None of the new machines getting introduced through Horizon Forbidden West have had details released on them. Fans have seen visuals of a few of them through the Forbidden West announcement trailer and other promotions, but until now, that was the extent of information.
Guerrilla Games has taken to its official Twitter account to divulge information on some of the machines set to make a debut in Horizon Forbidden West or possibly in the Zero Dawn comic set to release in July. The machine the developer has decided to start things off with is called the Shellsnapper.
Guerrilla describes the Shellsnapper as an amphibious creature. It finds a spot that it can dig into and lies dormant there for days or even weeks. As it does, it's "impenetrable" shell collects the surrounding foliage, allowing it to blend in with its environment. This foilage also gives the Shellsnapper the appearance of an Aspidochelone.
The Aspidochelone was a mythical, giant sea turtle that often got mistaken as an island by sailors. Whenever these unfortunate souls got on top of it, the Aspidochelone would take advantage of their mistake and drown them by diving into the ocean's depths. The Shellsnapper may use a similar tactic with Aloy, luring her and other possible victims in with its natural appearance before attacking.
Concerning Horizon Zero Dawn machines, the inclusion of the Shellsnapper gives the universe another water creature. Prior to it, the only other water-based machine was the one based on crocodiles, the Snapmaw. Forbidden West looks like it will put a greater emphasis on swimming than it's predecessor, so there are probably more water-types waiting in the wings.
Because Guerrilla titled the tweet "Meet the Machines," it's possible that this will be a series moving forward. The developer hasn't said if that will be the case, but if it's willing to talk about one new machine, there's no reason why it wouldn't do so with others. The biggest question is how often it will reveal a new machine considering fans are at least six months out from Forbidden West's release.
Maybe the pterodactyl-like ones will be next considering how prominent they've been in the game's promotions. They appear in one of the latest revealed Horizon Forbidden West key arts and beyond that seem like they'll be one of the more frequently appearing machines in this upcoming sequel.
Horizon Forbidden West launches exclusively for the PlayStation 5 in 2021.