Guerrilla Games has long been one of Sony's strongest first-party studios, going back to the 2004 release of Killzone, a defining title for the PS2. Over 17 years later and Guerrilla Games has a new focus, the open-world action Horizon series, and Killzone hasn't been touched since 2013's Killzone: Shadow Fall for the PS4. Now fans of Guerrilla may have an idea of what's coming next, thanks to some interesting, if not entirely reliable, leaks. Horizon fans will be pleased, but Killzone fans best brace themselves.
There have been rumors that Killzone would be making a comeback over the past year, and even further back. However, the new rumor coming from Twitter account Oops Leaks is anything but what Killzone fans want to here. Short and simple, the word is, "it's dead." There are no details provided regarding the claimed leak, but the clear message is that Guerrilla Games has no current plans to work on or release a new Killzone project in the future. That could always change going forward, if it's true at all, but not right now according to the leak.
The project that some rumors had speculated could be related to Killzone remains Guerrilla Games' next major release. It's said to be a multiplayer shooter, prioritizing competition at an esports level. It's described as having been in development for three years now, which could mean it will be announced publicly soon. Oops Leaks says that they have diverging information regarding the project, with one source saying the multiplayer shooter is a SOCOM game, but with another saying it's set in the Horizon universe.
As for what's next for Horizon following the release of Forbidden West, fans should be pleased that there appears to be a lot in the works. Oops Leaks claims that the current plan is to turn Horizon into a trilogy. Before then, however, there are plans to make a VR spin-off game, known to be Horizon: Call of the Mountain, as well as either a standalone game or expansion described as akin to Monster Hunter World. No tentative timeline for any of these projects has been provided.
To be clear, none of Oops Leaks' claims have been verified at this point in time. It's entirely possible that all of their claims are entirely made up. At the very least, none of their claims are outrageous. It's easy to see any major developer working on a multiplayer shooter right now, and the continuation of the Horizon franchise is all but guaranteed. It's even easy to imagine Killzone not being a priority, since it's been gone for so long.
This isn't going to be an easy report to stomach for Killzone fans, however. At one point in time, Killzone was one of the most exciting up-and-coming first-party franchises at Sony. The single-player campaign of Killzone: Shadow Fall was cutting edge when it came to visuals. Imagining a similar Killzone for the PS5, it's easy to envision something incredible. Maybe there will be hope for a PS6 Killzone, after Guerrilla finishes its hero shooter and the third Horizon game.