Horizon Hunters Gathering Faces Criticism as PlayStation's Live-Service Strategy Comes Under Fire

Industry discussions suggest Horizon Hunters Gathering may struggle to justify its reported budget despite ongoing development and repeated internal revisions.

Sony’s live-service strategy is once again under scrutiny, as new details about Horizon Hunters Gathering, the suspected multiplayer spin-off set in the Horizon universe, present a somewhat murky picture of the project’s future. The game has undergone another round of internal tweaking based on recent feedback following closed playtests that apparently didn’t get players very excited.

The criticism is based on Sony’s apparent approach to live-service projects that receive bad reviews. Instead of forging ahead, the company is believed to be betting on more rounds of closed testing and tweaking to improve public perception before a launch.

But whether investing a lot of development time into a game that many fans never asked for in the first place would actually change people’s minds about it remains to be seen. The main problem is the size of the investment. Sources say Horizon Hunters Gathering is a major effort by Guerrilla Games (known for the Horizon series) that involves a large portion of the team.

But critics say the delays and extra work will only make it harder to turn a profit, especially if no one plays it even after it improves. Those involved with the latest closed playtests say reactions have been mixed at best. While some testers found the experience sufficient, there’s been little indication the game has sparked the kind of excitement expected of a major PlayStation live-service offering.

PlayStation's Live-Service Gamble May Have Misunderstood What Fans Actually Wanted.

Most of the criticism has been aimed at Sony’s general live-service approach under former PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan. There is a widespread idea that established single-player franchises might successfully make the shift to live-service experiences, and many see this as a costly miscalculation.

These ventures often frustrated gamers who only wanted more of the same sequels, rather than winning over the hearts of dedicated fans of established titles. The crisis is not only Horizon Hunters Gathering. Sony has previously canned The Last of Us Online, and there have been reports of a shelved God of War live-service project.

The struggles of Marathon have sparked speculation that Bungie’s name and the Destiny fanbase are not enough to guarantee the success of any multiplayer service game. Industry chatter suggests Guerrilla Games devs are still extremely keen to return to the studio’s main focus on single-player.

Some believe that several crew members would be ready to move on to Horizon 3 if Horizon Hunters Gathering were trimmed back or canceled. It has been fascinating to see how a single strategic assumption made at the executive level can affect years of development across multiple studios.

Multiple live-service projects have been canceled, others are in limbo, and many PlayStation fans are left wondering what Sony’s release schedule might have looked like if more resources were put into traditional single-player games. This game will release this year in July.