Jan Bart van Beek, art and animation director at Guerrilla Games, has officially announced that the remaster of Horizon Zero Dawn will be released on October 31. The game will feature over 10 hours of re-recorded audio, motion capture, and improved character models, animations, lighting, and textures, which he says will bring it to “the same visual fidelity as Horizon Forbidden West.” That means it will be upgraded for the PlayStation 5 and compatible PCs, and will also be compatible with the PS5 Pro, which will be released on November 7.
During the announcement, van Beek explained that seven years is a long time in the world of computer graphics, and many technical improvements have been made since the game was first released. The remaster is being handled by Dutch video game developer Nixxes, and also includes improved audio and Atmos rendering for a more immersive experience. The remaster also comes with The Frozen Wilds expansion pack and all its additional lands, machines, and skills. PC buyers can also expect support for ultra-wide resolutions and performance-enhancing technologies such as NVIDIA’s DLSS 3 AI-based rendering accelerator.
The original game’s accessibility features, such as remappable controls and haptic cues, remain in this version, along with new optional accessibility features that can notify players of interactive elements with sound and haptic feedback.
Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered will be available to purchase for $50, but users who already own the original game and the complete edition can upgrade for $10, whether they buy it on PS5 or PC via Steam or Epic Games Store. The $10 upgrade will also be available to players who added the game to their library from giveaways in Sony’s Play at Home program during the pandemic lockdown. However, fans upgrading with a PS4 game disc will need to insert the disc into the console every time they want to play, so the upgrade offer won’t be available if you have a disc-less version of the PS5.
