A new report from Kotaku this week shares that according to trusted sources, the Sony-exclusive hit Horizon: Zero Dawn will make its way to PC sometime in 2020. Multiple sources close to Sony and “familiar with Sony’s plans” told Kotaku that Horizon: Zero Dawn would be the first PlayStation first-party game ported to PC after release and will be available via Steam and/or the Epic Games Store this year, but the report states that the store front is not yet finalized. The game will likely receive a graphics upgrade on PC platforms as it would not be locked to the 30 frames per second limitations of the PlayStation 4.
Horizon: Zero Dawn is a post-apocalyptic PlayStation 4-exclusive title that released in 2017 and was developed by Guerilla Games, a Sony owned and operated studio. The game features the protagonist Aloy and follows her journey through a visually stunning and immersive world that merges nature and survival with top of the line technology. Horizon: Zero Dawn has sold over 10 million copies since its release. Along with other well-received PlayStation exclusives like 2015’s Bloodborne and 2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man and God of War. All of these PlayStation exclusives made mxdwn’s Top 50 Games of the Decade list. High-quality exclusives like these have been solid component of Sony’s long-term strategy to move console hardware and encourage customer loyalty with fantastic, in-demand titles.
Sony has been publicly sharing that they have considered releasing PlayStation-exclusive titles on PC platforms since last year, when then-CEO and President of SIE Worldwide Studios Shawn Layden suggested in an interview with Bloomberg that Sony’s policies towards exclusive content on their consoles might be adjusted to fit the current gaming climate. “We must support the PlayStation platform–that is nonnegotiable,” Layden said during the interview. “That said, you will see in the future some titles coming out of my collection of studios which may need to lean in to wider installed base.” It can be assumed that Layden is referring to the base of PC players and not rival consoles like Microsoft’s Xbox suite or Nintendo Switch.
Death Stranding is a PlayStation 4 timed exclusive with an officially announced PC release that will be published by 505 Games. Death Stranding was developed in partnership with Sony by the independent studio Kojima Productions, founded by the acclaimed game director of the Metal Gear series Hideo Kojima. Unlike Horizon: Zero Dawn‘s developer Guerilla Games, Kojima Productions is not a Sony-owned studio. Death Stranding and Horizon: Zero Dawn share an engine, as Death Stranding runs on Guerilla’s Decima engine and the two studios have “worked closely together in recent years” according to Kotaku’s report.
Horizon: Zero Dawn is technically available on PC already for subscribers to PlayStation Now, Sony’s games streaming service that extends to PC. Horizon: Zero Dawn will be available on PS Now to subscribers from January until April in 2020.