Horizon Zero Dawn
One of the most highly anticipated games in recent memory, Horizon Zero Dawn has delivered on the promise of its hype. It perfects the best features from the most beloved open world games over the past decade and wraps them up in a wonderfully unique narrative setting. Horizon has it all: graphics, gameplay, characters, and a brilliant science fiction story. It stands tall as one of the best examples of its genre.
Horizon’s accessibility allows it to be played as a pick-up-and-play action game, but its density and many side quests give players the option to take a more measured approach, too. The game’s massive sandbox isn’t to the detriment of its excellent story, either; void of excessive side quest padding in games such as Fallout 4 or restrictions with linearity as seen in Fantasy XV’s closing chapters. Horizon Zero Dawn balances story and open world competently throughout its entirety.
Horizon is arguably PS4’s definitive exclusive game; a showpiece that is satisfying to play as it is pretty to behold. A must-own title.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Near perfect review scores across the board pretty much tell you all you need to know about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Zelda might have been a critical darling over the years, but this latest entry really does justify all the fuss made over it. Breath of the Wild is an instant classic, not just proving a highly competent first foray into open world gaming for the series, but also setting a new benchmark standard for the whole genre.
Go anywhere, do anything – we’ve heard it all before, but Zelda really does deliver traversal that makes everything before it feel obsolete. Any building, mountain, or tree can be scaled across a massive open world that just begs exploration. That, in combination with the short and sweet challenge of its many shrines, pretty aesthetic, and typically excellent combat make this the series high benchmark. Breath of the Wild will be one seriously hard game to knock out of the Game of the Year discussion.
