Sony is removing Horizon: Forbidden West from the PlayStation Plus Games Catalog soon despite it wholly owning the game itself.
The PlayStation 5 now shows Horizon: Forbidden West as one of 12 "Last Chance to Play" titles on its PlayStation Plus Games Catalog page, alongside other heavy hitters Marvel's Midnight Suns, Alien Isolation, NieR Replicant Ver. 1.22474487139, and Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2.
Also leaving soon, on an unannounced date, is Spiritfarer, Cloudpunk, and five Star Ocean games: The Divine Force, Integrity and Faithlessness, Till the End of Time, The Last Hope, and First Departure R.
The removal of Horizon: Forbidden West is particularly surprising, however. It's normal for games to come and go from subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, as the likes of Sony and Microsoft usually pay a fee to host the game for a certain amount of time.
But Sony owns Horizon: Forbidden West itself, as the game is from first-party studio Guerrilla Games. It's therefore unusual that it would remove the game from the PlayStation Plus Games Catalog as it seemingly costs the studio nothing to include it.
Horizon: Forbidden West hit the service in February 21, 2023, one year after it launched and exactly 18 months ago tomorrow, August 21, 2024.
Sony did the same thing with the first game in the franchise, Horizon: Zero Dawn in May 2024, however. This happened amid rumors it planned on remastering the 2017 PlayStation 4 game, though no official word on this has emerged since.
It would fit with Sony's recent trend though, as its lineup has been lacking major PS5 exclusives and is instead filled with remasters and remakes such as The Last of Us Part 1, The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, and Until Dawn.
If Sony is planning to release a remastered version of Horizon: Zero Dawn, it would therefore make sense to remove both it and its sequel from the PlayStation Plus Games Catalog so fans would be inclined to purchase the full versions of both games instead of essentially renting them through the subscription service.
In our 9/10 review, IGN said: "A triumphant combination of enthralling combat, top-tier creature and character design, and a captivating open world, Horizon Forbidden West is an absolute blast and fantastic showcase for the power of the PS5."
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.
