Sony has confirmed the delayed PlayStation exclusive Horizon Forbidden West will now be released on February 18, 2022.
The PS4 and PS5 game was supposed to arrive before the end of the year, but the developers at Guerrilla Games pushed the game back due to challenges presented by the ongoing pandemic.
Pre-orders for the game will begin next week on September 2, the company said on the PlayStation blog today with the annual Gamescom show now underway.
It’ll be a great way for PlayStation fans to start the New Year and gives Sony a much-needed exclusive to go up against big hitters like Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5, which are both coming to Xbox before the end of the year.
Director Mathijs de Jonge writes: “While the decision to move the game’s launch to 2022 certainly wasn’t easy, we’d like to take a moment to thank all of our fans for their unwavering support; we know how much you’ve been looking forward to reuniting with Aloy and her friends, continuing her story, and exploring a new and more dangerous world. Your passion, fan art, cosplay, virtual photography, and videos have meant the world to all of us.”
As an added bonus for loyal fans of the series, de Jonge also announced the 60fps Enhanced Performance Patch patch for the original Horizon Zero Dawn game is now available for PS5 gamers. The new frame rate is “targeted” so is unlikely to hit that mark in all conditions, but the update will come automatically and freely to those who already own the game.
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While that should tide many fans over for the time being, there’s no getting away from how games development has suffered during the new era of remote working.
The warning signs became apparent back in June when PlayStation Studios boss Hermen Hulst refused to fully commit to the 2021 release window for Horizon Forbidden West.
In a post on the PlayStation blog he said: “For Horizon, we think we are on track to release this holiday season. But that isn’t quite certain yet, and we’re working as hard as we can to confirm that to you as soon as we can.”
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.