Lego Horizon Adventures Preview: Horizon: Zero Dawn for the whole family

PlayStation and Guerrilla Games tried their very best to keep Lego Horizon Adventures under wraps, and to their credit, they almost managed to make it to the finish line before facing leaks. But just a few weeks ahead of the official reveal at this year's Summer Game Fest, rumours started to swirl that the pair had teamed up with Lego to make an officially licensed title based on the adventure-RPG and lo and behold that is exactly what is coming later this year.

While it's still unclear exactly when Lego Horizon Adventures will be making its arrival, I have already had the luxury to go hands-on with the game during SGF, in a 45-minute preview session where I got to play alongside Guerrilla Games' studio communication lead Bo
De Vries to learn more about this exciting instalment into the series.

First things first, for anyone wondering about what Lego Horizon Adventures is, this is a game that is looking to be a jumping on point for new and perhaps younger fans that are unfamiliar with Aloy's story from Horizon: Zero Dawn. The game boils down that longer and sprawling journey into a collection of key moments that are then retold in a whimsical and light Lego format, chock full of the usual humour and tone that we know and love from these types of games. Essentially, if you thought that Rost's death was too emotionally-challenging, Lego Horizon Adventures presents an alternative version of that narrative event that pulls significantly less on the heart strings.

Also, for anyone wondering who actually made Lego Horizon Adventures, De Vries confirmed that it is Guerrilla Games (with help with co-development team Studio Gobo) and not a more veteran Lego game developer, as the Dutch studio has worked with Lego to master the developer kit and engine to create a purely brickified world without any non-Lego elements whatsoever. So, expect an experience that never fails to impress visually nor leads you to believe that this world should exist in anything other than a Lego format, all while some of the more core Horizon features and systems return and enforce that this is a real-Horizon title too.

What I mean by this is that the cast are back and the combat is very similar, albeit much more rudimentary and straightforward. Aloy is voiced by Ashly Burch again (De Vries did tell me that Sylens will not be voiced by the Lance Reddick due to his passing but that more information will be shared about this in the future) and the narrative and dialogue tells key and familiar moments but with an adjustment so that the major events can be experienced in a much shorter time span. The combat fits this same design premise too, as you use Aloy's bow and weapons to attack the robotic wildlife, identifying their weak points using her Focus, and then blasting them off to cause more damage. There's less of an emphasis on elemental systems this time, but the idea is there and there are ways to use elemental systems to impact the environment and more.

Be it picking up explosive barrels to deal massive damage and clear obstructions, or even just firing an arrow through a campfire to ignite said arrow, there are a collection of ways to add an elemental flair in Lego Horizon Adventures. Also, the Lego tone hasn't skipped a beat here either as you can even find temporary upgrades throughout a level to enhance Aloy's bow with fire arrows or harder-hitting power arrows, or even find some Boost Boots to double jump and scorch enemies caught beneath you, or even pick up a hot dog guy ability to spawn a hot dog vendor who throws explosives and generally turns the local area into a hellish zone of explosives and fire damage. These abilities/upgrades are temporary and will disappear when you run out of charges for them. But, if you were expecting to need to use a cryo arrow to break open a Bellowback's fuel sac, this isn't something to have to worry about. And this is a good thing because the gameplay uses more of a traditional platformer approach where you have to avoid attacks moving across the ground, dive out of the way of charging enemies, and otherwise keep tabs on a colourful and chaotic battlefield that is much faster paced and energetic than the mainline Horizon's more challenging and precise systems.

With this being a Lego game, there are a few collectibles dotted around each level and a few lighthearted and daft nods and references too. You can discover chests packed with studs and other secrets that will no doubt pique the interest of completionists out there. But at the same time, this isn't a Lego game like Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, as it's much more thematically and narratively-focussed and less about constantly solving minor puzzles to find one of many different kinds of collectibles. As it states in the game's name, this is an adventure primarily. As per the silly references and nods, this includes seeing Lego City folk appearing in cutscenes, a silly addition that doubles as a way to further highlight the lighter tone and humour, but also to firmly cement Lego Horizon's place in the wider Lego universe.

Now let me briefly move onto the more RPG-focussed elements. You can level up Aloy by completing levels and defeating robots and this opens the way to new attributes and abilities to enhance her prowess. Whether that's getting an extra health heart or a more powerful bow, the upgrades are very basic and clear, and prove that this game is meant for all ages, especially youngsters who haven't played the main titles. Adding to this is the opportunity to upgrade the main hub area of Mother's Heart. You can use gathered studs to purchase buildings and land plots to construct facilities that further allow Aloy to grow as a character. For example, if you want a new look for Aloy, you can construct a wardrobe to be able to use new outfits and skins, some of which have a PlayStation-theme and others that might either pay homage to the Horizon series or other Lego brands instead (such as Ninjago). And of course, with every building you create, the humorous and light tone shines through by allowing you to construct roller coasters on rooftops, and so forth.

Lego Horizon Adventures isn't just for a single player. The entire game can be played alone, but if you want an extra hand, or perhaps want to help steward a younger player through some parts of the story, the option to jump into cooperative mode does exist. This, like other Lego games, is seamless, meaning you can hop into and out of co-op whenever you see fit, with the second player taking on the role of Varl and using his melee spear to attack enemies. This isn't split-screen co-op however, meaning as players distance themselves from one another the perspective is stretched until player two falls out of view and is teleported to player one. De Vries showed me all of this in action during a short phase where we teamed up to take down a boss that had a much larger health bar and did require the occasional visit to a berry bush to top up on health midway through the action. From what I've tested with the co-op mode, this really does seem like an ideal way to bring the wonder of Horizon to younger folk and in a way that's still massively entertaining, charming, and fun for more veteran and experienced players too.

I won't say that Lego Horizon Adventures will be for everyone, nor that it's a must-play for Horizon fans, but if you enjoy delightful and silly platform-heavy adventures that have a premium and truly impressive attention to detail in how it manages and protects the core and existing story while presenting it in a brickified format, then this is a game to watch out for. It's fun and sweet, hilarious and colourful, and despite being a very different experience to what Horizon fans are used to, it also feels like a very natural change of direction.