" Okay I'll play your game. Have you played/finished elden ring and know why it's such a big deal?

Assuming I only played 40 minutes huh? I played more than 18 hours and in that time the game NEVER hooked me. Especially with it's 10 hour tutorial. It's very easy to talk about something you haven't finished. That's been a thing for a long time. Gamers aren't going to simply force themselves through a game unless they are paid to do it or are like you apparently. Developers don't even want that. They want games to be fun always have. Something I guess kids like you don't understand huh? I can play that card too.

"I reject people opinions that have no value or anything to add to the conversation. go finish the game then come back dude." Very ironic. My comment has no value yet you're tilted over it enough to care. Don't have to finish the game. I'm not trying to fall asleep. And playing it more isn't going to fix the literal issue I have with the game. I rather play elden ring for the 5th time or gow for the 4th time. Much better games in every possible way.

Man the Horizon series is mad overrated. I can see why some people overlooked FW in the face of Elden Ring.

Elden Ring has the plaudits but it has little by way of accessibility; you're either good or bad, there is no halfway and no options to tone it all down.

Horizon by comparison has made great strides in accessibility. You can turn off all the handholding options and go full-on hunter challenge or turn them all on and play it as an action game and enjoy the story.

(I tend to switch on Story difficulty if caged into a boss fight. I find the open hunting options combat utterly enthralling and to take it away for an fight of attrition isn't much fun)

IMO this is a deserving reward. While I played both elden ring and HFW, put more hrs in Elden ring I love them equally. But for GOTY, HFW has more going for it and definitely more well rounded. While elden ring might be superior in one aspect, HFW is superior in other/aspects. Soulborne fans are clear why elden ring is better but when looking at visuals, mechanics, combat, music, acting, story, sound, technology, graphics and other areas HFW stands superior. And for GOTY, all boxes has to click IMO..... It has more going for it

@mrtennis1990
Agreed 👍 HFW, Elden Ring, Stray & GoW Ragnarok will probably round out the top 4 imo. I know Stray is an Indie but its doing numbers any AAA would love atm for the 4th day in a row its over 63k concurrent users on Steam alone and with 140+M possible Playstation users the sky is the limit with this fun but sad game that you cannot help but to smile while playing it imo. Sifu deserves some love too imo, but not for GotY but a very creative game. Congrats to Guerilla Games & Horizon Forbidden West for a great accomplishment!