Horizon Forbidden West Has Nine Confusing PS4 and PS5 Editions

Over at the PlayStation Blog today, Sony detailed the many different versions of Horizon Forbidden West now available for pre-order. Which version you order depends on several factors. Do you need PS4, PS5, or both? Do you want a physical disc? How about a $260 box with both versions, no disc, and a statue of a robot mammoth? You’d think they could make this a little less complicated.

Let’s start off with the most basic versions of the game. There are two different basic digital editions, one for the PlayStation 4 and one for the PlayStation 5. The PS4 version costs $60 and the PS5 is $70. If you purchase the PS4 versions there is no upgrade path to the PS5 version, or at least not yet.

The basic retail version of Horizon Forbidden West is called the Launch Edition. There is one for the PS4 and one for the PS5, $60 and $70 respectively. For $10 more there’s the Special Edition for the PS4 or PS5, which comes packaged in a steelbook with a mini art book and a voucher for the game’s digital pre-order bonuses.

Note that the six different editions we’ve gone over so far are platform-specific. And you can play the PS4 version of Horizon Forbidden West on the PS5 via backward compatibility, but not the other way around.

Buying both versions begins with the $80 Digital Deluxe version. It comes with both PS4 and PS5 games, as well as a bunch of digital goodies like a downloadable soundtrack and digital art book. I imagine this means that there might be a $20 upgrade from PS4 to PS5 somewhere down the line, but nothing’s been announced yet. (Update 09/02/2021 1:27 p.m. ET: I’ve been reminded that Sony specifically promised such upgrades. Hmm.)

Now we get fancy. The $200 Collector’s Edition is the version you want if you need a giant mammoth statue. It comes packed with a steelbook case, the mini art book, and the aforementioned mammoth, plus a slew of digital goodies. The Collector’s Edition comes with vouchers for both PS4 and PS5 versions of the game, but no discs. Why is there a steelbook case if there is no disc? Who knows?

Finally we have the most expensive version of them all, the $260 Regalia Edition. It comes with not just a mammoth statue, but a mammoth statue that’s different from the other mammoth statue. There are also a couple of art cards, Sunwing and Clawstrider machine physical strike pieces, a canvas map, and a replica Focus (Aloy’s ear thing) with stand. The Regalia Edition of Horizon Forbidden West also includes digital downloads for both the PS4 and PS5, plus a steelbook for the disc that does not come with it.

Let’s review. To get a game disc you have to choose PS4 or PS5. If you want both versions digitally you have to either get the Digital Deluxe Edition or one of the two super-expensive versions. If you want both versions on disc, you’ll have to buy two copies. And if you absolutely need both versions of the robot mammoth statue, may God have mercy on your soul.