Everyone is talking about End of Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Source on PS5

If you are still playing Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores, or plan to play it at a later date, we strongly recommend that you close this article before proceeding down the page. We’ll discuss spoilers for the final moments of the expansion below, and we don’t want to ruin the experience for you, so you’ve been warned.

Warning: spoilers will follow

Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores is a fantastic DLC, as we already mentioned in our review, but it actually includes a major piece of character development for the protagonist Aloy. Those who have played both Horizon Zero Dawn and the main campaign will be familiar with the character’s clumsy, uncaring personality – but during moments in the DLC, she displays real emotion.

This mostly stems from her relationship with new character Seka, which becomes increasingly clear mid-way through her developing feelings for him. The plot actually boils down to a bit of teenage angst, as the redhead’s infamous monologues ponder whether she should feel nervous around her new colleague and so on.

It’s clearly telegraphed where things are going, and in the final scene Seka reveals that she wants to be with Aloy. This prompts a conversational decision, where you can either choose to kiss her or tell her it’s not the right time. All of the answers are somewhat romantic, and even if you decide to play tongue twister with the Queen Marine, it’s still a sign that there are feelings there.

This is obviously surprising, as Aloy has come across as quite supernatural in previous installments. There are many characters who try to flirt with her, especially in Horizon Forbidden West, but she shows a complete lack of interest. This changes in Burning Shores, where we finally see him exhibit some weakness.

In our opinion, the relationship feels a bit rushed – almost like Guerrilla Games couldn’t wait for the inevitable Horizon 3 to give fans what they want. But it’s clear that this unexpected twist will have a huge impact on the story in the next game, as we fully expect Seka to become part of the party and play a huge romantic interest in Aloy’s life.