When I did my original play through of Horizon Zero Dawn, I both helped and handicapped myself through a large chunk of the game. The funny part was that I had no idea that I was doing so.
One afternoon, I was talking with friends and mentioning how hard it was to take down a Thunderjaw. As I was telling this story, they started to ask me questions about my upgrades and what I’d done with my weapons since starting the game.
Naturally, I stared blankly at them, unaware of what they were talking about. It was that moment when we all realized that I’d run through over half the game on the basic weapons you get at the start of the game.
On one hand, I earned some respect from the aforementioned friends for the feat. On the other, I learned that I had seriously handicapped myself. Granted, I was playing on Story Mode so it could have been worse, but still.
As I started my next play through, I was armed with information I hadn’t had when I started playing these games. Including the information about upgrading weapons. (And a proper appreciation for the Tripcaster).
And now, I find myself with a new problem. Yes, I’m defeating enemies with far fewer hits than I did on the last play through. But those hits come at the cost of a higher resource count (that is until you build up enough skill points to lower the cost and even then it is substantial).
Often, I find myself broke – a problem to an extreme I never faced in my previous play through.
So, are the upgrades worth it?
Ultimately, I would say yes. It does make the game easier and cause it to run smoother. I’m sure once I get further into the game this time around, I’ll start to notice that the payoff evens out with itself along the way.
Still, it was an interesting observation I had. And I’d love to hear your thoughts if you’d like to share them on the Boss Rush Facebook Group or our Boss Rush Discord.
Featured Image: Sony
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The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship podcast of Boss Rush Media and the Boss Rush Network. Each week, Corey, Stephanie, LeRon, and their friends from around the internet come together with other creators, developers, and industry veterans to talk about games they’ve been playing, discuss video game and entertainment based topics, and answer questions solicited on social media and the community Discord. New episodes of the Boss Rush Podcast release every Monday morning on YouTube and all major podcast applications like Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Patreon supporters gain one week early access.
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