Horizon Zero Dawn is ‘radically different’ to Killzone

Developer Guerrilla Games has spoken of its enthusiasm about moving away from the Killzone franchise after more than a decade.

"It’s really exciting," studio manager Hermen Hulst told Game Informer, as reported by GameSpot. "It is fantastic when you’ve worked on a franchise for more than a decade – actually, in my case, it’s been almost 15 years – to do something that’s so radically different and at the same time kind of stands on the shoulders of what we made before.

"We really love making fluid, awesome combat, and we’re trying to do that again. We’re really into making fantastic science-fiction worlds, and we’re doing that again. There are a ton of similarities, but I think more importantly this is really fresh."

Hulst added that while the Killzone series has a gritty” beauty, Horizon Zero Dawn has a more majestic’ beauty and a world players will want to exist within rather than escape from.

The Killzone series debuted on PS2 way back in 2004. It was haunted from the off by comparison to the then genre-leading Halo. Microsoft’s series was known for its advanced AI, which is certainly not something Killzone was able to boast, although it did have its own strengths – such as the way the weight and heft of the guns was conveyed.

Killzone 2 followed on PS3 five years later and is arguably the best instalment in the series, further developing the brand’s trademark chunky weapons feel. In 2011 Killzone arrived, refining the game’s control and later adding PlayStation Move support.

Killzone Shadow Fall debuted alongside PS4 in November 2013, but did not review especially strongly.

Horizon Zero Dawn was at one stage due out this year but was in the summer pushed back to 2017. It will be one of the titles that offers extra graphical clout on PS4 Pro.