Horizon Zero Dawn is widely considered to be one of PS4’s best exclusives. Developer Guerrilla Games took a big risk in moving from an FPS like Killzone to an open-world action game, and it ended up being a massive critical and commercial success for PlayStation. Horizon Zero Dawn sold 7.6 million copies in its first year, making it the best-selling first-party new IP on PS4.
Horizon Zero Dawn was also released on PC in 2020, and it marked the beginning of Sony’s shift towards releasing its older blockbuster games on PC. While many fans were excited to play Horizon Zero Dawn at a high frame rate, fans had reported several issues with the port. These problems have largely been fixed, and the PC version is a great way to play the game. Now, Sony has just released an update on the total sales of Horizon Zero Dawn.
According to Hermen Hulst, Head of PlayStation Studios, Horizon Zero Dawn has sold over 20 million copies as of November 28, 2021. This number includes both PS4 and PC versions of the game. The picture accompanying the tweet also mentions that Horizon Zero Dawn has crossed over 1 billion hours in total playtime.
20 million units is a staggering number for any game, let alone a new IP like Horizon Zero Dawn. The concept of fighting robot dinosaurs is intriguing on its own, but Horizon Zero Dawn was also praised for its narrative. Aloy is extremely popular and was recently featured as a guest character in Genshin Impact and Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout.
Horizon Zero Dawn is not the only PS4 game to reach this huge milestone, as God of War had also sold nearly 20 million copies before the release of the PC version. Sony’s decision to double down on blockbuster single-player games during the PS4 generation has managed to capture the attention of a large part of the gaming audience. Many people expect excellent narrative-driven games from Sony, and recent statements regarding PlayStation developing live-service titles will probably not have any impact on its single-player catalog.
It should be noted that Sony’s games often go on sale, and can be found for deep discounts after a year or so. Regardless, it is a great achievement for Guerrilla Games and Sony. Taking this number into consideration, Horizon Forbidden West should also be a massive hit when it launches next week.
Horizon Zero Dawn is now available on PC and PS4.