LEGO Horizon Adventures Review

The Horizon series has got to be SONY's favorite child at this point. With the recently released Horizon Zero Dawn Remaster, Horizon Forbidden West, the Burning Shores DLC, and even the VR spin-off Horizon Call of the Mountain, it feels like the series is not going to be left alone any time soon.

With LEGO Horizon Adventures, the heavy-handed story of Aloy is transformed into a kid-friendly title that is much shorter, much more casual, and certainly a lot sillier. If you are familiar with the humor used in The LEGO Movie or have watched or consumed any of LEGO's cartoons or games, you'll know the work done by Guerilla Games and Studio Gobo here with this top-down action platformer.

The original story of Horizon Zero Dawn follows Aloy as she discovers the secrets of her world, which has mechanical robot dinosaurs. She roams the open fields as she tries to find out who her mother is and why she has been left in the mountains. The original game has a pretty series tone throughout that is completely thrown out the window in LEGO Horizon Adventures.

You'll see the same story beats and the same events, but it's all distilled down and made sillier with some slapstick comedy, less serious dialogue, and a narrator who tells it all like it's a fun little story.

Given its target audience, it makes sense that this isn't a story-focused game like Horizon Zero Dawn. Many of the changes are the result of the game's attempt to maintain a positive tone.

All of Zero Dawn's events are viewed through a humorous lens, emphasizing brevity and levity. The epic, post-apocalyptic narrative of the original game has been condensed into a more streamlined, cheerful version. It helps that the humor is generally effective, even if the game isn't hilarious.

Surprisingly, LEGO Horizon Adventures adapts the universe in a way that perfectly captures the true vibe of Horizon. Whether it's the beautiful, overgrown environments you explore, the authenticity of the machines' visual designs and gameplay functions, or the return of the majority of the original game's voice cast (with the notable and unfortunate exception of Lance Reddick, who played Sylens), the adaptation feels faithful despite its lighthearted tone.

The gameplay loop of LEGO Horizon Adventures is extremely simple. You venture out into the world to complete quests ranging from gathering metal flowers to saving villagers and building towers. Your mission is to stop the bad guys and their evil plan. To achieve this, you must complete missions in four distinct areas.

While exploring, you'll come across numerous machines to fight, as well as the occasional group of human cultists. Defeating them allows you to continue your journey and collect a golden brick at the end of the level.

While fighting cultists is satisfying, battles against machines are the highlight. Machines, like those in Horizon, have unique moves and weaknesses. Hitting these repeatedly breaks them off, causing a lot of damage and frequently disabling certain attacks. The mechanics are obviously simplified here, but there is some strategy to be found in the chaos.

LEGO Horizon Adventures also includes a variety of unique weapons and gadgets, such as a shield that deflects projectiles and a hot dog vendor who throws exploding sausages. Depending on the level you choose, combat can be difficult. The combat works extremely well and is undoubtedly the highlight of each stage.

There are four playable characters in LEGO Horizon Adventures. Varl, Tilda, and Erend accompany Aloy on her adventure, each carrying their own weapon. Aloy uses her signature bow and arrows, Varl throws spears, Tilda throws bombs, and Erend wields a hammer.

Each plays slightly differently, and there are unique versions of their weapons to discover. While four characters may seem like a small number in comparison to other Lego titles, their unique weapons and the ability to dress them up in dozens of outfits—including designs from Horizon and other brands such as Ninjago and City—provide variety.

The combat of LEGO Horizon Adventures culminates in a couple of interesting boss fights, and most levels end with entertaining cutscenes. However, these moments cannot be relived. There is no level selection, and once you collect the gold brick to complete a level, you're done.

You cannot replay stages unless you create a new save. While most levels aren't interesting enough to warrant replaying, it's unfortunate that you can't redo cool fights or revisit favorite story moments. This is an odd choice for a game aimed primarily at children.

Unfortunately, LEGO Horizon Adventures' stages are where things start to fall apart. Each one is a relatively easy journey through picturesque environments, interspersed with combat arenas and the occasional boss battle.

On paper, that sounds good, but the levels are extremely basic. There is very little significant platforming or exploration to speak of. You'll jump and climb your way through, but the short, linear stages offer little variation.

There are some small side paths that typically lead to treasure chests or a small LEGO build. However, these are barely visible and provide you with studs, the game's primary currency. While there's nothing wrong with that, you earn so many studs elsewhere that these chests and builds don't seem worth looking into.

When you first start playing the game, this super-simple-level design makes sense. However, it does not increase in intensity. Even some fun mechanics, such as shooting arrows through fire to burn away vines, are introduced early on and then rarely used. While the levels are bookended by amusing cutscenes and punctuated by combat, they feel flat and have little consequence.

Throughout the levels of LEGO Horizon Adventures, you will come across rare weapons that can only be used for a short time. These add interesting features to combat, such as elemental effects like ice, shock, and fire. Each character also possesses unique weapons and gadgets, such as gravity bombs and movement enhancers like dashes and double jumps.

Individual characters level up based on their usage. While they mostly follow the same upgrade path, it's interesting to see which ones progress faster based on how you use them.

A large portion of the game takes place in Mother's Heart, your home base. After each mission, you return here. As you progress through Mother's Heart, new areas become available for exploration. You can use the studs you collect in levels to buy a variety of items, including character skins (or "cosplay," as Varl calls them) and building decorations.

You can spend as much time as you want admiring the beautiful plastic presentation in Mother's Heart, the main hub of LEGO Horizon Adventures. This is where you'll return after completing each level, and it features a variety of intriguing progression mechanics. You can upgrade Aloy and other playable characters, as well as customize the village with various costumes and building options.

The hub grows over time, providing more opportunities to personalize with various Lego-themed items from Horizon and beyond. In addition, there is a job board with optional objectives to complete in the hub or while leveling. It all gives you a strong sense of forward momentum.

Visually, LEGO Horizon Adventures looks great—as good as a LEGO game should look. The lighting effects are impressive, and the LEGO people, pieces, and effects look pretty good. Having loved LEGO Ninjago and The LEGO Movie as a kid, I am also quite fond of the way this series handles movement and animation—it's done to my tastes here.

The voice acting in LEGO Horizon Adventures is another highlight. It helps that the game does not take itself too seriously. I think the original game is just okay at conveying the seriousness of the story. This game, however, is a lot more enjoyable because of the way things are directed.

LEGO Horizon Adventures offers a fun, lighthearted spin on the Horizon series. The trademark humor and charm of LEGO games are all here. While the game stylistically nails translating the world of Horizon into LEGO, the simplistic gameplay, repetition, and lackluster level design hold it back.

For the audience LEGO Horizon Adventures is targeted at—which is children, this game is a pretty good introduction to the series. It's not the best game ever, but it's not terribly bad either. I can see this becoming a child's favorite game for a little while. If you're looking for a lighthearted romp through a familiar world, LEGO Horizon Adventures is worth a try, but don't expect it to reach the heights of its source material.