Direct answer: The top cheats for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5 are smart resource gathering, targeted weapon upgrades, focused skill-tree spending, stealth, and careful exploration.
There are no traditional cheat codes, but these strategies can make Aloy stronger and help you progress faster.
Top Cheats for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5
Horizon Forbidden West is an action role-playing game set in a large post-apocalyptic world. You play as Aloy, a skilled hunter who searches for answers while fighting hostile machines, human enemies, and environmental threats.
This guide explains the top cheats for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5, using practical strategies rather than code-based shortcuts.
The PS5 version benefits from fast loading, detailed environments, and responsive controls, so it rewards players who prepare before every fight.
Guerrilla Games’ official game materials emphasize exploration, machine combat, and the importance of using the right tools for each situation. The advice below follows that design: observe first, choose the right equipment, then act.
Top Cheats for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5: Maximize Resources
Resources support nearly every part of Aloy’s journey. Plants help with healing and crafting, animals provide useful materials, and machine parts are needed for upgrades and ammunition.
Gathering items as you travel is more efficient than stopping later to search an entire region.
- Harvest plants regularly: Use the Focus ability to highlight collectible plants, medicinal items, and other useful objects. Pick up healing plants even when your pouch is not empty so you are ready for a difficult machine encounter.
- Hunt animals when convenient: Wildlife can provide materials for carrying capacity upgrades and other crafting needs.
Larger animals may offer more valuable parts, but do not spend too much time chasing them if you are trying to reach a quest objective. - Scan machines before attacking: The Focus identifies weak points, detachable components, elemental weaknesses, and valuable parts.
Removing a weapon or resource canister may be more useful than simply destroying the machine as quickly as possible. - Sell or store excess items: Check merchants and your stash when your inventory fills up. Keeping a reserve of machine parts is useful, but selling duplicate valuables can give you shards for weapons, outfits, and ammunition.
A simple example is a fight against a large machine. Scanning it first may reveal that removing a component both weakens the target and gives you a valuable upgrade material.
That small pause can save ammunition and reduce the time spent in combat.
Unlock More Weapons and Better Equipment
There is no single weapon that solves every combat problem in Horizon Forbidden West. Bows, spike throwers, tripcasters, shredders, boltblasters, and other weapons each work best in different situations. The fastest way to build a strong loadout is to complete activities that offer equipment, then improve the gear you actually use.
- Complete side quests: Optional quests often reward weapons, outfits, coils, or upgrade materials. Check the reward preview before accepting a task and prioritize missions that match your preferred combat style.
- Take part in challenges: Hunting Grounds, Arena activities, and other combat challenges test specific skills. They can provide useful rewards while teaching you how to use weapon techniques and elemental effects.
- Visit merchants often: Merchants sell weapons and outfits throughout the world. Compare the weapon’s damage, ammo type, perks, and upgrade requirements before spending shards.
- Upgrade selectively: Do not spread rare materials across every item. Choose a small core loadout, such as a hunter bow for precision, a weapon for elemental buildup, and a close-range option for emergencies.
For a practical setup, carry one weapon for precision damage, one for elemental effects, and one for removing machine components.
This gives you options without forcing you to manage a completely different loadout for every encounter. You can also review Horizon Forbidden West weapon upgrade tips for a more detailed equipment plan.
Harvest plants regularly, collect healing items, hunt animals when convenient, and keep useful machine parts. Gathering during exploration is more efficient than stopping later to search an entire region.
Use the Focus to identify weak points, elemental weaknesses, detachable components, and valuable parts. Removing a weapon or resource can weaken a machine while saving ammunition.
Choose a small group of reliable weapons and outfits instead of spreading rare materials across every item. Check merchants and your stash, selling duplicate valuables for shards when your inventory fills up.
Spend skill points on a focused build that matches your preferred weapons. Abilities from main and side quests, challenges, and exploration become more valuable when they support the same combat approach.
When a fight looks overwhelming, use stealth, high ground, cover, and the environment before committing. Explore nearby locations afterward for hidden paths, better gear, quests, and upgrade materials.
Improve Skill Points and Build a Focused Aloy
Skill points become more useful when you spend them with a clear plan. Horizon Forbidden West has six main skill trees: Warrior, Trapper, Hunter, Survivor, Infiltrator, and Machine Master.
You can eventually explore several trees, but early points have a bigger effect when they support the way you already play.
- Prioritize high-reward quests: Main quests and substantial side quests often provide experience and skill points. Choose activities that also offer equipment or upgrade materials so one task advances several goals.
