Lego Horizon Adventures is way better than I expected — here’s why

Lego Horizon Adventures is somewhat confounding. Instead of bigger PlayStation franchises like The Last of Us, God of War, or Uncharted, Guerrilla Games’ comparatively new Horizon series gets the Lego treatment. While this choice is somewhat odd, I can’t complain about the result. Lego Horizon Adventures is one of the most enjoyable games I’ve played all year.

This family-friendly Lego-fied version of Horizon Zero Dawn expertly balances the former’s adorable aesthetics and customization with the latter’s character-focused story and tactical combat. In fact, this is one of the more action-packed Lego games — even in comparison to the Lego Star Wars series. But despite its greater emphasis on combat, the game never takes itself too seriously, offering the trademark comedic tone you’d expect from a Lego title.

If you enjoyed Astro Bot and want to play another lighthearted journey, you can’t go wrong with Horizon Lego Adventures. Find out why in my full review.

Lego Horizon Adventures: The Basics 

• What is it? Lego Horizon Adventures is a reimagining of Horizon Zero Dawn in Lego form, combining the former's precise combat and engaging story with the latter's customization and light-hearted humor.
• Who is it for? For folks who want a family-friendly game and fans of the Lego and Horizon series of games.
• What's the price? Lego Horizon Adventures costs $60 on the PlayStation Store, Nintendo Switch store, and Steam.
• What other games has the developer made? Guerilla Games has developed the first two Horizon games and is also known for the Killzone franchise. Studio Gobo has helped develop games like Hogwarts Legacy, Redfall and For Honor, among others.
• What games is this similar to? This is similar to past Lego games like Lego Star Wars or Lego Harry Potter.

A delightful journey

If you’ve played Horizon Zero Dawn, you’ll be familiar with Lego Horizon Adventures’ general plot points. Series lead Aloy and her companions live in a post-apocalyptic world overrun with animal-like machines. Something has caused the usually peaceful robots to become hostile, so it’s up to Aloy and friends to restore peace to the land.

While this game certainly takes liberties with the original story — particularly with the sillier character personalities, it’s a surprisingly faithful reimaging of Zero Dawn. The fact that this title was released alongside Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered is a masterstroke, as you can now relive the original and then check out this fun Lego version.

Everyone, save for the late Lance Reddick, reprises their respective roles, only with a sillier twist. For example, the typically stoic and curt Aloy (voiced by Ashley Burch) is now a fun-loving protagonist, which is certainly a big change. Varl (John MacMillan) yearns to be a superhero while Rost (JB Blanc) is obsessed with donuts. Though some characterizations take a while to get used to if you’ve played the Horizon games, they fit the game’s tone perfectly.

Surviving the wilds 

Lego Horizon Adventures retains the isometric camera angle typical of Lego games. Though this view is somewhat restrictive compared to third-person games with free camera controls, you can see everything around you clearly enough. The camera pulls back during enemy encounters, which mostly ensures you won’t get sneak-attacked.

Speaking of attacks, the four playable characters all have unique abilities. Aloy and Varl use a bow and spear (respectively), which are great for long-range attacks. Teersa’s bombs are also perfect for long-range damage. Rost, who wields hammers, is the exception since he’s better at close-range combat. They all work well for most scenarios, but I found Aloy and Varl the easiest to use since they can (mostly) remain far from enemies while attacking.

Regarding enemies, they’re surprisingly aggressive on medium difficulty. If you’re not careful, they’ll take you down fast — especially with their lethal ranged attacks. There are times when you’ll be overwhelmed by the sheer number of on-screen enemies. But so long as you never stay still and strategically take down foes by using your weapons and environmental hazards, you’ll emerge victorious.

Like the previous Horizon games, you’re able to scan robots for weaknesses. This skill becomes invaluable in taking down the fiercest machines, as destroying certain body parts can nullify some (or all) of their strongest attacks. This, alongside the aforementioned environmental hazards like electricity, adds a level of combat depth not typical of Lego games.

Defeating enemies and completing objectives earns you experience points, which in turn helps raise your overall level. You’ll unlock new abilities on the character’s skill tree, such as increased health or stronger attacks. These unlocks happen naturally as you level up. You can also purchase upgrades that apply to all four characters.

Outside of combat, you’ll explore the environment for Studs (the in-game currency) which you’ll use to purchase upgrades for your characters and the village. Though levels are largely linear, you’ll find numerous hidden chests and objects to build — which net you a good deal of extra Studs and are worth seeking out.

Build it your way 

Since this is a Lego game, there’s a fair amount of building and customization. If you’re new to the series, building involves simply holding down a button near a pile of glowing blue bricks which then rise and assemble into specific objects. Buildable objects include buildings, hotdog stands, chicken coups, rockets, and much more. Though construction isn’t an involved process, it’s satisfying to see a mountain of Lego pieces combine into something tangible.

You’ll do most of your building in Mother’s Heart, which is the game’s main village and central hub. Here, you can outfit buildings with different roofs, land plots, colors and other adornments. You can only create new buildings after reaching a certain level and you’ll need Studs to add items to them. Creating your own Mother’s Heart can be quite an addictive side activity.

Horizon doesn’t have nearly as many characters as a long-running franchise like Lego Star Wars. Despite that, you can play as or dress up like many of the villagers and enemy humans from the first game. Given the limited amount of characters in the first Horizon game, it makes sense that you can also unlock characters from other Lego franchises like Ninjago and Lego City. Even if it’s weird battling robot dinosaurs as a modern-day cop, it adds to the game’s quirky charm.

So much shiny plastic

Lego Horizon Adventure features the same charming graphics we’ve come to expect. The plastic characters and equally plastic environments look authentic to real-world Lego figures and sets. Toss in expert use of lighting and background blur, and you get a game that’s a feast for the eyes.

The environments consist of dense jungles, barren deserts, snow-capped mountains and more. Though each level has a fair amount of Lego-fied details, they’re all fairly linear — which can make replaying them to farm for Studs or complete side quests somewhat dull. But the pleasant graphics help offset this.

From the jump, you’re asked to choose between Fidelity and Performance graphical modes (even on PS5 Pro). The former favors higher resolution and lower frame rate and the latter focuses on smoother gameplay at lower resolution. I stuck with Performance, which mostly does a good job of maintaining a high frame rate, though frames would occasionally drop during action-heavy battles.

A fun adventure

Lego Horizon Adventures is the definition of a delightful surprise. I don’t know who asked for it, but I’m glad it exists. Thanks to its adorable graphics, strategic combat, fun customization options, and endearing plot, this is a game that just about anyone can enjoy.

If you’ve never played a Lego game or are curious to see how this series handles the Horizon franchise, this is a title well worth checking out.