In less than 24 hours, one of the biggest game releases of 2022 so far will arrive on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. Horizon Forbidden West is the first major PlayStation exclusive of the year and the latest example of what Sony's internal studios can do with next-generation hardware. Tomorrow is also the end of one of PlayStation's promises, a promise that many fans may have forgotten. That's why it's an important reminder that those with a PS5 can purchase Horizon Forbidden West for just $60, $10 cheaper than standard PS5 game retail prices.
As those with a PlayStation 5 know, standard retail pricing for next-gen games has increased from $60 to $70. It's not something many video game players approved of, considering the increase in in-game purchases over the past generation, but it's also inarguable that video game development is significantly more expensive now than even 10 years ago. However, Sony softened the blow by previously making a promise that certain games like Horizon Forbidden West will be available for just $60 -- with a catch.
That promise is that all of Sony's cross-generation games released on the PS4 will receive a free upgrade to the PS5 and came directly from CEO and president Jim Ryan. At the time, Ryan said it was about "people having a choice." However, when Horizon Forbidden West first announced its retail SKUs, it took PlayStation fan backlash for Sony to fulfill this promise. As such, Horizon Forbidden West will be the last first-party PlayStation game that offers a free PS5 upgrade for the PS4 version of a game.
What that means is that Horizon Forbidden West pre-orderers can, right now, go purchase the PS4 version of the game for $59.99 and be able to play the game on PS5 day one without any extra cost. The only negative is that pre-orderers won't be able to preload the game on PS5. They'll have to wait for the game to launch to start downloading.
Pre-orderers be warned, however. Alongside the PS4 version of Horizon Forbidden West in the PlayStation Store is the PS5 version of the game, which still retails for $70. It's easy to make a mistake and order the more expensive version of the game without realizing it, and that may be PlayStation's intention. The PS4 version should be clearly marked as Horizon Forbidden West's Standard Edition for both PS4 and PS5, with a price of $59.99.
Horizon Forbidden West will remain available for $60 on PS4 with a free PS5 upgrade available post-launch, too, for those who don't want to pre-order. It's only future PlayStation first-party exclusives that will cost $10 to upgrade. That includes God of War: Ragnarok and Gran Turismo 7, unfortunately. PS5 owners hoping to pick up Horizon Forbidden West should capitalize on the offer, then, before it's gone.
Horizon Forbidden West releases February 18 on PS4 and PS5.
