Horizon Forbidden West has officially been delayed to Feb 2022

The next PlayStation 5 showpiece has been delayed.

Guerrilla Games have revealed an official release date for Horizon Forbidden West: Feb 18, 2022.

This means that Aloy’s next open-world adventure has been delayed out of its previously-announced 2021 release window, which the developer attributes to the ongoing pandemic. The game will launch on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.

Sony Interactive Entertainment will open up pre-orders for Horizon Forbidden West on Sept 2, 2021 – so it looks like both parties are pretty confident about making this new release date.

Game director Mathias de Jonge spoke about the delay during Gamescom Opening Night Live, saying, “It’s no surprise that our teams were hugely impacted by the global pandemic; we've been adjusting to new workflows, protocols, and other challenges, while keeping our teams safe and prioritising a healthy work/life balance".

While the sequel is still a few months away, Guerrilla Games did drop something new for fans to enjoy today: a surprise patch for Horizon Zero Dawn! This free update adds 60fps support at up to 4K resolution (using checkerboard rendering) on the PlayStation 5. Players have been crying out for a 60fps patch for a while now, so this should keep them busy until the sequel arrives.

ALSO READ: 14 minutes of stunning Horizon Forbidden West gameplay showed off at PlayStation's State of Play showcase

This article was first published in Hardware Zone.