The Horizon franchise has had the worst luck when it comes to release dates, with Horizon Zero Dawn coming out in the same year as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Horizon Forbidden West releasing in the same month as Elden Ring. Unfortunately, it seems like that streak is about to continue. Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores, a DLC expansion that takes players to a post-apocalyptic version of Los Angeles, is dropping on April 19, 2023, just a week before Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. But while it may be surrounded by other big-name titles, Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores has a few tricks up its sleeve to entice players.
Near the end of Horizon Forbidden West, players unlock a new mount called a Sunwing. Unlike the rest of Horizon's mounts, the Sunwing can fly, giving the player free rein over the skies. While the Sunwing's implementation was far from perfect, its inclusion in Horizon Forbidden West was a welcome one, and it seems as though some of its biggest issues are about to be addressed in Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores. Players will get the Waterwing, a new mount that looks as though it's been ripped straight out of James Cameron's Avatar.
Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores' Waterwing Paves the Way for Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora's Flight Mechanics
Based on the trailers released so far, it seems as though Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores' Waterwing mount will function pretty similarly to the base game's Sunwing, letting players traverse through the skies with ease. But the Waterwing boasts one big difference from the Sunwing: it can go underwater. Though the exact mechanics and button inputs haven't been detailed just yet, it seems as though the Waterwing will be able to traverse between the sky and the water seamlessly, holding Aloy firmly on its back as it plummets into the depths.
The Waterwing takes on a similar appearance as the rest of Horizon's iconic Machines, looking like some kind of giant mechanical bird, or flying dinosaur. For those who are fans of James Cameron's Avatar, the Waterwing's appearance and purpose might look a little familiar. In the long-awaited sequel, Avatar: The Way of Water, Jake and the rest of the Sully clan take refuge among the Metkayina Na'vi tribe. While the Metkayina share a lot of similarities with the Omaticaya, they have their own set of customs, weapons, and animals, one of which looks remarkably like the Waterwing, and even has a similar name.
During Avatar: The Way of Water, Jake Sully is taught how to ride a creature known as a Tsurak, also known as a Skimwing. These Skimwings essentially act as the Metkayina's Banshees, but are capable of both taking to the skies and diving into the depth of Pandora's oceans. It seems as though Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores' Waterwing shares a few key similarities with Avatar's Skimwings, and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora may want to take note.
Announced back in 2017, Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment's Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora game is still shrouded in mystery, with virtually no gameplay or story details being officially given, and just one cinematic trailer for fans to go off. But that one trailer does show the franchise's iconic Banshees, or Ikran, the flying creatures that are seen throughout Avatar and its sequel. Though it hasn't been confirmed just yet, it seems extremely likely that Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will allow players to ride a Banshee, and if they do, then Horizon Forbidden West's Sunwing should lay the blueprint for its implementation. If Frontiers of Pandora allows players to ride a Skimwing, then Burning Shores' Waterwing is an obvious inspiration to draw from.
Horizon Forbidden West is available on PS4 and PS5, and the Burning Shores DLC is scheduled to release on April 19 on PS5.
