Horizon Forbidden Westfeatures a ton of new characters that join Aloy on her journey, including the Utaru Gravesinger Zo, Quen Diviner Alva, and of course,old friends like Erendand Varl. However, although each of them gets their moment to shine, Tenakth Marshal Kotallo steals nearly every scene he’s in with intensity and a dry sense of humor.
Kotallo’s character arc and Noshir Dalal’s nuanced performance makeKotallo a standout character inForbidden West.Still, fans might not have noticed that Kotallo actually has more than one connection toSekiro: Shadows Die Twice,of all things. It wasn’t intentional, but it’s a pretty big coincidence.
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Noshir Dalal Voices Sekiro and Kotallo
The most obvious connection between Sekiro and Kotallo is that Noshir Dalal lends his voice to both characters. Dalal is in a ton of games, so it’s not a huge surprise to see him in bothSekiroandHorizon Forbidden West. He also plays Charles Smith inRed Dead Redemption 2,and he had smaller roles in games likeDeathloopandHalo Infinite,just to name a few.
His resume is impressive, but Sekiro and Kotallo are two of his bigger roles. Further, the two characters are actually very similar. Kotallo has more of acharacter arc and story than Sekiroand much more dialogue, but they’re both men of few words. They’re both stoic, intense, and strong warriors. They also share the same commitment to loyalty, both willing to put their lives on the line to protect the people they serve.
As a result, it’s easy to hear little bits of Sekiro hidden within Kotallo’s dialogue. It only makes sense, since they are played by the same person, but that’s not the only thing they have in common.
Both Sekiro and Kotallo Lost An Arm
At the beginning of their stories, Kotallo and Sekiro each lose an arm in battle. Their stories start with the exact same event, and that event directs a lot of their stories going forward. Kotallo, asa warrior from the Tenakth tribe, is devastated when he loses his arm. The Tenakth value strength above all, and come to see him as weak because of his disability. Kotallo’s arc focuses on him healing from the pain and trauma he endured, and learning that he can overcome his injury and be proud of who he is.
Kotallo’s story as an amputee is powerful and does a great job of showcasing a strong character with a disability not often seen in video games. Sekiro loses his arm fightingGenichiroat the beginning ofSekiro: Shadows Die Twice, but he doesn’t seem very emotional about it and immediately gets his prosthetic arm, which he uses for the rest of the game. Still, it’s an interesting coincidence that two of Noshir Dalal’s biggest roles have the same injury – and wind up with the same solution.
Kotallo Gets a Prosthetic Arm
Fans who haven’t finishedKotallo’s mission, “What Was Lost,” should play through it to see the final similarity to Sekiro. Just like his shinobi counterpart, Kotallo decides to craft a prosthetic arm to fight with. Aloy helps him accomplish this, so in the end, both Kotallo and Sekiro use prosthetic arms in combat.
Kotallo doesn’t use it all the time; he’s happy to have it but feels it is not his true self. He’s proud of what he overcame and doesn’t want to hide his disability, so he only uses it in battle when he deems it necessary, whereas Sekiro uses it all the time (though to be fair,Sekiro’s shinobi prostheticis probably always needed).
SekiroandHorizon Forbidden Westcouldn’t be more different in a lot of ways, but it’s interesting to see the connection between Dalal’s Sekiro and Kotallo roles. It’s a pretty big coincidence that both characters are played by the same actor, suffer the same injury, and develop a prosthetic arm to use in combat. Amputee characters aren’t entirely uncommon in video games, but it’s great to see them represented in such a healthy and positive way, especially through Kotallo’s journey.
Horizon Forbidden Westis available now on PS4 and PS5.
