The highly anticipated sequel to Horizon Zero Dawn, Horizon Forbidden West releases on February 18th. To celebrate the release of the game, we talked to several Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers.
In this edition of Last Word on Gaming’s video game cosplay series, you can learn more about their costumes and their love for Horizon Zero Dawn and its characters.
Horizon Zero Dawn Cosplayers
Rogue Heart Cosplay – Aloy
Rogue Heart Cosplay was part of our first cosplay article. Click here to read that interview and learn about her inspiration and the crafting of her Aloy costume!
Will You be Cosplaying Anything From Horizon Forbidden West?
“I’ll be cosplaying Aloy in whichever new Horizon Forbidden West armor set is my favorite! I’ve cleared my cosplay schedule in anticipation of the game’s release, and as soon as I decide which one to create, it’s go time! I also have my eye on her updated spear, which I plan to make to go along with the cosplay. In the years since Horizon Zero Dawn’s release, I’ve learned so much in terms of sewing and armor fabrication, so I can’t wait to pour my love for the game and character into a new costume.”
Any Favorite Horizon Zero Dawn Gaming Moments?
“I have so many favorite moments from Horizon Zero Dawn, but the ones that stick out to me are completing my first cauldron boss battle, and collecting all of the vantage points.”
“As an open-world game, there are tons of chances to run or hide if the fight gets tough, which is why I appreciate cauldrons. They take away the stealth component of the game, and throw you in a confined space with entirely new machines that are even deadlier than the ones you’ve already met! The sudden push outside my comfort zone was exciting to me, and it felt amazing to defeat a Fire Bellowback for the first time with little resources or space.”
“As for the vantage points, they offered a bittersweet breath of fresh air while wandering the beautiful landscapes. Vantage points are message logs that show a glimpse into the past right before the world ended, exploring tragedy and human connection. While moments such as being saved by Rost or discovering Elisabet’s role in Project Zero Dawn are meaningful (and definitely brought a tear to my eye), the story told by vantage points is something that has stuck with me since finishing the game.”
What Are You Looking Forward to in Horizon Forbidden West?
“I’m looking forward to exploring gorgeous ruins, experimenting with weapons against new machines, and of course collecting all of the armor sets! My hope is that everything I loved about the first game is there in Forbidden West, just even better than before. Beyond the gameplay aspects, I also want to dig deeper into the history of Faro’s machines and see how Aloy has matured and evolved since the end of Zero Dawn. There are a few unanswered questions from the last game, and I’m so excited to see what becomes of them.”
You can keep with Rouge Heart Cosplay and other Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers on Instagram and Twitter.
Timmcosplay – Huadiv / Talonserena – Aloy
What Inspired You to Cosplay Huadiv/Aloy?
TimmCosplay: “To be honest I love the Carja designs so much. If I could dress like a Carja hunter every day, I would. I was originally going to cosplay a more generic outlander, but then remembered Three-Toe Huadiv. I don’t cosplay minor characters that often, but I thought it’d be an interesting opportunity to flesh him out in my own style a little bit! He’s also got grey hair, like me, so that made it easier since I could go wigless.”
TalonSerena: “Aloy’s such a badass. She’s compassionate, and never lets anything get in her way, no matter how high the barrier. I also love the way she moves. There’s so much weight to every one of her actions, but she somehow manages to keep it fluid and lithe. I’ll never get to be like her (in that way, at least), but I aspire to it, haha. The intense colors in the Banuk armor set really appeal to me, so we decided to go for that one.”
What Was The Creative Process Like for the Costumes?
TimmCosplay: “In choosing the fabrics, the texture was very important to me. Even anything plain colored had to have something interesting. For example, I took the cyan pleather for the Banuk outfit and added some leather texture using my airbrush and a stencil. I also replicated the design on Huadiv’s vest and got it 3D printed. The armor is a mixture of foam work, casting, and 3D printed assets I designed myself.”
Any Favorite Horizon Zero Dawn Gaming Moments?
TimmCosplay: “Some of my favorite moments include the holo-theatre presentations on Project Zero Dawn, Sylens breaking Aloy out from the Sunring at Sunfall, and Aloy finally being able to open the door to “All Mother” (Elelutia 9) in the presence of the other Nora.”
TalonSerena: “I adored all of the dramatic storyline where Aloy discovers her lineage and, over time, her emotional relationship to Elizabet Sobeck. Watching the scene where Sobeck sacrificed herself to seal the door at Gaia Prime was heartbreaking.”
What Are You Looking Forward to in Horizon Forbidden West?
“We’re both very excited about the expanded combat and gameplay, as well as the new story and characters! We especially can’t wait to see Aloy meet Gaia for real.”
You can keep up with Timmcosplay and other Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers on Instagram, Twitter, and Patreon. You can keep up with Talonserena and other Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers on Instagram, Twitter, and Patreon.
Jgmycroft – Talanah
What Inspired You to Cosplay Aloy?
What Was The Creative Process Like for the Costume?
“A lot of it was trying to piece together the different parts of the design and trying to work out how to translate that into real life. I spent a long time searching for the right type and color of fabric and figuring out the armored bits. All the armored bits were made from foam and gluing the small details and piecing together the different parts so that it “draped” properly was the most time-consuming part. A lot of the process was me familiarising myself with working with foam again and figuring out alternatives for priming and painting (at the time, I had moved to New Zealand and was living in a small apartment and no longer had my rotary tools, heat gun, or a large garage to work in).”
“For the fabric bits, it was a little more straight forward though it was a challenge trying to figure out how the colored leather bits would fit together with the fabric I had chosen. A lot of it was through trial and error (and lots of crossed-fingers!). I had a ton of fun making Talanah as I’m constantly problem-solving and figuring things out.”
Any Favorite Horizon Zero Dawn Gaming Moments?
“In another Hunter’s Lodge sidequest, Talanah opts to stay in the village while Aloy goes off on a mission. When Aloy commented on how she thought Talanah wanted to do the mission together, Talanah responded with “You don’t need me to hold your hand.” It’s one of the main lines in the game that has endeared her character so much to me.”
What Are You Looking Forward to in Horizon Forbidden West?
“Everything! I know that the game will be aesthetically pleasing from all the trailers we’ve seen. The new combat and gameplay options are definitely one of the biggest things I’m looking forward to. It’s going to be insanely fun trying to figure out the right combination that will offer a different play and fight style from the first game. As a Jurassic Park fan, I am also very excited to be able to ride a Clawstrider. I’ve also got my fingers and toes crossed that we will see Talanah again!”
You can keep up with Jgmycroft and other Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers on Instagram and Twitter.
Keep up with Horizon Zero Dawn cosplayers on their respective social media accounts. Check out my own cosplay at ArcticBlastCosplay and the wrestling articles I write for LWOPW here.
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