Horizon Forbidden West: Language and Representation blog tasks

 Language

Introduction

Read this review of Horizon Forbidden West in the Financial Times (should be non-paywalled but you can read the text of article here if needed). Answer the following questions:

1) Why does Guerrilla Games have 'a serious case of bad timing'? 

 it released its fantastic 2017 open-world role-playing game Horizon Zero Dawn than it was overshadowed by Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which launched a week later and turned out to be an all-time gaming great. Now just as it delivers an excellent sequel, Horizon Forbidden West, another phenomenon arrives on its heels to suck away all the oxygen, Elden Ring

2) What is the narrative for the original game Horizon Zero Dawn? 

The games take place a thousand years after rampaging machines have wiped out most of humanity. Survivors have clustered into tribal communities who view relics of technology as objects of either suspicion or religious reverence. The dramas of warring clans are narrated alongside the tale of how our world came to ruin. 

3) How is the central character Aloy described? 

Guerrilla struck gold with flame-haired heroine Aloy, who balances grit and tenderness as one of the most memorable new characters of its console generation. 

4) What is the narrative and setting for sequel Horizon Forbidden West?

Where the first game stretched across a terraformed Colorado, Forbidden West beckons players to Nevada and California with a new threat to humanity that, naturally, only you can resolve. 

5) What does the review say about animation and graphics?

Forbidden West is the first truly eye-popping flex of the PS5’s muscles, with graphics so beautiful that I have often found myself halting the adventure just to gawp at the landscape, whether dust clouds careening across the desert or forest leaves quivering in the breeze

6) What do we learn about the gameplay and activities in Horizon Forbidden West? 

Forbidden West’s gameplay offers robust, satisfying combat beneath its good looks. Aloy’s movement feels ultra-fluid as she deftly transitions between sliding, climbing and making use of new tools such as a grappling hook and paraglider. Each fight with a robot enemy is tense and exciting, demanding that players think like a hunter by analysing opponents’ behaviours, deploying traps and elemental attacks to gain the upper hand. Minor irritations from Zero Dawn have been resolved, allowing you to make better use of stealth and melee weapons or manage resources more easily. 

Close textual analysis

Watch the trailer for Horizon Forbidden West:

Answer the following questions:

1) How is narrative, character and setting introduced in the trailer?

"The old ones perished long ago" - post apocalyptic setting.

"I must find a way to stop it" - Aloy introduced as the hero/protagonist, only speaking and active human character you see in the trailer 

2) How is the game's open world / sandbox genre shown in the trailer? 

pen world/Sandbox genre - a type of game that provides a large, open world with a high degree of player freedom, allowing them to create, explore, and interact without being constrained by a predetermined or linear path

With the large range of landscapes and open space, it leads me to believe there is a high level of player freedom in which the players are able to chose the path in which they want the character to go also links with action adventure  genre aswell.

3) What representations can you find in the trailer? 

Female protagonist - gender representation.

The stereotype of African savagery at the end when a group of people with spears kill one of the robotic animals. 

AQA recommends watching the following gameplay trailer in their CSP booklet:

Watch the gameplay video and answer the following questions:

1) How does the game use media language to communicate ideas about narrative and genre?

Genre - action/adventure, Aloy jumping and climbing the things around her, uses verbal codes, action codes and mise-en-scene

Narrative - opening scene "raiders" and capturing as if in war, Todorov's  narrative theory( equilibrium, disequilibrium, new equilibrium) - fight scene; Propps character theory(helper)  

2) What representations of people, places or groups can you find in the gameplay video?

Nomadic/tribal people sea life robotic and animal hybrid 

3) What audience pleasures are suggested by this gameplay trailer?

Diversion and entertainment are offered  as people begin to see how immersive the game is.

Narrative and genre

Read this excellent Den of Geek article that addresses elements of narrative and genre. You can find the article text here if the link is blocked. Answer the following questions: 

1) Read the opening to the article. How can we apply Steve Neale's genre theory to Horizon Forbidden West?

Repetition and difference: repeats the stereotypical hero traits ie. “lone wolf” and “saving the world” - all quite masculine traits - the difference is in gender of the protagonist - This protagonist has subverted  many stereotypes  as she is very much masculine  despite her gender.

2) How many copies did the Horizon Zero Dawn sell and why did this influence the design of the sequel?

Copies - over 20 mil  

it’s not like this series really needed to change all that much to reach a significantly wider audience. Given the current shortage of next-gen consoles and development complications caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s also not like Guerrilla Games was in a position to make this a true PS5 exclusive built from the ground up to take advantage of that hardware. From a business standpoint, it makes all the sense in the world that Forbidden West sticks fairly close to its predecessor in terms of most of its basic design decisions. 

3) How does the article criticise the story in Horizon Forbidden West? 

The problem is that Forbidden West spends a bit too much time letting a small army of side characters spout what sometimes feels like an endless amount of exposition

4) What do we learn about the gameplay? 

Zero Dawn’s already compelling “hunting” combat system (which often tasked you with taking down massive robotic creatures while scavenging for invaluable supplies used to make traps,

5) What is the article's overall summary of the game?

the is a lot different from the prequel but the basics are still there  and they have improved on a lot of basis.

Representations

Race representations in Horizon Forbidden West

Read this fascinating Polygon feature on why Horizon Forbidden West isn't post-racial and answer the following questions: 

1) How does Horizon Forbidden West use narrative to create a fully diverse cast of characters?

They pack the game with characters of all skin colours and it makes sense within the context of the game as it set in the post-apocalyptic  world  where the world has  ended and been rebuilt so the diveristy of the races make sense. 

2) What is orientalism? 

refers to Western art, literature, and scholarship's stylized, often stereotypical depiction of the "Orient" (Middle East, Asia, North Africa), portraying the East as exotic, sensual, or backward compared to the rational West.

3) How does the article suggest orientalism applies to Horizon Forbidden West? 

There’s a stereotypical angry Black woman named Regalla, for example, who leads a rebel army and would rather die than seek peace.

There’s also constant belittling between tribes, who call each other “savage” or “uncivilized” — terms loaded with racial undertones. 

4) Who is the player encouraged to identify with in the game and how does this influence how representations are constructed?  

The game is made from the perspective of the western world - therefore the player is made to identify with the “white saviour” Aloy who presents her struggles of saving the world are more important than the “savages” struggles of staying alive. 

5) Finally, what did the writer of the article (an Asian American) feel when playing the game?

Guerrilla Games’ imagination is on incredible display in so many facets of the game that it’s all the more disappointing to see the studio fail, once again, to shake off so many of the racialized underpinnings of our world.

Gender and videogames

Focusing on Aloy and the representation of women in videogames, read this Forbes feature on the topic. Answer the following questions:

1) What is the debate regarding Aloy in Horizon Forbidden West? 

If she is attractive or not. 

2) What examples are provided of other female characters and representations in videogames?

Damsel in distress and over sexualisation. 

3) What are the issues facing the videogame industry in terms of gender 

The industry is grappling with constant, horrific mistreatment of real-life female employees.