What Happens After You Finish Horizon Forbidden West?
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So, you’ve conquered the Far Zeniths, navigated the treacherous landscapes of the Forbidden West, and stood victorious at the culmination of Aloy’s epic journey. But what now? The good news is that the adventure doesn’t necessarily end with the credits rolling. Horizon Forbidden West offers ample opportunities to continue exploring, completing unfinished quests, and further developing Aloy’s skills and arsenal even after the main story concludes. You are essentially returned to a point just before the final mission, allowing you to experience the world as it was prior to the dramatic finale, but with the added benefit of carrying over all your earned experience, weapons, armor, and skills. This allows you to finish anything you may have missed, prepare for The Burning Shores DLC, or simply bask in the beauty and challenge the Forbidden West still has to offer.
Continuing the Adventure: Post-Game Freedom
The World is Your Oyster (Again)
Upon completing the main storyline of Horizon Forbidden West, the game cleverly resets you to a point just before the final confrontation. Think of it as a time-traveling do-over, minus the paradoxical headaches. This grants you the freedom to:
- Complete Side Quests and Errands: Many engaging side stories and smaller tasks might have been overlooked during your initial playthrough. Now is the perfect time to track them down and experience the richness of the Forbidden West’s lore and characters.
- Hunt Down Machines: Test your skills against the various machines roaming the landscape. With your fully upgraded arsenal, you can tackle even the most challenging encounters.
- Collect Remaining Collectibles: The game is filled with datapoints, vantage points, and other collectibles that provide deeper insights into the world’s history and the Old Ones.
- Upgrade Your Gear: Gather resources and visit crafting tables to fully upgrade your weapons and armor. The post-game is an excellent time to optimize your loadout for maximum effectiveness.
- Explore the Open World: Roam freely and discover hidden locations, scenic vistas, and unexpected encounters. The Forbidden West is a vast and beautiful place, and there’s always something new to find.
- Prepare for the Burning Shores DLC: If you own the DLC, finishing the main story unlocks the quest that takes you to the Burning Shores. This expansion provides a brand new area to explore, new machines to fight, and a compelling story to uncover.
Leveling Beyond 50 and Preparing for the Burning Shores DLC
The original level cap in Horizon Forbidden West was 50. Upon reaching level 50, any XP rewards will no longer fill the XP bar because you have reached the level cap. However, with the release of Burning Shores DLC, this level cap has increased to Level 60. If you have the Burning Shores DLC, once you’re ready to delve even deeper into Aloy’s story, completing the “Singularity” main quest in the base game will unlock a new quest that takes you to the volcanic archipelago of Los Angeles.
Your Choices Still Matter (Sort Of)
While the main story has a singular ending, the choices you made throughout your journey still have an impact on the world. Certain characters might be present or absent depending on your decisions, and dialogue options might reflect your past actions. This adds a layer of replayability and encourages you to experiment with different choices in future playthroughs.
Horizon’s Future: What Lies Ahead?
Horizon 3: Aloy’s Next Adventure
The Horizon universe is far from over. Guerrilla Games has confirmed that a third mainline game is in development, promising to continue Aloy’s story and further expand the world. What threats will Aloy face? What new technologies will she uncover? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain: the future of Horizon is bright.
Expanding the Universe
Beyond the core games, Guerrilla is also exploring new avenues for the Horizon franchise, including an online project. This suggests the potential for cooperative gameplay, shared world experiences, and entirely new ways to interact with the Horizon universe. These projects could be an interesting area to explore from a Games Learning Society perspective. Indeed, the GamesLearningSociety.org explore how games can be used in a beneficial way.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Does Horizon Forbidden West continue after ending?
Yes. Once you finish the main quest, the game resets you to just before the final mission.
2. Can you continue after the final mission in Horizon Forbidden West?
Yes, you can. The game places you back before the “Singularity” quest, allowing you to complete any remaining side quests, explore the world, and prepare for the Burning Shores DLC.
3. What happens after level 50 in Horizon Forbidden West?
Initially, once you reached level 50 in Horizon Forbidden West, any player XP rewards would no longer fill the XP bar. However, the Burning Shores DLC increases the level cap to 60.
4. How many endings does Horizon Forbidden West have?
While you make choices throughout the game, Horizon Forbidden West only has one main ending.
5. Where does everyone go at the end of Forbidden West?
The final mission of Horizon Forbidden West sends Aloy and her crew to the base of the Far Zeniths. After completing the “Singularity” Main Quest and completing the game, Alva can be found at Alva’s spot in Legacy’s Landfall, and Sylens can be met at Tilda’s Mansion.
6. Will there be a third Horizon game?
Yes, a third mainline game in the Horizon series appears to be in the works at Guerrilla Games.
7. What happens if you don’t spare Regalla?
If players let Regalla live in Forbidden West by choosing the “There’s another battle ahead” option, she will assist them as a powerful ally in later in the game. If players opt to kill Regalla they will get a unique Sharpshot Bow instead.
8. Is there a DLC for Horizon Forbidden West?
Yes, the Burning Shores DLC contains additional content for Horizon Forbidden West, including new characters and experiences in a stunning yet hazardous new area.
9. Is there a point of no return in Horizon Forbidden West?
No, there is no point of no return in the game. You can always go back and complete any unfinished quests or activities.
10. Is Burning Shores worth it?
Yes, Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores is a fantastic follow-up to the base game, offering a great new storyline, a beautiful area to explore, and challenging encounters.
11. Why won’t Burning Shores trigger?
One of the most common reasons for the DLC not triggering is that players haven’t completed the last quest in the base game, “Singularity.”
12. Does killing Regalla make a difference?
The main difference between letting her live or killing her is that if she lives, she’ll accompany you in the final mission of the game.
13. What choice should I make with Regalla?
Those who don’t want to miss out on a cool scene near the end of the game should choose to spare Regalla. On the other hand, players who’d prefer to receive a unique Sharpshot Bow should choose to kill her.
14. Why did Far Zenith come back?
The Far Zenith returned to Earth to reclaim it as their own after their imprisoned AI, Nemesis, went rogue and attempted to raze all human life from the Sirius colony.
15. What is the max level in Forbidden West Burning Shores?
With the Burning Shores DLC installed, the level cap increases to 60.