Horizon Forbidden West sex has "a very mild impact" and we would like to know what that means

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Slightly sexier than the first

Horizon Forbidden West
(Image credit: Sony)

Horizon Forbidden West has a "very mild impact" worth of sex, according to the Australian Classification Board, which - though mild - is still more than Horizon Zero Dawn had.

The media rating apparatus of the Australian government released its official ruling on Horizon Forbidden West on November 30, ahead of the game's planned February 18, 2022 release date. Its general classification is Mature, or specifically "M: Science fiction themes and violence", which is the exact same overall classification Horizon Zero Dawn received.

The Australian Classification Board also breaks down media on six axes, based on how strong of an impact each one has on the piece in question. The Themes, Violence, Language, Drug Use, and Nudity axes are all the same for both games, but for Forbidden West the "Sex" axis has been ticked up one notch from "None" to "Very Mild Impact." So nobody gets naked in this post-post-apocalyptic sequel, but there is at least a little bit of sex. Or a dialog reference to sex. Or maybe a racy cave painting?

Whatever the specific reason for the slightly elevated rating, we've recently learned a few key new details about Aloy's next adventure, including how Horizon Forbidden West's improved NPCs will help bring the world to life, and how machines can help Aloy when they aren't trying to stomp her back into the paleolithic.

Connor Sheridan
Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and was formerly a staff writer at GamesRadar.