Sony and Guerilla Games have remained largely silent about what’s coming in Horizon: Forbidden West, the highly anticipated sequel to 2017’s Horizon Zero Dawn, but that hasn’t stopped fans from speculating what could be next in Aloy’s journey. The Forbidden West trailer seemingly had quite a few hints, showing Aloy exploring underwater regions, investigating a mysterious red plant, and riding past the ruins of the Golden Gate Bridge. Dangerous new machine, new tribes, and countless other challenges await her on the west coast of the former United States.
Horizon Zero Dawn told a big story with an emphasis on world-building and global stakes—Horizon: Forbidden West is likely to do the same. The scariest possibility in the world of Horizon is the return of the Faro Plague, which would have brought about the end of humanity had Elisabet Sobeck and her team of scientists not taken drastic measures to secure mankind’s future. HADES tried and failed to bring back the Faro Plague in the first game, but there was one machine missing from the lineup that could make all the difference if it gets another chance.
The apocalyptic event known as the Faro Plague occurred in the late 21st century when a swarm of Chariot machines glitched and went rogue, as these machines were built for military purposes with a variety of special features designed to make them invincible. The Chariot line was capable of self-replication, consumed biomass as fuel, and had no safety protocol that would allow them to be hacked or shut down remotely. The Chariot line’s network was so secure that it would take decades for even the most powerful computer to break through. In short, the Faro Plague was an unstoppable robot apocalypse.
Renowned scientist Elisabet Sobeck observed that the swarm was unstoppable and would end all life on earth within 15 months. In response, she launched Project Zero Dawn, which would see to the design and implementation of a terraforming AI known as GAIA. This AI, along with her many subfunctions, would be responsible for breaking down the Chariot line and revitalizing the earth after life ended. It worked until HADES, a subfunction intended to make Earth a blank slate if GAIA made mistakes, received a signal that made it independent. GAIA self-destructed to make sure HADES wouldn’t have access to the required tools, but HADES was resourceful and attempted to awaken the long-gone Chariot machines responsible for the Faro Plague.
Players fought against Corruptors and Deathbringers in Horizon Zero Dawn, but the third Chariot machine is the Metal Devil, officially known as the FAS-BOR7 Horus or the Horus Titan. There are only a few such machines, several of which were not fully buried by GAIA’s terraforming efforts. The large tentacles of the Metal Devils protrude from the mountains in multiple locations and one is visible in the Forbidden West trailer near the Golden Gate Bridge.
The Metal Devil was teased as a boss fight in the first game, and many fans were disappointed that it wasn’t featured as the final boss. That may change in Horizon: Forbidden West. It would be a massive disappointment and missed opportunity if Aloy never had the chance to face one of these monstrous machines, and it was conspicuously absent in the first game. That may have been intentional.
In the end credits scene of Horizon Zero Dawn, Sylens was seen capturing HADES and demanding more knowledge about the “masters” that caused the AI to go rogue. Fans have many theories about what the signal that awoke HADES might have been, ranging from the previously rogue climate-control AI known as VAST SILVER to a clone of Ted Faro himself. Any number of these theories might be true, but the former Banuk shaman is quick to turn towards a derelict Metal Devil for answers. Sylens has been suggested as the primary human antagonist in Horizon: Forbidden West, and if he’s messing around with the Metal Devils, that could spell bad news for Aloy.
The Horus Titans are bigger and more powerful than any machines in Horizon Zero Dawn, capable of replicating both themselves and the other machines from the Chariot line. If even one came back to life, the Faro Plague could return and completely devour Aloy’s world. It seems inevitable that a Metal Devil will return at some point, and the Faro Plague might be able to return in full force along with it.
Horizon: Forbidden West is coming to PS4 and PS5 in 2021.
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