Horizon Zero Dawn drops you into a world where robotic dinosaurs roam overgrown ruins, and somehow that premise works completely.

The community data tells an interesting story. The game's biggest strength is how it feels to play, ranking ahead of roughly 80% of games on that front. It also does surprisingly well as a "show a friend" game, sitting in the top quarter. But almost everything else lags behind. The story, the world, the emotional connection, the fun factor, the desire to replay it, all land in the bottom quarter or lower. The unique world score is especially striking for an open-world game, placing near the very bottom of the pack.

For an open-world RPG, that gap is hard to ignore. Games in this genre usually live or die by their world and narrative pull. Horizon has the mechanical polish, but the community clearly didn't feel pulled in emotionally the same way they do with genre peers.

This one is for players who enjoy tight, responsive combat and hunting systems and don't need the story or world to carry the experience. If you're someone who needs to feel genuinely lost in a fictional world, or deeply attached to the characters, you'll likely finish it satisfied but not moved.