Horizon Deserves a Better Adaptation Than Lego Adventures

The Lego Horizon Adventures reveal came as a complete surprise to me. PlayStation has been doubling down on the franchise in recent years, with the release of a remaster of the first game arriving alongside rumors of a multiplayer game being in the works. However, a Lego version isn’t something I imagined would be part of the expansion plan.

As we said in our Lego Horizon Adventures review, it’s a: “gorgeous title that, despite being sweet and charming, just didn’t meet our expectations in terms of gameplay. With quite simple and repetitive combat sequences, it’s easy to feel bored or disinterested when playing.” The game simply isn’t as deep and engaging as it needs to be to take full advantage of the Horizon name.

Despite this, I’m confident Horizon is the perfect PlayStation franchise to be immortalized in the Lego world, just in a better game. Considering the pedigree of Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West, there’s so much potential for a sequel.

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. A Style That’s Perfect For Lego Recreation
3. More Lego Machines, Please
4. Getting the Characters Wrong
5. Would Uncharted or The Last of Us Be Better?
6. The Bottom Line
7. FAQs
8. References

Show Full Guide

Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. A Style That’s Perfect For Lego Recreation
3. More Lego Machines, Please
Show Full Guide
4. Getting the Characters Wrong
5. Would Uncharted or The Last of Us Be Better?
6. The Bottom Line
7. FAQs
8. References

A Style That’s Perfect For Lego Recreation

I appreciate that Lego Horizon Adventures is targeting a younger audience, and maybe one that isn’t hugely familiar with the main series. However, it lacks so much of what makes Guerilla’s series special. The extreme linearity of the Lego adaptation removes any of the sprawling, expansive nature Horizon is known for. There are small paths to hidden chests and structures to build at the press of a single button, but the brilliant exploration of Zero Dawn and Forbidden West has been left behind.

Horizon’s world is phenomenal. Combining decaying post-apocalyptic cities with perfectly nature-touched wildernesses, its version of Earth is a beautifully haunting place to explore. Lego Horizon Adventures maintains the visual splendour, only without the scale.

Lego Horizon Adventures features four distinct areas during its story. You’ll head to a crumbling city, a bright desert, and a lush forest. That variety matches the source material, and Studio Gobo has done a brilliant job of matching the style and tone – even in Lego form. The world is perfect for Lego recreation.

More Lego Machines, Please

Even since I first saw the official Lego Tallneck set, which I still want to buy one day, I knew the robotic enemies would make for great Lego projects. The real-world Tallneck looks spectacular, but I can also see the likes of Snapmaws, Thunderjaws, and Corruptors making for impressive sets. Maybe I just want more to add to a collection.

The fact that they’re man-made constructions in Horizon’s otherwise natural world also cements the fact that they’re ripe for Lego reimaginings. They’re blocky and angular already, so they look brilliant in a form we can make ourselves. The bright, almost cartoony nature of everything in Horizon could be amazing in Lego form if you were truly given the freedom to explore. Lego Horizon Adventures looks impressive, and the vibe is spot on; I just wish there was more to it. Even matching the scope of TT Games’ Lego titles would have made a massive difference.

Getting the Characters Wrong

It is Horizon’s characters and tone that Adventures gets wrong, more so than anything else. The likes of the brilliant Lego Star Wars games present their own comedic slant on the iconic series. Often, straight-faced characters will do something silly, modern-world things will sneak in as part of a joke, and plenty of people will fall over.

However, there’s a consistent invention and humor to those moments. The tone remains consistent and relevant to the characters the game is riffing on. Lego Horizon Adventures leans on the generic instead. Erend loves donuts, and Aloy likes pickle sandwiches. That’s not playing around with the existing characters, that’s just adding a random personality trait that doesn’t fit the world they’re in.

That’s not to say Adventures is devoid of charm. There are funny moments throughout the story, but they never hit the heights of most other Lego adaptations.

Horizon’s characters should be easy to riff on, too. They’re either bumbling or intensely serious. The fact that the series focuses on a future world that’s embracing both caveman sensibilities and otherworldly tech makes it ripe for jokes.

Even Aloy herself, who’s serious almost to a flaw in Zero Dawn, is a character who is perfect for the lightness a Lego game provides. Adventures is nearly there but missed the mark a little. That may be down somewhat to the magic of TT Games’ Lego titles.

Would Uncharted or The Last of Us Be Better?

Some questioned it at the time, but I also believe that Horizon is the perfect first-party PlayStation franchise to be Lego-ified.

There are the obvious choices that already fit the style, such as Astro Bot and Ratchet and Clank – after all, everything already explodes into blocks when you hit it in the latter – but Horizon has everything you can want from a Lego adaptation.

It has a bright and varied setting, a tone and world that’s easy to understand, and simple but endearing characters. On top of that, the robot machines are perfect for Lego redesigns. I can’t imagine the Clickers from The Last of Us would look great, nor would the non-descript enemies from God of War. Yes, the latter’s world would look spectacular in Lego, but it’s not as well-rounded as Horzion in terms of what Lego looks for.

Uncharted is the other hit series that I think would work in Lego. Not only are the ancient worlds Nate and his friends explore gorgeously, but the tone of the games is already playful and easily adapted for Lego. Also, Nathan Drake, Sully, and Elena are comfortably more recognizable than Aloy and her friends.

However, Uncharted doesn’t have anything as perfect for Lego as machines. Also, unlike Horizon, PlayStation seems to be leaving Uncharted in the past. Adventures helps sell the likes of Zero Dawn Remastered, and nothing like that is needed for Naughty Dog’s adventure series.

The Bottom Line

If Studio Gobo gets another crack at combining Lego and Horizon, maybe with an adaptation of Forbidden West, I hope they embrace more of the strengths of other Lego games. Horizon is the perfect PlayStation series for the blocky and lighthearted style; it just needs the freedom to show why.

FAQs