Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition has been revealed by Singapore's rating board
UPDATE: Coming to PC says reliable leaker.
UPDATE 13/9/23: Following the news this weekend that a "Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition" for PlayStation 5 had been sighted on Singapore's IMDA ratings board, extremely reliable Dealabs leaker billbil-kun has claimed this new version will also be heading to PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition is, according to the IMDA's now-removed listing, a bundle containing Horizon Forbidden West and its Burning Shores expansion. Billbil-kun says that while they've yet to hear news of a release date, its launch should be "imminent" - perhaps even within a month - based on data collected previously.
Horizon Forbidden West originally released in February 2022 for PlayStation 5 and PS4; an imminent PC launch would fit Sony's current strategy of leaving at least an 18-month gap before its first-party console exclusives make the jump to PC. Its most recent release on the platform was Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, which arrived this July.
ORIGINAL STORY 10/9/23: Singapore's rating board, the IMDA, has rated an unannounced version of Horizon Forbidden West.
"Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition" popped up on the IMDA's website, having been approved for a "M18" – that's a mature 18 – given its "sexual references". The bundle includes both the base game and its expansion, Burning Shores.
"Set on post-apocalyptic Earth, the protagonist, Aloy, travels to the west to discover the source of a mysterious signal and to find a way to restore Earth," the extended classification information explains (thanks, TryHard).
"The compilation is classified M18 for sexual references. Played from a third person perspective, the player controls Aloy to explore new lands. Along the way, she fights humans from enemy tribes, machines and alien monsters. Defeating these enemies drop items or crafting materials which she can use to upgrade or craft her own weapons."
It goes on to confirm that while Aloy starts with a basic bow and javelin, she later acquires more powerful bows, slingshots and launchers which can shoot various ammunition such as ropes, canisters and tripwires, with combat described as "frequent with a frenetic pace".
Whilst the blood of Aloy's enemies does not "stain" the environment, "blood puffs are seen" when she damages them.
It's the sexual references that gives the adventure its mature rating, though. For those yet to play you may want to look away now as the next bit contains story spoilers...
As the storyline "contains references to same sex relationships, where various characters mention their partners during conversations with the protagonist" and a scene where "two women affirm their romantic feelings for each other before embracing and kissing", this automatically gets a M18 rating as the board gives an 18 to any media with "depictions of same-sex kissing and hugging".
Did you know that The Horizon Forbidden West team considered cutting flying from the game, because it wasn't sure the PlayStation 4 hardware could support it?
Studio director Jan-Bart van Beek said Guerrilla faced technical challenges when developing the Zero Dawn sequel, as it was releasing across two generations of consoles.
"It was almost up until the last moment that we didn't know whether we could support the flying on PlayStation 4," the developer said. "We were like, 'Do we need to cut the whole feature of the game? That's going to make such a mess'."