PlayStation’s “Horizon curse” seems to be real as another title faces bad timing and low player numbers for Zero Dawn Remaster. The latest work by Guerrilla Games and Nixxes drew only 2,000 players during a crowded month for game releases.

Release dates aren’t left to chance in the gaming world. In such a competitive market, launching on the right day can be the difference between success and failure. PlayStation may have repeated the same mistake for the third time, with the remaster of Horizon Zero Dawn facing what fans call the “Horizon curse.” Each installment of the series has coincided with the launch of blockbuster games that steal the spotlight.

The roots of this “Horizon curse” go back to the franchise’s beginnings. While the first installment, Horizon Zero Dawn, became the second best-selling game on PlayStation 4 after Uncharted 4, it was released alongside The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which captured players’ attention. In 2022, PlayStation repeated this poor timing by releasing Horizon Forbidden West just a week before Elden Ring, which dominated the gaming landscape.

Now, with the release of Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered on October 31, the “curse” appears to have returned, with the launch falling on the same week as Dragon Age: The Veilguard and the Monster Hunter Wilds beta. While the latter’s timing couldn’t have been predicted, competition from BioWare’s latest game and one of the busiest Octobers for new releases have further limited the game’s market.

Data from SteamDB reveals that Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered peaked at around 2,000 concurrent players at launch. By comparison, Dragon Age: The Veilguard hit a peak of 70,000 players, setting a record for BioWare, while the Monster Hunter Wilds beta reached half a million in just a few hours.

Titanfall’s Struggle Against Unfortunate Timing

While the situation may look bleak for Horizon, it’s worth noting that the franchise has managed respectable sales despite previous challenges. However, if the series continues to face this unfortunate trend, it could destabilize its future. This pattern of poor timing also impacted the Titanfall series, which had to compete with Dark Souls II, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes, and Diablo III: Reaper of Souls in the same month. Titanfall 2 faced similar hurdles with Battlefield 1, Gears of War 4, and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, leading to the series’ decline.

Source: 3djuegos