One of the Horizon Forbidden West devs has said that the game will be as immersive on the PS4 because it will be on the PS5 and optimized for both.
In a new blog post on the Playstation site, one among the developers of Horizon Forbidden West has assured gamers everywhere that they’re going to have an equivalent great experience whether or not they play on PS4 or PS5. While there’ll still be differences between the two versions of Horizon Forbidden West, the dev team has expressed their confidence that those that prefer 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 get the game on PS4 and later wanted to upgrade to the PS5 version, it might cost them. This was a wierd choice, especially compared to a game like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, which gamers could upgrade for free of charge and is additionally a Sony title. Gamers were understandably confused and frustrated by this lack of consistency and that they said so. After no bit of backlash, Sony offered free PS5 upgrades for Horizon Forbidden West, but the question remained if those that chose to forgo the upgrade would be playing a lesser version of the game.
Now, during 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 because it will be on PS5. “[I] t’s vital to us as a studio to make sure PlayStation 4 players get an equally immersive experience,” Ramisse said. While those that play on a PS5 can still anticipate a somewhat better experience—a more powerful console can display higher-quality graphics and hamper load times, among other things—it seems clear that the team at Guerilla Games wants nobody to desire they’re missing out. One sure thing is that regardless of which console gamers play the game on, Horizon Forbidden West compares favourably to its predecessor graphically.
As new consoles, dominate and old ones are phased out, games like Horizon Forbidden West that attempt to straddle that divide find themselves during a strange position of trying to please everyone. Many gamers can’t or don’t want to urge a PS5—in no small part thanks to the very fact that the console is sold out more often than not—and as long as Horizon Zero Dawn was well-received by critics and fans, it’s wise for Guerilla Games to supply the game on both Playstation platforms. It’s unclear precisely what “immersion” means during this particular case, though, and thus equally unclear what precisely 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 ready to match. The game will still look good on PS4, though, if the primary game’s impressive visuals are any indication.
As gamers eagerly await Horizon Forbidden West’s release next year, they will anticipate more updates from Guerilla Games on how the game is progressing and what to expect. The game is merely about half a year out and has high expectations, and if it’s as immersive on both consoles because the team claims.
Horizon Forbidden West involves PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on February 18, 2022.
Source: Playstation
