Next month, Aloy will embark on a new adventure and face new threats in a dangerous land. The expansion content of "Horizon Western Forbidden City" "Scorched Coast" will use the performance of PS5 to realize this journey. Explore the captivating combat and world design in this upcoming game, launching on April 19th. Game Director Mathijs de Jonge shares his insights on development.
PlayStation Blog: When you first learned about the performance and capabilities of the PS5, what was your first impression as a developer?
Mathijs de Jonge: "Horizon Forbidden City" is a game that places great emphasis on visual effects, so if we can enjoy more CPU performance and memory, it means that we will be able to further improve the quality of the image; in addition, as for the gaming experience itself, I am very much looking forward to it Can play games at 60fps. This is the feature I'm personally most looking forward to as it greatly enhances the experience of fighting machines.
When I first heard about ultra-fast SSDs, I was a bit incredulous at how powerful they were, but now I really feel like load times are a thing of the past. This kind of performance is a perfect match for "Horizon Forbidden City", because the long loading screen is likely to affect the player's immersive experience. From a development standpoint, faster loading is also beneficial when we're checking out the game, since I can jump right into any section without waiting.
How did you leverage the power of PS5 to develop Horizon West: Burnt Coast?
One of the biggest priorities when developing Horizon was adding a lot of detail and richness to the environments. When making Horizon West, we had to take PS4 optimization into consideration when adding every new project. When we were working on "Fire Coast", we were able to focus on the PS5, so we were able to play as much as we wanted. We're incredibly proud of this post-apocalyptic, far-future version of beautiful Los Angeles.
The ruins of LA and its surroundings are filled with intricate detail, which requires a lot of processing power and high-speed streaming technology to work properly, especially when players are flying above the land and taking in many views at once. One of the settlements is located in and around detailed ruins, but we were able to fit many activities into that environment.
Another good example is one of the battle scenes, which really used a lot of memory and processing power! I really appreciate the many advantages that PS5 brings, allowing us to achieve such a huge achievement both technically and creatively. .
Horizon West's combat has great visuals, animations, and immersive sound effects, especially when taking on some of the larger machines. How do you take advantage of PS5 to provide these rich visual performances? How will it work in "Scorched Coast"?
Through the processing performance of PS5, we can perform some specific simulations at a faster speed, creating more lifelike effects and a better gaming experience. On PS5, "Horizon West" can be executed at a higher resolution and frame rate than PS4, and the details of the game assets are also more delicate, making the overall quality of the game even better. In addition, Aloy usually only has special lighting settings during cutscenes, but on PS5, this setting is enabled from beginning to end. On PS5, we can display farther objects and render them more detailed, allowing players to see stunning scenery throughout the game. The game also supports 40Hz mode and variable refresh rate on TVs with corresponding capabilities to provide a smoother gaming experience.
Which of the PS5 games released so far is your favorite? From a developer's perspective, where do you think this game most effectively takes advantage of the PS5's strengths?
I've spent a lot of time playing Elden's Ring on PS5 and have great admiration for all aspects of the game, but I think in terms of character design and overall visual presentation, God of War Ragnarok really doesn't come close. .
Horizon: Forbidden West is available now on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, and is part of the PlayStation Plus catalog of games. The expansion content "Scorched Coast" will be released on April 19th.