Horizon Forbidden West will not be releasing for another week but one of its core gameplay features, one which developer Guerrilla Games was carefully hiding as a surprise for players, has been leaked.
According to a Chinese review (via ResetEra) that was accidentally published earlier today ahead of schedule, Horizon Forbidden West will feature flyable machine mounts to finally allow Aloy to explore the beautiful frontiers of a post-apocalyptic America from the skies above.
It remains to be confirmed just how many flyable mounts there will be in the sequel but the sun-winged beast for starters will be found roaming in the high mountainous areas of the game.
The leaked review notes that the beast will be powered by solar cells on the wings and have its whole body covered with shields. The sun-winged beast will also have long-range attacks with the ability to fire plasma shells from its mouth.
Horizon Forbidden West will be the first in the franchise to have flyable mounts. Horizon Zero Dawn had several mounts to choose from as well but they could only be ridden across the ground. There hence stands a strong possibility that the sequel will have more than just the sung-winged beast to cover the skies.
With at least one review already out there, there stands reason to take caution until the official release date. The aforementioned Chinese review contains several other spoilers as well, including those related to the story. Fans will have to be careful from here on so as not to spoil their gameplay before the game has even released.
Last month, an early build of Horizon Forbidden West was confirmed to have been leaked online. The build contained all of the core content from start to finish, but lacked some assets and the obvious polish.
Horizon Forbidden West will officially release for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on February 18, 2022. Those who own the previous-generation version will be able to upgrade to the current-generation version for free.
There will probably be a PC release down the road just as the first game but which remains to be officially confirmed.
