Horizon Forbidden West: Audience and Industry blog tasks

 Audience

Look at this YouGov blog on the console gaming audience and answer the following questions:

1) What statistics can you find for the number of male / female players for the major consoles?

From a demographic perspective, every platform’s audience skews towards men. PlayStation 5 (68% male; 29% female) and Xbox Series X|S (68% vs. 32%) have the highest proportion of male compared to female gamers.On the other end of the spectrum, the Switch has the highest proportion of women playing its consoles, with 54% of gamers identifying as male to 46% identifying as female. We can potentially attribute this to Nintendo’s flagship games being designed to appeal to a wider range of people. According to YouGov BrandIndex, if we look at popular franchises like Assassin’s Creed (70% male vs. 30% female) or Halo (73% vs. 27%), the audience is largely male; if we look at Animal Crossing (39% vs. 61%) or Mario (45% vs. 55%), women comprise an outright majority of players.

2) What is the difference between 'hardcore' and 'casual' gamers - and which do you think would play Horizon Forbidden West?
the “hardcore” – those who say they take video games seriously, or play competitively – are a minority, and one with the highest representation on the PS5 (19%) and Xbox Series X|S (20%).Casual gamers are most common on the Nintendo Switch (45%), and the PC, where half of players identify as casual (51%). The PC is not always a dedicated gaming platform, and has other functions: while some will play graphically demanding titles like Red Dead Redemption 2 or Spider-Man: Miles Morales or Destiny, others may be interested in a more relaxing experience on their commute – or in between work projects or chores – such as Solitaire or Stardew Valley.

3) What are the different reasons YouGov researched for why players play games? Which of these would apply to Horizon Forbidden West?

This is borne out somewhat by the reasons current-gen gamers on each system give for playing video games. When asked, most gamers across every system say relaxing and winding down is a key motivation for playing video games – but especially for PC (77%) and Switch (78%) gamers compared to Xbox (56%) and PS5 (63%). This group are also more likely to say they play games “to pass the time” or “to escape from reality for a while”. Switch gamers are also especially likely to be creatively motivated: three in ten say they play games to “make a world of their own” (29%), next to a quarter of PC gamers (26%) and a fifth of PS5 (21%) and Xbox gamers (22%

Look at the PlayStation website page for Horizon Forbidden West. Complete the following tasks: 

1) How is the game promoted to an audience?

Once again, you'll be travelling to the far-future, post-apocalyptic world of Horizon, where you'll encounter amazing new tribes, battle larger and more impressive machines, and explore far-off lands.The country is perishing. Fearsome new machines prowl the borders of the scattered remnants of humanity, while vicious storms and an unstoppable blight wreak havoc. Nobody understands why life on Earth is rapidly heading towards yet another extinction.Aloy has the task of learning the truth behind these dangers in order to put the world back in balance and order. She must make alliances with rival factions, reconnect with old friends, and piece together the history of the ancient past while attempting to keep one step ahead of a new foe who looks invincible.

2) What are the key features for the game listed on the site?

Brave an expansive open world

A majestic frontier

Confront new dangers

Unravel startling mysteries

3) What information does the website offer players about the game world and characters? Give a few examples.

Horizon Forbidden West, the sequel to Guerrilla's critically acclaimed sci-fi blockbuster hit Horizon Zero Dawn, builds on almost every aspect of the original's successful formula, offering an incredible open-world experience that combines breathtaking graphics, a sophisticated story, and intense, varied combat.

4) What spin-offs and additional content are available as part of the Horizon franchise?  

-standard 

-complete 

Read this Wired feature on Horizon Forbidden West's open world design. Answer the following questions: 

1) Why did the writer enjoy Horizon Forbidden West?

FRANKLY SPEAKING, THERE is nothing more exciting—or daunting—than an open-world video game. Fire one up and you’re quickly faced with enough real estate to lose hours of your life happily exploring or an abyss in which to get frustratingly lost and bored. The world map can be either friend or foe, but it’s often hard to tell at the onset which game worlds are going to be welcoming and enticing and which are going to be an unfun time suck.

2) How is Horizon Forbidden West structured for players when they first start the game?

Horizon Forbidden West is the former, a game that tackles the concept of an open world incredibly well. To date, I’ve spent about 75 hours in the game, and even though I completed the main story a while ago, I’m still eager to spend time in its deliciously crafted world. Guerrilla Games’ follow-up to Horizon Zero Dawn is the kind of game that stays on its rails for the first five to 10 hours, pulling you into the narrative before releasing you to explore. It creates structure and a sense of the goals for gameplay—the ideal introduction to a game built around wide-open spaces.

3) Why does the writer feel HFW created a more successful open world game than The Witcher 3?

The Witcher 3 is designed to encourage you to explore before you tackle the main story quests, to the point that you’re actually punished if you don’t fully investigate an area before moving on. (If your current level is above the quest level, you get minimal or no experience points for completing quests. Let me tell you how frustrating that can be when you’re a person who likes to be constantly over-leveled so you don’t die all the time and you don’t find this out until 15 hours into a game.) I know some people thrive in games built like this, where there are no real rules or limits and the possibilities are endless; I am not one of them.

For me, it’s exhausting. Going into a game where I feel like I have very little structure or guidance and am just expected to explore and stumble upon things to do without already being invested in the world feels overwhelming. With Horizon Forbidden West, once I was really immersed and loving every second of the gameplay, I started relishing exploring every nook and cranny of the map. I really enjoyed backtracking and being able to pace myself the way I wanted to. When I started feeling aimless, I could just move forward with the main story, but I didn’t feel forced to focus on anything in particular. 

