Focus

A Focus found by Aloy

​​​​​​A Focus is a small, augmented reality device worn by human users that serves as a multipurpose sensory interface. This device is responsive to the user's gestures and voice, and displays a visual 3D interface visible only to them, aiding in the operation of machinery and technology alike, as well as in communications.

As a young child, Aloy discovered a still-functional Focus in a ruin site. This Focus becomes integral to gameplay, allowing Aloy to learn information about machines, track movement and patrol routes, and detect important objects.

In Horizon Zero Dawn, additional cosmetic Focus effects can be obtained by completing New Game+ on different difficulties.

Appearance and functions

The Focus resembles a small silver triangle, approximately an inch long from base to tip. A strip of light - presumably a power indicator - runs along the centerline of the device from the bottom to the tip.

The Focus attaches to the side of the user's head through an unknown mechanism that closely resembles magnetism in operation, automatically clinging to Aloy and Zo's heads once held close enough to their temples. When activated, a ring of light illuminates around the Focus. The interface is within a wide geodesic polyhedron of holographic light, and important markers are also indicated with holographic light in purple and blue hues. The user can interact with some of the holograms with gestures. The interface can be used while in motion up to a point, as Aloy must walk slowly to use it.

The Focus contains a suite of sensors that can scan and reveal the location of animals, humans, machines, and other select objects within a certain range. It is able to determine additional information about machines, such as components and behavior, and in some cases, the three-dimensional interface will extend and adapt to machines to facilitate some processes, such as connecting to an override module from a Corruptor, allowing Aloy to override and command machines. The Focus can also detect radiation, and will alert the user with a beep.

A Focus can tap into data stored on other Focuses, by simply scanning them. It can be assumed that the process is destructive, seeing how the scanned Focuses sparked and malfunctioned after the data transfer was done.

The Focus also contains a capable processing unit, albeit one that was relatively weak by the standards of the Old Ones, allowing it to repair heavily damaged files and audios in a matter of hours or days, which normally is a computationally intensive process and can take years for current, real-world processors to achieve - if at all.

In the Old World, users were able to download apps akin to real-world smartphones from the Faro Store, boasting over 200,000 apps covering but not limited to music, fashion, navigation and health and appliance monitoring.

The Focus can remain operational for hundreds of years, as evidenced by Aloy's Focus being left in a cave exposed to the elements for nearly a thousand years and losing no known functionality. Despite this survivability, the Focus is fragile enough to be easily crushed between a human's fingers, which Helis and Erend have done.

It is unknown what type of energy the Focus runs on or how it recharges, of if it even needs to.

History

"The lesson will be taught in due time, Aloy. Until then, we wait." This article contains heavy spoilers. Read ahead with caution.

Old World

The Focus was invented some time in the 21st century by Faro Automated Solutions, as a personal device that could be used by civilians.

Before the Faro Plague, two updates were known to have been released for the Focus, the "Aten" update, which released with fanfare, but eventually became known for its failures, and the "Nepit" update, which sought to fix, tweak, and improve the Focus, effectively redefining its capabilities and functionalities. The Nepit update also refined biometrics for monitoring health and finding lost pets, to assisting in diagnosing and repairing household appliances.

At some point around the 2050s, a format update left some older models of Focuses unable to read data created after this update. However, this is inconsistent, as Alva's Focus, before the update, was able to read data about Thebes, which wasn't constructed until the mid-2060s.

After the Faro Plague eradicated life on Earth, several Focuses remained functional into the 31st century.

New World

Focuses were a planned feature of APOLLO, being provided within Lyceum in the Cradle facilities, where they were to be used to educate the new generation of humanity. However, after Ted Faro's purge of APOLLO, none of these Focuses were used for their intended purpose.

Alva's early model Focus.

The early Quen discovered some early model Focuses, which are unable to access data created after the 2050s due to a format update at the time. These Focuses allowed the tribe to advance much faster than neighboring tribes, and letting them learn about the Old World. Use of these Focuses is limited to Diviners and Overseers, with it being a capital crime to steal one. Thirteen Diviners have owned Alva's Focus before her.

Aloy discovered a Focus as a child, having been owned by a worker in a Zero Dawn facility before her. Sylens found and repaired a damaged one, and went onto repair others for the Eclipse, who used a communication network developed by Sylens under HADES's orders, allowing instantaneous communication over vast distances, who also provided one to Olin so they could monitor his activities. However, this network was destroyed by Aloy in order for her to safely infiltrate Sunfall.

Aloy found a cache containing numerous Focuses sometime after the events of the Battle of the Alight. She gave some of these Focuses to Varl and Zo, who in turn provided some to Erend, Kotallo and Alva.

Members of the Sons of Prometheus are also equipped with Focuses.

After defeating Far Zenith, Alva gave Bohai an updated Focus, believing this he will find a way to use it to his advantage back home. Erend also took some Focuses with him on his journey back to Meridian and the Claim, intending to give them to some of his and Aloy's friends there.

While on her adventure in the Burning Shores, Aloy gave Seyka's Focus an update, allowing it to access data created after the 2050s. She also gave one to Gildun, allowing him to communicate with her and GAIA.

Gameplay

Below is a list of the known functions of the Focus:

• Making the structures of nearby machines visible through obstructions, similar to an X-ray.
• Scanning machines and registering their information, including weaknesses, in the Machine Catalogue in the Notebook. This briefly leaves them and their weak points highlighted.
• Optionally places a marker to allow for tracking a machine, human, animal, or certain objects (including alarms) outside of scanning mode.
• Optionally places a trail on the ground indicating a machine's patrol route.
• Decoding datapoints, glyphs, and Vantage Points.
• Revealing tracks or evidence left behind by humans or machines.
• Scanning up to 75 meters (90 meters in Horizon Forbidden West) away from Aloy, looking for hidden datapoints. If it finds any, and if Aloy then comes within 25 meters of them, it will place an icon of a box on the compass to help her locate them (Horizon Zero Dawn)
• Shows places to climb (Horizon Forbidden West)
• Flashlight (Horizon Forbidden West, only in certain areas)

Behind the scenes

• According to John Gonzalez, the narrative director for Horizon Zero Dawn, early drafts for the story had Aloy finding the Focus as an adult, following the Proving massacre. This received heavy backlash from the design team, as this would mean the game's user interface would not appear until the third hour of gameplay.

Trivia

• Despite their popularity among Old Ones, no Old Ones depicted in holograms are ever seen wearing one.