Horizon Zero Dawn is one of the most highly anticipated games of 2017, exclusive to the PS4 and PS4 Pro. But what makes the post-apocalyptic world of Horizon Zero Dawn so attractive? Apart from roaming mechanical dinosaurs and a fiery red-headed heroine, of course.

On the face of it, a lavish and original fantasy epic set in a wonderfully realised world sounds like a welcome escape from the very real horrors being played out across the nightly news bulletins.

Nadine has been a passionate gamer since she was a freshman in college. When she isn't playing video games, watching her favorite YouTubers, or trying to share her gaming misadventures, Nadine is working on her photography and her travel plans. Her biggest gaming wish?

Explore a unique world of machine like animals in Horizon Zero Dawn an action role playing title with a setting unlike anything before as it blends the primitive and the advanced into one. Playing as Aloy, a female hunter who lives within a world ravaged by robots. Representing a time period ap...

Unique world that looks fantastic – Crafting and combat options

Fetch quests dominate side quests

An open-world that tailors to each and every interest, Horizon: Zero Dawn keeps combat fresh, with an intriguing protagonist to match.

Stunning open world imploring you to explore; Hunt however you choose; Intricate fights with robot animals

Jumping and melee attacks are a tad slow

'Horizon Zero Dawn' nails every aspect of the open-world action RPG, including robot dinosaur hunting.

Rich; compelling world-building; Visceral; tactical action; Gorgeous visuals and music; Refreshing diversity

Rote open-world RPG mechanics; Terrible title

Leading up to reviews, Sony and Guerrilla were so confident in Horizon Zero Dawn's protagonist, Aloy, that they said she may be the next PlayStation icon - Colm thinks they may be onto something. Check out his thoughts in this feature

Slick package in terms of visuals and sound; Tactics involved in taking down large robots is exciting; Aloy's story is compelling

Side-quests suffer due to similarity

Across a vast and beautiful open world, Zero Dawn juggles many moving parts with polish and finesse. Its main activity - combat - is extremely satisfying thanks to the varied design and behaviors of machine-creatures that roam its lands, each of which needs to be taken down with careful...

For the first 20% of Horizon: Zero Dawn the game felt to me like a Far Cry game. Not Far Cry Primal, because Horizon didn't omit dinosaurs in some ludicrous effort to pander to the concept of realism.

I have a confession: when I first saw Horizon Zero Dawn back in 2015 I let out a big ostentatious yawn to signal that I was unimpressed.

Compelling; Sprawling environment; Stunning in 4K; So much to do

Watch out for 'side-quest fatigue