Burning Shores Mini Review

 

I loved Horizon Forbidden West, played countless hours with Aloy and even got the Platinum Trophy. 1 year later the big story DLC will be released, which, unlike the main game, was developed exclusively for the PlayStation 5. The wait was definitely worth it!

The story expansion ties seamlessly into the end of the main game. One requirement to keep in mind, is that you can only start the DLC with a completed save of the main campaign.

Once again you play the main character Aloy and end up in Los Angeles at the Burning Shores. Here you will meet new tribes and of course new characters. With the warrior Seyka you get a very likeable companion, which I really enjoyed. The performance and the voice acting are also very good. I don't want to reveal too much about the story but it's told really exciting, leads to some exciting reveals and ends with one of the best and most impressive boss fights in video game history.

Gameplay:

The gameplay hasn't changed that much compared to the main game. Everything feels familiar real quick. However, there are a few new traversal options that I don't want to reveal to all of you. I had the feeling that Guerrilla Games took the criticism of the main game to heart and introduced significant improvements, especially in exploration. You can now expect certain events that are completely unpredictable and well staged. In my opinion this was based on Elden Ring. Great!

The new options in combat are great. I also really liked the new enemies with the insane animation work the developers put in. Burning shores costs $19.99 and I played about 10 hours. So I think the price is totally justified.

Presentation:

Like the main game, the DLC just looks amazing. The environments are even more detailed and varied. And in the final battle, a firework of effects is delivered that is second to none. I also felt that the facial animations were reworked and made more believable.

A new cloud engine has been developed for the DLC, which also looks incredibly good. Like the main game, the DLC is one of the most graphically impressive games out there. The soundtrack also convinced me again and I liked it even better than the one from the main game.
Of course, the photo mode can also be used again for great pictures. I played the game on an OLED TV in the 30fps mode and didn't experience any stuttering.

Verdict:

The Burning Shores DLC is another great chapter that ends with one of the best boss fights in video game history. High recommendation.

9/10

Code provided by PlayStation