Horizon Forbidden West: Audience and Industry blog tasks

 Audience

Look at this YouGov blog on the console gaming audience and answer the following questions:

1) What statistics can you find for the number of male / female players for the major consoles?

 PlayStation 5 (68% male; 29% female) and Xbox Series X|S (68% vs. 32%) have the highest proportion of male compared to female gamers.

2) What is the difference between 'hardcore' and 'casual' gamers - and which do you think would play Horizon Forbidden West?

Hardcore gamers is taking it seriously and wanting to be competitive and casual is playing the game for fun but has other interests and I think casual gamers would play HFW due to its story 

3) What are the different reasons YouGov researched for why players play games? Which of these would apply to Horizon Forbidden West?

To relax, to pass the time, to escape from reality, to challenge, to interact with gamers, to have an emotional connection and I think an emotional connection may be a reason for playing HFW

Look at the PlayStation website page for Horizon Forbidden West. Complete the following tasks: 

1) How is the game promoted to an audience?

Through the use of videos of the gameplay and trailer and having high quality pictures of the game

2) What are the key features for the game listed on the site?

Brave an expansive open world, a majestic frontier, confront new dangers, unravel startling mysteries 

3) What information does the website offer players about the game world and characters? Give a few examples.

Explore distant lands, fight bigger and more awe-inspiring machines, and encounter astonishing new tribes as you return to the far-future, post-apocalyptic world of Horizon.

4) What spin-offs and additional content are available as part of the Horizon franchise?  

Elite outfits, resource packs, face paint, machine strike peace and soundtracks 

5) Applying Henry Jenkins's work on fandom, what aspects of the website (you may need to scroll down) encourage fan activity and engagement with online Horizon communities?  

through HFW faqs encourage fan interaction and communities 

Read this Wired feature on Horizon Forbidden West's open world design. Answer the following questions: 

1) Why did the writer enjoy Horizon Forbidden West?

Fire one up and you’re quickly faced with enough real estate to lose hours of your life happily exploring or an abyss in which to get frustratingly lost and bored

2) How is Horizon Forbidden West structured for players when they first start the game?

The game is constructed through restricting the open world area and going through the story to understand each character 

3) Why does the writer feel HFW created a more successful open world game than The Witcher 3?

This kind of action stands in stark contrast to an open-world game like The Witcher 3, which, while expansive, is also just too overwhelming. A few days into the game, I threw down my controller in frustration when I arrived at a massive city and realized it would take hours to traverse all of its streets, talk to all of its NPCs, and finish the quests. I still enjoyed the game somewhat, but it failed to lure me in the way Horizon Forbidden Westdid.

Industries

Industry research

1) Research Sony PlayStation Studios. 

2) What studios are part of Sony PlayStation Studios?

Guerrilla games, insomniac games, Santa Monica studios, sucker punch productions

3) What notable games have they produced? 

They are known for spider man series, ratchet and clank, horizon series, god of war and ghost of tsushima

4) Now research Guerrilla Games. Look at the 'Explore' page in particular. Who owns Guerrilla Games and how does it reflect the modern videogames industry? 

Guerrilla games is owned by Sony and follows a pattern of successful studios being acquired by large corporations

5) Choose one of the 'Guerrilla Spotlight' features and write three things you learn about the videogames industry and/or Guerrilla Games from the interview.

focus on visuals and technology, emphasis on open world designs and platform exclusivity

Read this USA Today feature on Guerrilla Games. Answer the following questions: 

1) Which three companies merged to become Guerrilla Games?

Lost boys gamers, orange games and media republic all merged

2) What other games and franchises were created by Guerrilla Games?

Killzone series and shellshock

3) How did Guerrilla maximise the Killzone franchise? 

through deep lore ad technological innovation

4) What did Sony sign with Guerrilla in 2004? 

signed guerrilla games as a first party studio 

5) How is Horizon Forbidden West described in the article and what is the next stage for the franchise?  

to release dlc expansions which continues Aloys story

Regulation and PEGI

1) What is HFW's PEGI rating and what age rating do you feel would be appropriate? Why?

it has a PEGI rating of 16 and i think 16-15 is appropriate due to the violence and story

2) Why is regulating videogames difficult in the digital age?

through evolving content and global reach

3) Are attitudes towards media content and regulation changing as a result of the internet? Explain your answer.

due to the greater access to content through the internet the regulation of this content has increased causing more appropriate and enjoyable games for the audience

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