How Long Is 'Horizon Forbidden West': Length and Side Content List

Horizon Forbidden West isn't the kind of game that you're going to be able to beat over a single weekend.

Not only does the open-world title have a meaty story campaign, but the map is also littered with side activities that will keep you busy for hours on end. Even if you choose to ignore most of that optional content, you will still need to engage with at least some of it. After all, it's the only way to be suitably leveled up to tackle those more challenging late-game missions. Especially if you are toughing it out on a harder difficulty.

All that being said, even the breeziest playthrough of Horizon Forbidden West will demand a significant time investment and it will only be longer if you decide to do a completionist run.

To help you figure out if you can make enough time in your schedule to take on Guerrilla Games' epic (Elden Ring is looming ominously around the corner too), Newsweek has broken down how much content there is to unpack here.

How Long to Beat 'Horizon Forbidden West'

Conservative estimates of Horizon Forbidden West's length suggest that it takes around 40 hours to finish, with similar numbers being ventured by the likes of GameSpot and Inverse.

However, it all depends on how thoroughly you choose to explore its open world. For example, aggregate site How Long to Beat (which takes user-submitted playtimes and calculates an average) puts a story-focused run at 33 ½ hours. Meanwhile a completionist playthrough — in which you investigate every nook and cranny — is listed at 87 ½ hours.

No matter how you slice it then, the game is going to take up a lot of time, even if you are just blitzing towards the credits.

How Many Quests Are There in 'Horizon Forbidden West'?

Of course, not everybody has the same skill level when it comes to video games.

Those aggregate times aren't going to mean much if you're a total Horizon newbie who needs to learn all of the mechanics from scratch. Likewise, there are gaming communities entirely dedicated to speedrunning titles and they will figure out how to beat Forbidden West with record efficiency.

Instead of looking at recorded playtimes then, a better indication of how long it will take you personally to finish Horizon Forbidden West is to reflect on how much content there is. That way you can also judge how much of the optional busywork you really want to engage with.

'Horizon Forbidden West' Story Missions List

There are 17 main missions in total here. These are listed below, alongside the recommended level at which you are meant to take them on.

1. Reach for the Stars (Level 3)
2. The Point of the Lance (Level 4)
3. To the Brink (Level 5)
4. The Embassy (Level 7)
5. Death's Door (Level 10)
6. The Dying Lands (Level 15)
7. The Broken Sky (Level 17)
8. The Eye of the Earth (Level 17)
9. The Kulrut (Level 18)
10. Cradle of Echoes (Level 20)
11. The Sea of Sands (Level 22)
12. Seeds of the Past (Level 24)
13. Faro's Tomb (Level 26)
14. Gemini (Level 30)
15. All That Remains (Level 31)
16. The Wings of the Ten (LeveL 32)
17. Singularity (Level 35)

'Horizon Forbidden West' Side Content List

As for the optional content, here is everything else that you will find sprinkled around the Horizon Forbidden West map.

• 28 side quests
• 19 errands
• Four salvage contractor questlines
• 12 hunting ground trials
• 4 melee pits (including the first one in Chainscrape)
• 6 cauldron dungeons
• 6 tallnecks to climb
• 6 rebel camps
• 17 rebel outposts
• 4 gauntlet runs
• 9 vista point puzzles
• 8 relic ruins

Horizon Forbidden West is available now on PS4 and PS5. Incidentally, if you haven't ordered a copy yet, there is a way of saving money on the PS5 version, which we have explained here.