In a new blog post on the Playstation site, one of the developers of Horizon Forbidden West has assured gamers everywhere that they will have the same great experience whether they play on PS4 or PS5. While there will still be differences between the two versions of Horizon Forbidden West, the dev team has expressed their confidence that those who choose to play on older machines won’t be missing out.
There’s been some tension between gamers and Sony over this particular issue. When pre-orders for the game first went live, gamers quickly noticed that if they were to purchase the game on PS4 and later want to upgrade to the PS5 version, it would cost them. This was a strange choice, especially when compared with a game like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, which gamers could upgrade for free and is also a Sony title. Gamers were understandably confused and frustrated by this lack of consistency, and they said so. After no small amount of backlash, Sony offered free PS5 upgrades for Horizon Forbidden West, but the question remained if those who chose to forgo the upgrade would be playing a lesser version of the game.
Now, in a Playstation blog post, the game’s Lead Character Artist, Bastien Ramisse, has said that Horizon Forbidden West will be as immersive on the PS4 as it will be on the PS5. “[I]t’s very important to us as a studio to ensure PlayStation 4 players get an equally immersive experience,” Ramisse said. While those who play on a PS5 can still look forward to a slightly better experience—a more powerful console can display higher-quality graphics and cut down load times, among other things—it seems clear that the team at Guerilla Games wants no one to feel like they’re missing out. One thing that is certain is that no matter which console gamers play the game on, Horizon Forbidden West compares favorably to its predecessor graphically.
As new consoles dominate and old ones are phased out, games like Horizon Forbidden West that try to straddle that divide end up in a strange position of trying to please everyone. Many gamers can’t or don’t want to get a PS5—in no small part due to the fact that the console is sold out more often than not—and given that Horizon Zero Dawn was well-received by critics and fans, it's wise for Guerilla Games to offer the game on both Playstation platforms. It’s unclear exactly what “immersion” means in this particular case, though, and thus equally unclear what exactly the team has promised. The PS5 is more powerful than the PS4, and when its power is added to Guerilla’s Decima Engine, it produces some impressive visuals the PS4 won’t be able to match. The game will still look good on PS4, though, if the first game’s impressive visuals are any indication.
As gamers eagerly await Horizon Forbidden West’s release next year, they can look forward to more updates from Guerilla Games on how the game is progressing and what to expect. The game is only about half a year out and has high expectations placed upon it. If it is as immersive on both consoles as the team claims, it will be exciting to see what’s on the horizon.
Horizon Forbidden West comes to PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on February 18, 2022.
Source: Playstation