Isn't it basically an Assassin's Creed game? I'm genuinely asking, not judging anyone's tastes. I'm just really bored with that formula, personally.

If by that you mean a third person action-adventure-rpg, then yes. It has a very specific flavor of 13th century Japan, with its traditions and myths, that is very well researched and depicted in the game. Yes, it's a game, but also a virtual work of art. You can clearly see it is not a crash-grab, but a work of passion by the devs. The gameplay is also quite good for the genre.

I haven't played it since it ain't on PC yet and all, but many comparisons by reviewers & players were made to early AC titles & Witcher 3.

To quote IGN:
"Ghost of Tsushima’s combat is like a witches’ brew made with bits of the Batman Arkham series, the pre-Origins Assassin’s Creeds, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and the entire library of Kurosawa films."

Source: IGN's review - https://www.ign.com/articles/ghost-of-tsushima-review

its like everyone needs their own niche inside the arpg section .. the assassins... the biowares ..... the souls ...... the gta's .... the survivalists .... the minecrafters ..... the gods of wars .... the j's ..... and who know what else more there is to be found.

Like odyssey was a big no but still a good 50 hours to which i maybe return just to see if i can finish the story
andromeda turned out quite captivating... open world games, and certainly those in the SF genre, or fantasy do need their marvels in level design right? FFXV seems to be one of those marvels too, or automata for that matter, short sleek and multiple ended, Nioh, Ghosts, and Sekira all received tremendous praise, as did RDR2 ...... of course everyone wants their share at an open world game if the story provided, scenery discovered, overall action level is above satisfactory for what your looking.....

Oh right, and of course walking simulators, lets not forget about those

yep, most games just copy their genre's features and don't even try to be something special

still walking sims are garbage especially visual novels

and of course, at the age of 20 your bound not to have the same prejudice as someone at the age of 40 or above

As long as it runs on dx11 too; because just like with cyberpunk and zero dawn that run on dx12 only; I can't even start these games...lol.

My windows 7 PC won't even allow NSA SHA2 backdoor crypto spyware via 2 of micro$oft's KB updates to install, hence I can't even update graphic drivers.

As RPG-ish as Horizon is I think there's still a huge difference between it and something like Dragon Age Inquisition or Fallout 4. If you asked me to define what that exact difference is I would struggle to put it into words, but I think they are more "RPG-y" and it's a difference you feel when playing.

Fair point. I'd also appreciate DX11 support, but we're only splitting hairs at the moment. If it did come to PC, it might just be a DX12 deal like Horizon though.

yea you are right in that regard, bethesda - and bioware games are more rpg then most arpgs but not so rpg'y that they could be considered a true rpg, by the crowd, that is. while maybe both companies started out as ' true rpg ' companies there evolution and fanbase shows that the degeneration of certain aspects of their games created more enjoyable titles overall. The whole , i offer you one fantasy title and one science fiction title is too ridiculous as it stands, but another topic all together! ... as is the enjoyable aspect of the games btw, true open world is like sooo boring

Spider-Man or GTFO Sony.

Whether you think it's right or wrong, I doubt AAA games will support DX11 and Win7 much longer. Time marches forward as it always does.

I have my own theory on the differences. Games like Horizon (and Witcher 3 for that matter) have some of the trappings of RPG's on the surface yes. They feel different than Skyrim or Fallout 3/4 because the devs make a big attempt to make them "cinematic". Every time a game takes control away from the player in HZD or The Witcher using a cutscene or pre-scripted story directed choice- the game stops being an RPG...or at the least it's the developer role playing instead of the player. Every quest in Horizon when the game wants you to talk to someone you have to talk to them. If you want to kill someone that the game doesn't want dead, then they are bullet proof. In Fallout 4 you can just choose to shoot someone in the face instead of talking, even if it breaks the game quests- you are rarely forced to do anything in Fallot 4 or Skyrim. I've always said that The Witcher and HZD are fine well made video games, but very poor RPG's and the way to enjoy them is to stop thinking of them as an RPG and treat them as cinematic action adventure.

But I think this way because I played table top war games and D&D as a kid. If a dungeon master tried to tell you what to do all the time then we'd be pissed- he's there to take my choices and adjudicate those choices, not make them for me. Developers these days have it ass about and want to make RPG's into movies.

Good post man, and I do think that's part of it. Horizon doesn't even seem to have simple choices to make either, I just found some rebels who stole medical supplies and there was zero choice to make, she just negotiated with them automatically. Even Mass Effect had basic choices.

It's just interesting how I can love a game like Skyrim and put 200 hours into it but get bored of a game like Horizon in 10 hours. Theoretically they're not THAT different, but they really are.