Horizon Forbidden West is the sequel to Horizon Zero Dawn and it's now available for preorder. This comes ahead of the game's newly announced release date of February 18th 2022 for PS4 or PS5. You can't cross-gen upgrade if you plan to play the game on PS4 first, and then on PS5 later.
You will have to either buy the higher-priced versions of the game, which offer digital copies for the PS4 or PS5, or you can start with the PS4 copy and then purchase a new PS5 copy at the full price. Sony has not yet announced plans to offer an upgrade, although you can transfer your save data between the PS4 and PS5 versions.
You can get Horizon Forbidden West on both PS4 and PS5 digitally in one package by purchasing the $79.99 Digital Deluxe Edition, $199.99 Collectors Edition or the $259.99 Regalla Edition. The Standard Edition, however, will be $59.99 for PS4 and $69.99 for PS5. A Special Edition for PS4 is also available at $69.99. It includes a digital soundtrack and a mini book of art. There is also a PS5 version.
Cross-gen upgrades are not an option
Sony has been open to offering upgrade paths for some of its titles. Players can upgrade from their PS4 to the PS5 Ghost of Tsushima Directors Cut, and from Death Stranding on the PS4 to Death Stranding: Directors Cut. Sony also offers free patches to optimize PS4 games for PS5, just like it did last week for God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, and Death Stranding: Directors Cut. Horizon Forbidden West does not offer cross-gen upgrades. Sony is asking for $20 more upfront to allow you to play the game on a system that you may not have.
For those who love collecting physical copies of games you'll be happy to know that Horizon Forbidden Wests Collectors Editions and Regalla Editions will not include game discs. They will instead include a code to download Horizon Forbidden West for PS4 and PS5. The more expensive editions offer many other bonuses, such as impressive statues of an elephant-shaped machine. Sony's blog has all the details about each edition.
In May, Sony displayed some stunning footage of Horizon Forbidden West. It is possible that we will see more at the recently announced PlayStation showcase on September 9th. We'll be rounding up the most important announcements so keep checking back.