Horizon Forbidden West is regarded as one of the best gaming sequels of the recent generation. After the first release, Zero Dawn, became one of Sony and developer Guerrilla Games’ most successful new IPs in 2017, Horizon Forbidden West went on to improve and expand on its distinct world and characters, advancing the elaborate post-apocalyptic tale and delivering another satisfying open-world action experience.
Of the menagerie of memorable machines in Horizon, the equally majestic and deadly Stormbirds are one of the series’ most striking and terrifying apex predators. These served as late-game enemies that presented a difficult encounter and offered valuable rewards for defeating them. While they returned to menace Aloy in Forbidden West, they weren’t quite the monsters they were in their initial incarnation. As such, and given that they are pretty much a shoo-in to appear in the third mainline entry, it would be good to see Stormbirds rise again as kings of the skies.
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Guerrilla Games may add a brand-new enemy type to spice up the gameplay and lore in the upcoming Horizon 3, building off Horizon Forbidden West.
Stormbirds Could Use Another Overhaul in Horizon 3 Following Their Subdued Design in Forbidden West
Stormbirds in Horizon Zero Dawn and Forbidden West
Horizon Zero Dawn‘s Stormbirds were some of the most visually impressive and mechanically complex enemies to go up against. As they are essentially mechanized versions of the mythical Thunderbird, complete with electricity/lightning-based weaponry. Zero Dawn‘s Stormbirds were truly something to behold and battle. Fighting one was a commitment that demanded a great deal of precision and preparation on the player’s part. Yet, perhaps due to the developer feeling they could sometimes be overwhelming or unbalanced, their behavior and patterns in Horizon Forbidden West felt comparatively scaled back.
One of the most effective ways to tackle Stormbirds in Zero Dawn is to combine freezing and tying them down with the Ropecaster.
The massive birds seemed to ground themselves more often, making themselves easier targets to pin down and generally being less relentlessly aggressive than their counterparts in Zero Dawn. Their iconic cannons were also a bit easier to neutralize or knock off to turn the tables against them. Pound for pound, Stormbirds in Horizon Zero Dawn provided the bigger overall challenge, and the fights against them were more spectacular, requiring a relatively higher level of skill and strategy. This isn’t to say that they were complete pushovers in Horizon Forbidden West, but they were noticeably less imposing in the second outing and demoted to a somewhat lesser threat level tier.
How Horizon 3 Could See Stormbirds Return to Rule the Roost
Guerrilla has already stated it has ambitious plans for Horizon 3. The third entry is positioned to build on the firmly established setting and story while likely refining the gameplay and design even further, which will naturally extend to its iconic foes. Forbidden West introduced the Dreadwing, who seemed to inherit the Stormbird’s role as the most dangerous aerial threat due to it being harder to damage their parts, while they also had a more diverse and intimidating pool of attacks and movement patterns.
Perhaps something has happened to the Cauldrons or in the world at large by the time of Horizon 3‘s events that has resulted in the creation of some nightmarish combination of Stormbird and Dreadwing rolled into one. This would present a high level of combat challenge, but still be somewhat familiar to fans. This hypothetical beast could then make use of the traits of both previous iterations while possibly having evolved entirely new abilities.
Another option would be to keep players on their toes by having the Stormbirds function more or less as they did in Forbidden West, but giving them some fresh tactics. Although they were previously seen to be solo hunters, having to deal with a flock of two or three at once would be a great way to retain their lethality, even if they are no longer the most badass creature in the sky. Along with whatever other old and new machine enemies players might face in Horizon 3, Guerrilla should ensure that Stormbirds still rank high on the list of most daunting.
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