Review for Horizon Zero Dawn. Game for PlayStation 4, PC and Steam, the video game was released on 28/02/2017
If we went back in time to 2017 and told you that a certain title developed by Guerrilla Games and published by Sony Interactive Entertainment would come out three years later on PC you would have had a big laugh thinking that an exclusive PlayStation it would have appeared elsewhere, after all they are called exclusive right? Today, however, we find ourselves writing about a certain very popular title by the name of Horizon Zero Dawn which for the first time lands on PC.
Owners of keyboards and mice will be happy to try Horizon Zero Dawn in a new light? Find out in our review.
A successful transplant?
Horizon Zero Dawn was certainly one of the most popular IPs in the PlayStation 4 era, so much so that the trailer for the sequel, Forbidden West, appeared right in the PlayStation 5 presentation event and it is legitimate to wonder if after a few years even the latter could arrive on PC. The work done by Guerrilla Games at the time on PlayStation 4 was astounding, an original and well-crafted art direction that has amazed millions of players around the world. However, what makes this review somewhat anachronistic is having to approach for the first time ever a title whose concept of exclusive PlayStation has always been maintained, a real limit that is broken with the PC version of Horizon Zero Dawn.
Yes, if you enjoyed the graphic quality of Horizon Zero Dawn on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro you will be absolutely amazed by the image cleaning of this PC version. A real transplant that for Sony represents its first time having to export a title from Console to PC and not vice versa as often happens with indie or third party titles.
On the technical sector we will talk more about it later, but what immediately outlines a substantial difference in experience and general quality is certainly the frame-rate. Now unlocked and that allows PC owners to enjoy a fluidity never conceived for this title: 60 frames per second.
When PlayStation 4 Pro came out, Guerrilla Games proposed a "Performance" mode that allowed frame-rate stabilization at the cost of a decrease in overall quality, and many find themselves disappointed in realizing that although it was about "Performance", not even the Sony's revamped console hardware could sustain 60 frames per second in the world of Horizon Zero Dawn while now on PC, anything is possible.
The difference is there, you feel it, you feel it and above all it stimulates even more the effect of amazement in the fluidity of the game action. The fights are now more responsive than ever and the unlocked frame-rate also makes pure and simple exploration of the breathtaking landscapes that Horizon Zero Dawn offers exceptional.
As for the possible presence of additional content, Horizon Zero Dawn on PC does not offer any news. The title is exactly identical to its counterpart present in the PlayStation 4 version but being the "Complete Edition" The Frozen Wilds DLC is also included.
PlayStation exclusive… No more.
PlayStation exclusives have always been the primary motivation in choosing this console over the competition, yet, 2020 was the scene of the breaking of this paradigm. First with Death Stranding and now with Horizon Zero Dawn, it is the order of the day to think about which other titles could enjoy the graphics benefits that only modular and powerful hardware like a PC can guarantee.
These porting works represent a sign of rupture, a clear division that will be remembered in the coming years as the beginning of a "movement". It should be remembered that immediately after the announcement of the PC version of Horizon Zero Dawn, futile protests and grotesque insults to the developers for having "betrayed" PlayStation players followed, all this represents in a part, albeit limited, a group of thoughts reluctant to see that much appreciated and played title available to an equally important slice of players who have never had the opportunity to play it. God of War is one of the biggest names in the list of eligible titles that will be exported to PC and one wonders how many others will join the currently restricted list of exclusives that will be released on Steam ed Epic Games Store.
The focus of this digression, however, finds its foundation precisely in how such a transition should be viewed. Horizon Zero Dawn is undoubtedly an iconic title for PlayStation, closely linked to the leitmotif of PlayStation Studios yet, Sony, despite its paternal protection to its IP decides to sell, decides not only to offer the PC public its own successful IP but an even cleaner, more refined game with additional features that theoretically could have become part of a “next-gen” upgrade for the upcoming PlayStation 5 and instead, none of that.
Sony begins a slow and perhaps siphoned path that will lead in the next few years to sell part of their exclusives on PC, perhaps foreseeing a future in which, between many generations, the true market strategies will no longer be based on mere hardware (which already with PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro has delineated even more the need for increasingly frequent hardware renewal) but on availability in the other platforms of its productions, guaranteeing in most cases an added value such as those visible at a glance for Horizon Zero Dawn.
Horizon Zero Dawn on PC, what changes? (technical side)
Exporting a PlayStation 4 title to PC isn't easy, but the work done by Guerrilla Games on the technical side of this new version of Horizon Zero Dawn has fully convinced us. The title in addition to enjoying a frame-rate unlocked beyond 60fps e support ultra-wide screens (although the cutscenes will be fixed in 16: 9) it also allows editing of the FOV up to a maximum of 100 degrees.
The only sore point is the lack of Ray Tracing and DLSS 2.0, despite Death Stranding (which shares the same graphic engine) fully supports these functions and we specify that it is not to be considered a serious lack, but if combined with the fact that the assets are taken exactly from the PlayStation 4 version without any improvement for the PC version there is little depth in trying to bring new light to Horizon Zero Dawn on PC.
Despite the fact that our test was done without the patch on day one (which will improve the stability of the title as well as fix various bugs) we did not find any problems, at maximum graphics settings we recorded an average of 132fps using the following configuration: Intel i7-8700, RTX 2070 and 16GB of DDR4 RAM and a 2,5 "SSD. All this underlines how much the Tenth Engine is perfectly malleable and adaptable to a multitude of configurations with a high degree of optimization.
Although the lack of Ray Tracing, the Guerrilla Games title delivers improved reflections and amazing dynamic foliage which allows the vegetation to be even more realistic and detailed and considering the rich differentiation of the settings, the choice of this feature seemed absolutely coherent and well done.
Finally, the first action that every PC gamer does when first launching a game is to view them: the graphics options. It starts from the classic choice of presets (including the original of the PlayStation 4 version) up to the details that can be customized to our liking so as to scale the options in order to get the right compress based on your hardware. But if you have doubts about your machine you can always start a benchmark, tool that will allow you to understand your range of fps in the game with the settings you have set.
In addition to the graphics options it is possible change the mapping of commands on keyboard and mouse to make your gameplay even faster and more immediate, remembering however that you can still connect any gamepad (the dualshock will also support the touchpad to open the map for example).
Horizon Zero Dawn lands against all odds in the PC market. An exclusive that after Death Stranding breaks that watertight compartment that represented the exclusive PlayStation, allowing a large slice of users to experience for the first time the experience of one of the most significant IP of PlayStation 4 with mouse and keyboard with the '' addition of a series of graphic improvements and features for each type of machine. Net of some small shortcomings such as Ray Tracing and DLSS 2.0, Horizon Zero Dawn demonstrates all its value even on PC, a title that now more than ever must be played in its best capacity by opening the doors to the possibility of seeing other exclusives in the future. in the PC market.
► Horizon Zero Dawn is an Action-RPG type game developed by Guerrilla Games and published by Sony for PlayStation 4, PC and Steam, the video game was released on 28/02/2017
