It’s My Life by Bon Jovi
Bon Jovi has quite a collection of great songs, but “It’s My Life” is the one that everyone seems to have heard of well after its 2000 debut. They’ve managed to perform it live at almost all their shows since release, and it’s a song that’s introduced younger audiences to the rock legend.
The parallels between it and Horizon Zero Dawn are pretty much clear given how the song has been interpreted by many–Jovi included–as one about agency and taking control of your life. Aloy takes control of her life arguably early on in the game, after she’s decided to have Rost train her so she can participate in the Proving. The resulting training montage shows her grow as a hunter and a warrior, encapsulating that she’s a woman on a mission and won’t let anyone get in her way.
It’d be easy to just say to play this song during the montage of young Aloy growing up and training, or during the Proving. While those are both incredibly viable options, why not say screw it and play it during the whole of Horizon Zero Dawn? Not only is it a complete banger of a song, but you can just imagine Aloy playing this if she heard it in an audio log or something, and singing along while roaming the wilds and sniping Grazers.
