Guerilla Games has announced that its PlayStation 4-exclusive action-adventure title, Horizon Zero Dawn, has been delayed until early next year.
Originally scheduled to hit Sony’s flagship console at some point in 2016, the game will now be released in the U.S. on February 28, 2017 and in Europe on March 1.
The news may not come as a surprise to regular PSU readers, as we previously reported that the game may have been pushed to 2017. However, at the time nothing official was announced, and marketing materials still indicated a 2016 launch was on the cards.
"As you can see in the trailer, we’ve decided to push the release date for Horizon Zero Dawn to February 28, 2017," commented Herman Hulst, Managing Director of Guerrillal Games, in a post on the PlayStation Blog. "It wasn’t an easy choice to make; we know many of you have been anxious to play the game since we first announced it.
"However, we also want to ensure that Horizon Zero Dawn lives up to the visuals and gameplay quality that our games are known for. The new date affords us the extra time required to deliver fully on our ambitious vision for Horizon Zero Dawn.
"We realize that this decision may not please everyone. At the same time, we’re confident that the advantages of the additional development time afforded by the new date will become clear in the coming months, as we start to share more cool details and videos from Horizon Zero Dawn. We really, really appreciate your patience and continued support, and look forward to bringing you the best game we possibly can in February 2017."
Horizon announced to massive reception last year, remains one of PS4’s big guns
Horizon Zero Dawn was announced at Sony’s E3 2015 press conference. The game takes place in the distant future, where mechanical behemoths rule over earth after much of the population has deserted the planet.
Gamers take control of a hunter named Aloy, who must survive against these robotic adversaries armed with only comparatively primitive weaponry in order to salvage their valuable parts. Guerrilla describes the title as sitting somewhere between The Elder Scrolls and Assassin’s Creed.
The game is the first IP from the Amsterdam-based developer since launching Killzone for PlayStation 2 back in 2004. As you can see from the trailer however, Horizon is a complete departure from the frantic combat of its stablemate shooter; it doesn’t even have firearms, for one thing.
It’s not all bad news for PS4 gamers in 2016 though. Despite Horizon’s delay, we still have the likes of Gran Turismo Sport, The Last Guardian and PlayStation VR to look forward too. Check out a new trailer for Horizon Zero Dawn below.