Horizon Forbidden West has no shortage of antagonists, from the machines to rogue sub-functions to Far Zenith; however, one particularly compelling antagonist is Tilda van der Meer. A member of Far Zenith, an Old One, and former lover of Elisabet Sobeck, her greatest regret is leaving Elisabet on Earth to perish during the Faro Plague, which is a mistake she tries to rectify in Horizon Forbidden West by force through Aloy.
Born during the 21st century in Rotterdam, Tilda was raised lonely after a terrorist attack killed her parents and thousands of others in 2033. During this time, she learned to love classical paintings and art, a passion she combined with her intellect in computer engineering, eventually earning her a spot in Far Zenith. The game's conclusion saw her encased in Specter Prime to abduct Aloy, who seemingly killed her. While Tilda's death in Forbidden West may work for the game's end, it would be intriguing to see her return for the third entry in the series.
Tilda's Body Is Never Shown
Horizon Forbidden West's finale not only reveals a new antagonist in Nemesis -- a digital duplicate of all Far Zenith minds in the Sirius System on its way to destroy Earth and the villainous group -- but a final twist where Tilda plans to abduct Aloy and bring her aboard the Odyssey. While she wants to spare Aloy from the new threat, Tilda fails to realize that Aloy, like Elisabet, would never abandon humanity and her allies to an undeserved fate. In this, Tilda becomes the final antagonist as she encases herself in Specter Prime and attacks Aloy.
Aloy and Tilda have a spectacular battle in which Aloy emerges victorious, but all that is shown of Tilda following the match is a limp wrist. As soon as Aloy wins and frees Beta, the rest of her allies ultimately decide to warn their respective tribes and people of the oncoming threat, after which they depart. No one checks to see if Tilda is really dead, despite knowing the scientific advancements Far Zenith was capable of; no one knows if Tilda had some backup plan to preserve herself.
Nemesis' End Goal
After Far Zenith left Earth, they eventually achieved physical immortality and built an advanced civilization in which they lived for a thousand years, even as their home planet was ravaged and destroyed by the Faro Plague. However, this physical immortality was not enough for many Far Zeniths; to surpass this, they created Nemesis. They desired to achieve digital transcendence, where they could upload their consciousness to any organic or mechanical form.
To accomplish this end, Nemesis was made by uploading their consciousness into a digital form, including all of their emotions, prejudices, beliefs, and intelligence. However, this attempt was abandoned but not destroyed. Unbeknownst to the Zeniths, Nemesis gained sentience through their collective intelligence and used that knowledge to escape and destroy their colony on Sirius. With only a handful of Zeniths escaping extermination, they immediately set course for Earth. Nemesis countered by sending the extinction protocol to GAIA Prime to unshackle Hades and exterminate Earth to deprive Far Zenith of their haven. However, with the defeat of Far Zenith in Forbidden West, Nemesis' end goal is called into question.
If no Zenith is left alive, it would feel anti-climatic and stereotypical for Guerilla Games to simply make Nemesis an AI that hates all humanity, even the strangers living on Earth. If Tilda were alive, it would motivate Nemesis to continue on its current course. If she did indeed survive, any information she has on Nemesis could be vital, which may justify keeping her alive while validating Nemesis' belief in total destruction.
Horizon Forbidden West is available now for PS4 and PS5.
