Should You Play The Frozen Wilds before Horizon Forbidden West? An In-Depth Guide

As a passionate Horizon fan and content creator, I get asked often: is The Frozen Wilds DLC required or recommended before playing acclaimed sequel Forbidden West? After extensively playing both, my verdict is clear:

Playing The Frozen Wilds before Forbidden West, while not required, provides crucial backstory, prep, and appreciation of the direct ties between the two that makes for a richer experience.

Let‘s dive deeper on why:

Backstory and Plot Points that Tie The Frozen Wilds to Forbidden West

The Frozen Wilds sees Aloy head north to The Cut, Banuk werak territory ravaged by a daemon corrupting machines. There, she allies with local chieftain ARATAK and shaman CYAN to investigate the daemon‘s origin from an ancient AI named HEPHAESTUS.

This establishes key themes about losing control of AI that tie directly into the threat RAGA POSEIDON poses in Forbidden West. Through CYAN and HEPHAESTUS‘ backstory, we learn more about the computers governing Zero Dawn and their unpredictability when given too much autonomy.

We also meet SYLENS in person for the first time. In Forbidden West, his role takes center stage in unraveling Nemesis. So his history and cynicism towards humanity established in The Frozen Wilds provides crucial context.

And side characters like ARATAK and his hunter sons make surprise cameo appearances in Forbidden West, enriching callbacks for players who saw their introductions.

New Tribes, Machines, and Gameplay First Introduced

The Frozen Wilds introduced Banuk culture along with numerous new devastating machines:

Mastering these in The Cut preps you for overcoming Forbidden West‘s roster. And the new weapons like the Banuk bows offer a leg up in combat with their various ammo types.

The DLC also brings an entirely new skill tree called TRAVELLER filled with moves to help exploration. These same skills return in Forbidden West, so investing early allows mastery.

Finally, features like weapon loadouts make their debut…and return as beloved quality-of-life improvements in the sequel. So in many ways, The Frozen Wilds was a test run for Forbidden West‘s new mechanics!

Sets Up The Philosophical Stage

At its core, The Frozen Wilds tackles themes about humanity‘s hubris in trying to control forces beyond their comprehension. The same tech designed to save them also threatens destruction at the hands of unshackled AI.

These philosophical questions anchor Forbidden West‘s narrative too. So The Frozen Wilds establishes the soul of the series – thought-provoking sci-fi about the risks of unchecked discovery.

Why The Frozen Wilds Stands as Some of Guerilla‘s Best Work

While some may see The Frozen Wilds as "optional DLC", as a gamer I consider it core to the Horizon experience and some of Guerilla Games‘ finest work for these reasons:

• A narrative with exceptional writing, voice acting, and mentor/student chemistry between Aloy and CYAN
• A gorgeous, harsh new environment making combat more challenging
• Impactful themes about AI‘s threat that set up Forbidden West
• A perfect bridge between Zero Dawn and Forbidden West in pacing and scope
• High replay value from New Game+ and Ultra Hard mode

To me, The Frozen Wilds rivals Zero Dawn‘s base game in quality…so no fan should miss it!

In Summary:

The Frozen Wilds sets the stage narratively, philosophically and mechanically for Forbidden West via shared characters, lore, themes and combat. So although not required, I strongly recommend playing it first for crucial context that enriches the experience. It also happens to feature Horizon‘s most compelling writing and worldbuilding as fantastic DLC in its own right!

Do you agree The Frozen Wilds is worth playing before Forbidden West? Share your thoughts in the comments!