How to get the Horizon Forbidden West power armor

Horizon Forbidden West power armor
(Image credit: PlayStation)

The Horizon Forbidden West power armor is a nice-looking piece of kit, so it's understandable that you want to get hold of it, especially if you remember it fondly from Zero Dawn. Thankfully there's a lot less work required to get it this time around, as to earn the original Horizon power armor you had to go hunting across the entire map to track down a series of power cells, which then opened the chamber where it was enclosed. Things are much simpler in Horizon Forbidden West, as you just need to earn enough XP to level up your Valor skills and unlock it. To get you on the right track, here's the lowdown on the Horizon Forbidden West power armor, how it works, and what you need to do to get it.

How to get the Horizon Forbidden West power armor

Horizon Forbidden West power armor

(Image credit: PlayStation)

To get the Horizon Forbidden West power armor, all you need to do is drop enough XP points into the Survivor skill tree. Rather than a separate piece of kit you have to find, the Horizon power armor now lives among your unlockable skills as the second Survivor Valor Surge you can access. 

These Valor Surges are basically equipable special powers triggered by pressing L1 and R1 together. You can only have one equipped at a time, so while the power armor is cool, you might need to switch it out from time to time (there's a cloaking stealth option that's extremely useful for example). The 'Valor' that powers everything is gained by certain moves - like killing machines in special ways, say. You can also unlock complimentary skills that will earn you additional Valor to power it up faster, like getting extra Valor every time you get hit, for example. 

Horizon Forbidden West power armor

(Image credit: PlayStation)

It'll still take you a little while to get the Horizon power armor ability, as you'll need to unlock enough skills to not only reach the power armor, but also to unlock all the skills around it, which will finally let you use the skill. You can also level up the armor three times. At full power it'll have a shield strength of 400, deflecting 20% of incoming damage and exploding on depletion to deal shock damage. It will also last as long as your Valor does - so no matter how many times it's depleted it'll just keep recharging while you have the Valor to power it. 

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Leon Hurley
Managing editor for guides

I'm GamesRadar's Managing Editor for guides, which means I run GamesRadar's guides and tips content. I also write reviews, previews and features, largely about horror, action adventure, FPS and open world games. I previously worked on Kotaku, and the Official PlayStation Magazine and website.