Industries

Industry research

1) Research Sony PlayStation Studios. 

2) What studios are part of Sony PlayStation Studios?

• London Studios
• Team Asobi
• Bend Studio
• Buepoint Games
• Firesprite
• Firewalk Studios
• Guerrilla Games
• Haven Studios
• Housemarque
• Insomaniac Games
• Media Molecule
• Naughty Dog
• Nixxes
• Polyphony Digital
• san Diego Studio
• Santa Monica Studio
• Sucker Punch
• Valkyrie Entertainment

3) What notable games have they produced? 

Guerrilla Games - Horizon Forbidden West, kill zone 

4) Now research Guerrilla Games. Look at the 'Explore' page in particular. Who owns Guerrilla Games and how does it reflect the modern videogames industry? 

-submit ideas to teams and leads to determine the best course of action.

-look into current tools for a while to see what I can create from them.

-discuss topics that interest us both, and we frequently go on team outings. 

Read this USA Today feature on Guerrilla Games. Answer the following questions: 

1) Which three companies merged to become Guerrilla Games?

Then, in 2003, Guerrilla Games as we know it was formed. It came about through a complicated series of parent company rebrandings and takeovers orchestrated by Lost Boys owner Michiel Mol. With the ink still drying on the company’s signs, it began work on its two most ambitious projects yet, a pair of shooters that would change the trajectory of Guerrilla and see Sony come knocking: Killzone and Shellshock: Nam ‘67.

2) What other games and franchises were created by Guerrilla Games?

The studio behind it, Holland-based Guerrilla Games, has a history that goes back well beyond Horizon. Well beyond Killzone, in fact – to a collective of developers in the mid-nineties experimenting with platforming games and featuring some of the talent behind… Jazz Jackrabbit. Humble beginnings indeed

That collective of developers was formed by Orange Games, Digital Infinity, and Formula Game Development. Orange Games was established in 1993 by Arjan Brussee, co-designer of the aforementioned Jazz Jackrabbit and its sequel. Digital Infinity’s output has been lost in time, but there’s at least the record that it was formed in 1995 by Arnout van de Kamp. Formula Game Development’s portfolio is, similarly, a mystery. It was formed in 1998 by Martin de Ronde and sold to Lost Boys a year later.

3) How did Guerrilla maximise the Killzone franchise? 

Killzone, on the other hand, faced criticism more technical in nature. Graphics glitches, bugs and performance issues put a hurdle between players and an enjoyable, challenging and dark shooter.  But it didn’t stop it. There’d been a huge amount of what we might now call hype for Killzone before release, and that tide of excitement overcame the bugbears. Over a million copies were sold, and that was enough to get Sony to draw up a first-party contract for Guerrilla, ensuring that from 2004 onwards all the titles it developed would appear only on PlayStation consoles. 

4) What did Sony sign with Guerrilla in 2004? 

Over a million copies were sold, and that was enough to get Sony to draw up a first-party contract for Guerrilla, ensuring that from 2004 onwards all the titles it developed would appear only on PlayStation consoles. The deal meant that when Horizon: Zero Dawn released on PC in the summer of 2020, it was the first Guerrilla title to make it to that platform since Shellshock: Nam ‘67 in 2004.

 5) How is Horizon Forbidden West described in the article and what is the next stage for the franchise?  

horizon, on the other hand, has a different atmosphere entirely. It’s a world bearing the scars of a mysterious lost civilization, a far future that looks like a distant past, and it’s just about hospitable that you can exhale and take in the scenery now and then his was never the case in Killzone. Nor were the latter’s characters especially memorable, despite some convoluted double-crossings and a series-long penchant for surprise protagonist killings that would have made the Call of Duty writers’ room proud. Aloy’s journey through Horizon showed a different side to Guerrilla – soft-touch storytellers and exceptional world-builders, as well as masters of squeezing the most out of PlayStation hardware and making a headshot feel just right.

Horizon: Forbidden West will be only the studio’s eighth game as Guerrilla Games, and only its third outside the Killzone franchise. Its next announced project, a VR title co-developed with Firesprite called Horizon: Call of the Mountain, is in many ways the perfect example of what the studio’s about: a deepening of a universe it created itself, making fortuitous use of a Sony hardware platform. Meanwhile, anyone waiting for that Shellshock sequel might have to be patient.

Regulation and PEGI

1) What is HFW's PEGI rating and what age rating do you feel would be appropriate? Why?
PEGI 16+

Since the age rating is only applied when the portrayal of violence (or sexual activity) reaches a level that is consistent with what would be expected in real life, I would have to agree with the rating. Extreme instances of foul language usage can be found in games with a PEGI 16 rating, along with games of chance and the usage of illicit drugs, alcohol, or tobacco.

2) Why is regulating videogames difficult in the digital age?

Games can now be easily distributed online without physical copies thanks to the growth of digital platforms. Compared to conventional techniques, this makes it more difficult to keep an eye on and regulate the distribution of games. The gaming industry offers a variety of revenue streams, such as traditional one-time purchases, subscription services, and free-to-play with in-game purchases. It is necessary to adjust to new business models in order to regulate these models in order to safeguard consumers and stop exploitative practices.

3) Are attitudes towards media content and regulation changing as a result of the internet? Explain your answer.

As a result of the emergence of numerous online platforms for content distribution, such as social media, streaming services, and websites with user-generated content, the environment has become more varied. The diversity of content presents difficulties for regulators attempting to keep an eye on and manage content across various platforms. Content from many cultures and viewpoints can now be shared more easily thanks to the internet. This has raised awareness of cultural quirks and sensitivities and influenced conversations about the need for more inclusive and culturally aware laws.