- Match skills to your style: Stealth players may benefit from Infiltrator abilities, while players who rely on bows may prefer Hunter skills. Close-range fighters can invest in Warrior abilities.
- Use Valor Surges carefully: These powerful abilities can change the outcome of a difficult fight. Select a Valor Surge that supports your usual approach instead of choosing one only because it sounds powerful.
- Review your build: If a skill is not helping you, reconsider later upgrades and adjust your approach. A focused build can feel stronger than a scattered one, even when both characters have similar levels.
Challenges, exploration, and side quests also help you earn experience. Rather than grinding one activity repeatedly, combine objectives: scan machines, gather parts, complete a nearby side quest, and unlock a new skill when you return to a settlement.
“In the Forbidden West, preparation is the sharpest weapon: gather wisely, strike precisely, and let patience outsmart power.”
Use the Environment to Win Difficult Fights
The environment is one of Aloy’s best advantages. A direct attack is not always the safest choice, especially when several machines are grouped together. Use the terrain to control the pace of battle.
- Start with stealth: Tall grass can hide Aloy and create an opening for a stealth attack. Use the Focus to mark enemies and plan a route before leaving cover.
- Find high ground: Climbing a structure, rock, or platform can improve your view and create space from large machines. Height also makes it easier to target components.
- Scan the battlefield: Look for explosive objects, narrow paths, climbable surfaces, and escape routes. Knowing where to retreat is especially important when fighting machines with area attacks.
- Separate enemies: Use distractions, noise, or movement to pull one machine away from a group. Fighting one target at a time is usually safer than spending all your resources on a crowded battle.
Try this step-by-step approach before a major encounter: scan every visible enemy, tag the machine parts you need, identify cover, set traps if appropriate, then open with a stealth or elemental attack. This method turns a chaotic fight into a series of manageable decisions.
Explore Every Area for Hidden Rewards
Exploration is more than a way to collect lore. It can lead to weapons, outfits, collectibles, upgrade materials, and new activities.
Some locations require abilities or equipment that Aloy gains later, so it is normal to return to places that were previously inaccessible.
The strategy breakdown
- Use the Focus in every new area: Scan walls, machines, containers, climbing points, and environmental clues. Hidden paths can be easy to miss without a careful scan.
- Complete side quests: Optional stories often reveal new characters, locations, and rewards. They also give you a reason to learn how different weapons and machine weaknesses work.
- Revisit blocked locations: If a door, underwater route, or obstacle cannot be opened yet, mark the location and return after unlocking the required ability.
- Check settlements and vendors: Merchants, workbenches, stash containers, and quest givers can provide useful resources between expeditions.
Exploring thoroughly also helps with preparation. A player who gathers materials while traveling is less likely to run out of healing items or ammunition during a story mission. For additional route planning, see these Horizon Forbidden West exploration tips.
FAQ: Horizon Forbidden West PS5 Cheats
Are there cheat codes for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5?
Horizon Forbidden West does not use traditional cheat codes that instantly unlock weapons, resources, or skill points. Instead, use the game’s difficulty settings, accessibility options, exploration tools, and the strategies in this guide to make progression easier.
What is the fastest way to gather resources?
Gather plants as you travel, hunt animals when they are nearby, and scan machines before destroying them. Regularly visit your stash and merchants so your inventory stays useful rather than becoming overloaded with low-priority items.
How do I unlock special weapons?
Special weapons can come from side quests, combat challenges, merchants, and other activities. Check the listed rewards before beginning a quest, and keep the machine parts and shards needed for later purchases and upgrades.
Can I replay quests in Horizon Forbidden West?
Some activities and challenges can be revisited, and you can reload earlier saves when you want to try a different approach.
However, completed story quests are not universally replayable through a simple quest-menu option, so make a manual save before an important decision or difficult encounter.
How can I improve Aloy’s skills faster?
Complete high-reward main and side quests, take part in challenges, explore new locations, and spend skill points on a focused build. Investing in abilities that match your weapons makes each point more valuable during real combat.
Final Tips for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5
The top cheats for Horizon Forbidden West on PS5 are really preparation habits. Gather resources before you need them, scan machines for weaknesses, improve a small group of reliable weapons, and spend skill points according to your playstyle.
Use stealth and the environment when a fight looks overwhelming, then explore nearby areas for better gear and materials.
With these strategies, Aloy becomes more capable without relying on traditional cheat codes, and the world’s quests, machines, and hidden locations become easier to enjoy.
