Original Horizon Zero Dawn is Outdoing the Remaster on PC

November 4, 2024

Key Takeaways

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered has fewer players on Steam than the original version of the game.
PC fans have reported issues with the remastered version, leading to lukewarm reviews.
The third and presumably final main Horizon game has not yet been formally announced.

The original version of Horizon Zero Dawn currently has more concurrent players on Steam than the newly-released remaster. Though their active player counts are close, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered is seemingly less popular among PC fans than the original version.

On October 31, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered officially became available for PC and PS5. This upgraded version brought the 2017 RPG up to the graphical fidelity of Horizon Forbidden West, featuring new animations as well as quality-of-life and accessibility features. That said, the remastered version has not been incredibly well-received, especially on PC, where Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered sits at Mixed reviews on Steam.

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The player numbers on PC currently reflect the lukewarm reception to the remaster. Since the time of its release, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered peaked at 2,548 players, with around 1,741 players at the time of this writing. Conversely, the original Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition had just under 2,000 concurrent players at press time, with a recent peak of 2,872. This means an average of 200-300 more players have been playing the original version, rather than paying $10 to upgrade to Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered.

Horizon Zero Dawn Steam Performance – Remastered Vs. Original

Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered
- 1,741 players at press time
- 2,538 player peak since October 31
Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition (Original)
- 1,938 players at press time
- 2,872 player peak since October 31

Of course, these numbers only include the PC version of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered. While it is possible the PS5 player counts could be similar, fans have reported several problems with the PC port, ranging from audio or graphical issues to full-blown crashes. Though the Horizon Forbidden West PC port was excellent, the first game’s Steam version suffered from similar issues before Guerrilla Games was able to stabilize the release, so some PC gamers may be waiting until it puts out a few more Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered stability updates before upgrading.

The fact that Dragon Age: The Veilguard was also released on October 31 did not do Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered any favors. The original Horizon Zero Dawn was released a week before The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Horizon Forbidden West came out just ahead of Elden Ring, making Dragon Age: The Veilguard the latest top-selling game to curse the Horizon franchise release dates.

The third and presumably final main Horizon game has not been formally announced, but considering thousands of players are still playing the first entry in one form or another, fans are looking forward to the conclusion of Aloy’s trilogy. Hopefully, the Horizon sequel won’t be released ahead of another Game of the Year contender, and its inevitable PC port will be free of the issues from which Horizon Zero Dawn and its remaster have suffered.

Experience the critically acclaimed Horizon Zero Dawn™ with stunning new visuals and upgraded features. In a far future where colossal machines roam the Earth, pockets of humanity survive in unique tribes among the lush, overgrown ruins of our long-lost civilization.

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