Horizon Forbidden West: Audience and Industry

 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?

PlayStation 5= 68% male and 29% female

Xbox Series X|S= 68% male and 32% female 

Switch=  54% male and 46% female

2) What is the difference between 'hardcore' and 'casual' gamers - and which do you think would play Horizon Forbidden West?

Hardcore gamers are those people who take video games seriously or play competitively whereas casual gamers play for a more relaxing experience on commutes, in between work projects or chores. Horizon Forbidden West players are more hardcore as the game has a lot of detail and high graphics where the story and quest does not proceed in a short span of time.

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

When asking players why they play games, most players say say relaxing and winding down is a key motivation. Especially PS, Switch, X box and PS5 say to pass the time or to escape from reality for a while. Three in ten say they play games to make a world of their own and to interact with gamers from around the world. Most of these could apply to Horizon especially interacting with the world and escaping from reality through its own in game world.

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

1) How is the game promoted to an audience?

There are videos on gameplay, trailer, challenges, game over view, key features and a section on why you should play

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

There are Brave an expansive open world, A majestic frontier, Confront new dangers and Unravel startling mysteries.

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

It talks about game characters and their background such as Aloy, Sylens, Erend, Regella, Alva, Tilda and a few more. There are also machines of Horizon Forbidden West and their abilities in game.

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

The spin off was Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores where players go beyond Aloys adventures and main quest towards the Burning shores. Additional content shows papercraft guides of machines, there are multiple cosplay guides as well as an official soundtrack.

5) Applying Henry Jenkins's work on fandom, what aspects of the website (you may need to scroll down) encourage fan activity  and engagement with online Horizon communities?  

There are many fan activities shown on the page, from scrolling down we can see how the cosplay guides and even papercraft engage an audience to go further than just playing the game. That even without being in the made up world you can engage with the character's and explore more into the background of them. As well as this, at the bottom we can see multiple wallpapers presented to the audience where multiple concept arts have been drawn out for them to use. The online community is very active especially with the FAQ at the bottom answering any questions players might have.


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?

They found an open world video game exciting where your either exploring the abyss or getting lost/bored.

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

Its structured to follow the main storyline where it pulls you into the narrative before releasing you to explore. Theres structure to the game even though you have freedom to roam around and explore.

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

The Witcher 3 is described as overwhelming when it comes to travelling and progressing, talking to NPCs in order to finish the quests.

Industries

Industry research

1) Research Sony PlayStation Studios

2) What studios are part of Sony PlayStation Studios?

Team Asobi, Bend studio, Bluepoint, Firespite, Housemarque, Guerrilla, Haven, Insomniac games, Mm, Naughty Dog,Nixxes, Polyphony digital, San Diego studio, Santa Monica, Sucker Punch, Valkyria entertainment and Xdev.

3) What notable games have they produced? 

Spiderman games, The Last Of Us, God of War, Horizon.

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?

Its a owned subsidiary of Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe. This reflects modern videogame industries as Sony operates the PlayStation brand and the world's largest company in the video game industry showing its mainstream approach.


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

1) Which three companies merged to become Guerrilla Games?

Orange Games, Digital Infinity, and Formula Game Development.

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

Big Brother: The Game, Studios Hermen Hulst, Lost Boys Games, Killzone and Shellshock: Nam ‘67. 

3) How did Guerrilla maximise the Killzone franchise? 

It was earmarked as a Sony-published title.

4) What did Sony sign with Guerrilla in 2004? 

Song drew a first party contract for Guerrilla, ensuring that from 2004 onwards all the titles it developed would appear only on PlayStation consoles. 

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

Its described as a totally different games that  bearing the scars of a mysterious lost civilization, a far future that looks like a distant past.  Its next announced project, a VR title co-developed with Firesprite called Horizon: Call of the Mountain, as it makes use of  a Sony hardware platform.

Regulation and PEGI

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

Its rated pg. 16 I feel like this age rating is appropriate to the game as it does include some heavy violence and killing that might be dangerous for younger kids.

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

Video games are difficult to regulate as the key problem is that gaming platforms demonstrate different standards when it comes to content moderation and are not governed by a clear framework. Many studios have different ratings for similar type of games.

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

Attitudes towards media content and regulations are changing as a lot of these mature content or adult only games is becoming normalised on the internet and can be seen without warning. There is also a say on how audience bring their own beliefs and their opinions to the media they choose to consume which affects how they interpreted the media presented to them. Media is not only a source of information but a way to shape and even change societies views and values on things like the videogames industry and how it should be regulated. The younger generation nowadays is being educated at school on the media and have a better understanding on how the internet functions in comparison to older people so there is this sense of lenience when it comes to devices and how they are able to access more content than before.

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