Guerrilla Dev Reveals Why Killzone Team Moved to Horizon

Guerrilla Games has confirmed its decision to move away from the Killzone franchise, opting to focus on the Horizon series. Long-time art director Roy Postma stated that the development team felt "done" with Killzone after releasing Killzone Shadow Fall in 2013. Instead, they wanted to explore new themes and create more relatable stories, which they believe resonate with a wider audience. Postma emphasized that the shift from dark futuristic shooters to the open-world adventures of Aloy represents a refreshing change for the studio. While some fans still yearn for a return to Killzone, Guerrilla’s commitment to Horizon suggests the studio is content with its current path amid a changing gaming landscape.

While Guerrilla Games has expressed that they are currently focused on the Horizon series, the future of the Killzone franchise remains uncertain. The studio might consider revisiting it if there is enough demand from the community and if it aligns with their creative vision, but for now, they seem committed to exploring new horizons.

Killzone is a first-person shooter series that debuted in 2004 and was developed by Guerrilla Games, a subsidiary of Sony Interactive Entertainment. The franchise was known for its intense multiplayer and cinematic single-player campaigns, set in a dystopian future. The last significant entry, Killzone Shadow Fall, served as a launch title for the PlayStation 4, but subsequent releases did not materialize, leading the studio to pivot towards creating the critically acclaimed Horizon series, which blends action-adventure with role-playing elements and introduces an expansive post-apocalyptic world inhabited by robotic creatures.