forced to rush main quests?

[PoxComet]

I started out, as always with open world games, exploring all the side avenues. But kept coming up against "impenetrable" walls. With a web search I found these magic walls can't be passed without tools that you are given through the main quests.

Now I feel like exploring nothing and just rushing the main quests until I have all the tools. I find nothing worse than exploring a ruin, pushing around boxes and timing jumps just to find that I can't proceed anyway!

What do other people think?
How far do I have to push the main quest before I can explore the world?

[HoboCop]

Pretty far.
It's very poor game design decision for sure.

[PoxComet]

Originally posted by Pi=Na+Z:

Pretty far.
It's very poor game design decision for sure.

Originally posted by Pi=Na+Z:

Pretty far.
It's very poor game design decision for sure.

Uh, drives me nuts. NPCs want me to save their friend, kid or seed bags right now but I am : nope "no exploring until I have all the games McGuffins"

[NeXuS23]

Here the List of the McGuffins and when you get them:
Main Quest 5: Death’s Door -> Igniter for Firecleam (Red Crystals)
Main Quest 11: The Sea of Sands -> Diving Mask (Infinite Underwater Breath)
Main Quest 12: Seeds of the Past -> Cutter for the Metal Flower Vines
Main Quest 16 (Penultimate quest): The Wings of the Ten -> Flying Mount (Sunwing)

[Retrolicious]

Originally posted by PoxComet:

I started out, as always with open world games, exploring all the side avenues. But kept coming up against "impenetrable" walls. With a web search I found these magic walls can't be passed without tools that you are given through the main quests.

Now I feel like exploring nothing and just rushing the main quests until I have all the tools. I find nothing worse than exploring a ruin, pushing around boxes and timing jumps just to find that I can't proceed anyway!

What do other people think?
How far do I have to push the main quest before I can explore the world?

Yeah this game is no Zelda Breath of the Wild sadly. The invisible walls are really annoying.

But the good thing is you basically only need 4 main quests to unlock all exploring free tools. Just skip so far Aether & Euthelia data core.

If you want really everything unlocked for exploring i recommend you solving those 4 main quests to better further explore:

obviously spoilers ahead:

Get Data from Hades & Sylens on the small island lake to be able to break the fire flowers

Finish the forbidden west border quest in barren light, where the diplomacy corps with Nozar & Sun king dude gets killed in the slaughter from Regalla.

Get Data core for Demeter in the Plant laboratory this way you can break the metal flowers

Get Data core for Poseidon in Las Vegas to be able to dive infinitelly

But keep in mind EVEN after you got all progression tools unlocked ( fire , metal , diving ) there are STILL invisible story borders you have to wait to be able to reach after main story progress (island for example ).

And even if you will finish the full story there is still a hidden easter egg island you will never reach. IDK because developers didn't finish building levels there or whatever. I heared you can reach this specific area only with cheats & no clip mods on PC: But basically it is not finished designed and maybe just plot area for the upcoming story of Horizon 3.

I found that easter egg island randomly while exploring and it is really annoying that you can't reach it cause there is invisible walls & endless water current from the ocean which pushes you back :c

PS: Don't bother with rushing for the flying mount. I heared it is basically only a tool for NEW game+ to explore the game in a different way. You get the mount only when you finished like 90% of the main story and don't need it anymore lol. It is more a gimmick idk ...

PS2: Don't bother to rush for legendary weapons, those also you can only aquire in the end of the story when you don't really need them and depending on difficulty they are locked behind imba hard challenges. Legendary weapons also seem more tools for second playthrough with NEW game++

Even after you reach the new island you don't get a flying mount *facepalm lol