Black Boxes are collectibles in Horizon Forbidden West that can be found and delivered for various rewards including a powerful legendary weapon. Black Boxes are recordings of the Old World that can be found and recovered at airplane crash sites. There are a total of 12 Black Boxes to find around the Forbidden West and The Daunt, and some of them require Special Gear unlocked throughout the main story.
To exchange Black Boxes for rewards, Aloy will need to speak to Untalla, an NPC in Memorial Grove. Untalla is a Black Box Collector that promises resources to Aloy in exchange for each of the recordings delivered to her. Players will first visit Memorial Grove during the seventh main story mission in Horizon Forbidden West. After completing, "The Broken Sky", Aloy will be able to find and speak to Untalla.
Rewards will be given each time Aloy delivers a Black Box to Untalla, and they can be uncommon, rare, or legendary resources. Untalla will offer a predetermined list of items to exchange for the Black Box recordings. Players will be able to choose from machine parts in Horizon Forbidden West including a Frostclaw Circulator, Stalker Circulator, Frostclaw Sac Webbing, Slitherfang Earthgrinder, Luminous Brainstem, Large Machine Core, Dreadwing Metal Fang, Tideripper Tail Fin, Thunderjaw Tail, Termortusk Tusk, Scorcher Scanning Ear, or Stormbird Storm Cannon. There are 12 resource rewards in total, but players can choose which one they want to receive in any order for the Black Boxes they retrieve.
Black Box Prerequisites And Rewards In Horizon Forbidden West
Some Black Boxes may be discovered before players reach Memorial Grove in Horizon Forbidden West, but exchanging them won't be available until Untalla can be spoken to, as she is the only Black Box Collector in the game. Black Boxes are generally easy to retrieve, but some of them require more intricate climbing maneuvers or Special Gear items to reach. If players have unlocked the Sunwing mount by completing the Cauldron GEMINI in Horizon Forbidden West, then collecting the Black Boxes is much easier, but this won't occur until the end of the story.
Black Box Locations
- No Man’s Land: In No Man's Land, south of Plainsong, there's a Black Box inside the plane wreck.
- The Promontory: This Black Box requires the Vine Cutter and can be found in The Promontory, which is northeast of Plainsong. There is also an Energy Cell near the plane door that's needed to get the plane open.
- Jagged Deep: In Jagged Deep, there's a river in the southern area with a plane wreck that can be reached easily after unlocking the Diving Mask in Horizon Forbidden West.
- The Whitewatch Peaks: Southwest of the Plainsong settlement, there's a Black Box in Whitewatch Peaks beneath some debris that can be cleared with the Pullcaster.
- Bleeding Mark: There's a Black Box in Bleeding Mark in the northeastern part of Salt Bite.
- The Stillstands: This Black Box requires the Vine Cutter and is located in The Stillstands camp near the local Salvage Contractor. The Vine Cutter is unlocked during the "Seeds of the Past" story mission.
- Salt Bite: Within the Salt Bite settlement, a Black Box can be found through a building with a vent that can be ripped off with the Pullcaster.
- Memorial Grove: This Black Box can be found southeast of The Maw of the Arena in Memorial Grove.
- The Stand of the Sentinels: This Black Box is at the top of the northern cliffs in The Stand of the Sentinels, and it's just north of the Horizon Forbidden West Relic Ruin in this region.
- Bonewhite Tear: The Bonewhite Tear Black Box is north of Snapmaw and west of Sheerside Mountains at the top of a cliff. An Energy Cell near the Campfire needs to be taken to the plane door in order to reach the Black Box.
- The Raintrance: Northeast of The Raintrance camp, there's a Black Box that will require the Vine Cutter to reach.
- Isle of Spires: There's a Black Box in the northern part of the Isle of Spires that can be collected using the Diving Mask to reach the underwater plane wreck.
Along with resources for each Black Box retrieved, players will also receive one of Horizon Forbidden West's legendary weapons for returning all 12. Wings of the Ten, a Legendary Blastsling, will be given to Aloy as soon as the last Black Box is delivered to Untalla in Memorial Grove. Perks for the Wings of the Ten include critical hit chance and damage increases, as well as unlockable overdraw and close range damage. Since Wings of the Ten is a legendary weapon, it can be upgraded up to five times to increase the percentages of each perk. Collecting all of the Black Boxes in Horizon Forbidden West will earn players a powerful weapon and some valuable resources.
Horizon Forbidden West is available for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.