The PlayStation VR2 is set to launch in just a few months now, and its launch line-up boasts some pretty impressive offerings. While updated ports likeCities VR,No Man’s Sky, andStar Wars: Tales from Galaxy’s Edgeare all welcome additions, it’s PSVR2’s brand-new launch titles that are going to stand out the most on May 29, 2025. And by far the most exciting of these new launch titles isHorizon Call of the Mountain, a VR spinoff of one of Sony’s flagship franchises.
Beingdeveloped by Firesprite,Horizon Call of the Mountainaims to translate the franchise’s action-adventure gameplay to virtual reality, letting players scale mountains, encounter different tribes, and battle a slew of different Machines with a range of weaponry. But in a departure from the mainHorizonseries,Call of the Mountainsees players take control of Ryas, a brand-new protagonist who has a pretty heinous past and is on the journey for redemption.
RELATED:Every Machine Confirmed for Horizon Call of the Mountain So Far
Horizon Call of the Mountain’s Ryas May Not Be Redeemable
TheHorizonfranchise has only had one main playable protagonist until now, that being Aloy. While Aloy isn’t morally perfect, she’s often shown to do the right, kind thing, even to those who don’t deserve that kind of treatment in return. For the most part, Aloy is a pretty cut-and-dry character, with little moral complexity.Horizon Call of the Mountain’s new playable protagonist Ryas, on the other hand, seems like quite a complicated character.
Unlike Aloy, Ryas has been on the wrong side of history. Just before the events ofHorizon Call of the Mountain, Ryas is a proud member of the Shadow Carja, one of the main antagonistfactions ofHorizon Zero Dawn. Originally members of the Carja tribe, the Shadow Carja formed when Sun-King Jiran was overthrown by half of the tribe’s population. In the aftermath of Jiran’s death, during the event known as the “Liberation of Meridian,” or the “Fall of Merdian” in the eyes of the Shadow Carja, the loyalists fled to Sunfall. But just before the Shadow Carja made their escape, they tasked Ryas with taking Jiran’s young son, Itamen, out of Meridian.
When Ryas chose the Shadow Carja, he also left behind his own brother, Urid, placing the two siblings on opposite sides of the bloody Carja Civil War. Though Ryas' exact whereabouts during the Civil War haven’t been revealed yet, it’s safe to assume that he played a direct role in the conflict, and it’s likely that he killed countless Carja soldiers during the war. At the start ofHorizon Call of the Mountain, Ryas gives himself up to the Carja, allowing them to capture him. Unsure of his reasons, Blameless Marad offers him his freedom in exchange for him to investigate a new threat that’s appeared in the Sundom territory.
While Ryas has agreed to help the Carja in locating this new threat and putting an end to it, it’s unclear whether he can be fully redeemed in the eyes of the Carja. TheCarja Civil Warlasted a total of 12 years, and the pain and suffering that Ryas must have caused during it can’t be easily forgotten by those on the other side of the war. With a brother also on the other side of the war, Ryas' actions are particularly harsh, and though he’s now fighting for the right side, he’s seemingly waited until the very last second, with the Shadow Carja being all but extinct now. Hopefully Ryas' motivations turn out to be more kind-hearted and selfless.
Horizon Call of the Mountainis coming to PS VR2 on August 07, 2025.
MORE:10 Best Video Game Music Scores and Soundtracks of 2022
