Last week’s sales figures reveal that more than two-thirds of Horizon Forbidden West players overpaid. According to the latest GfK figures, originally reported by GameIndustry.biz, the PS5 version of Horizon Forbidden West accounted for 68 percent of the game’s total sales in the UK. This figure doesn’t account for digital and is exclusive to the UK, but it’s a clear indication that Sony’s scheme to bury the free next-gen upgrade has worked exceptionally well.
I take no pleasure in being right about this one. Last week, I tried to warn people that the free upgrade is easy to miss. Other sites including Polygon, Kotaku, and IGN did their best to get the word out too, but unfortunately, the vast majority of players didn’t get the message - nor did they figure it out for themselves, which is exactly what Sony intended to happen.
If you buy the PS4 version of Horizon Forbidden West and put it in your PS5, you can download a free PS5 upgrade. Functionally, there is no difference between the PS4 and PS5 version of the game, yet the PS5 disc costs $10 more. In fact, the cheaper PS4 version is actually more valuable since it works on a PS4 and PS5, while the PS5 disc only works on the latter.
Of course, if you walk into a GAME or similar retail store you’d have no way to know this. It’s common sense that you’d want to buy the PS5 disc for your PS5, and there’s no sticker on the box or any indication that you’d be overspending by doing so. If the store’s employees know about this - which is unlikely - they have no incentive to steer you towards the PS4 box. The result is millions of PS5 copies of Horizon Forbidden West being sold for absolutely no reason.
While we don’t have the digital sales figures, it’s safe to assume PS5 will outsell PS4 by a wide margin. This is because you can only buy the PS4 version on Sony’s website or on an actual PS4. If you’re shopping on a PS5, your only options are the $70 standard or $80 Deluxe Edition. Nearly 70 percent of players bought the boxed PS5 version when it was sat on a shelf next to the PS4 version, imagine how many would have bought the PS5 version if the PS4 version wasn’t even there.
There should not be two versions of Horizon Forbidden West, physically or digitally. When you go to the store, the box should say ‘PS4 & PS5’ across the top. Likewise, the PS5 version shouldn’t even be an option in the virtual store. Sony is selling a more expensive version of the game that provides no additional benefit to customers while obscuring the cheaper version and making digital customers jump through hoops to get it. This goes beyond shady practices. Sony is being deliberately confusing and taking advantage of its players.
At this point, Sony owes every single person that bought the PS5 version a $10 refund. Even a $10 store credit would be an insult, but at least it would be better than nothing. Horizon Zero Dawn sold over 20 million copies. If the sequel sells the same - though it will surely sell better - that's $140 million Sony will have bilked from the roughly 70 percent that bought the wrong version - triple the development cost of the original. I’m sure some of those people were willing to pay $10 for the white box, but the vast majority of customers most certainly did not understand their options, and that’s entirely on Sony.