Horizon Zero Dawn PC - Guerrilla Games Promises Fixes
Studio Guerrilla Games published a statement on Horizon: Zero Dawn PC. We were assured that fixing the game is a top priority for the team. There were also rumors on the web that the PC edition was a so-called debug version, although they are untrue.
The release of Horizon: Zero Dawn turned out to be a slight disappointment. Mixed feedback of the console hit on Steam proves it all too clearly. All because of technical problems plagueing the game, which was confirmed by an analysis of Digital Foundry. The situation did not escape the attention of Guerrilla Games. The studio posted a message on Steam, in which it ensured that the team will keep an eye on the situation, and PC version patches are a priority. The users were encouraged to continue reporting problems with the Horizon: Zero Dawn PC, either through Steam, Reditt or the official website. On the latter there is now a section dedicated to bug reporting in the PC version of HZD.
The statement of Guerrilla Games does not go beyond the typical assurances of creators regarding errors in video games. However, in this case, the appearance of this announcement is to be welcomed with relief. Let's remember that the PC edition of Horizon: Zero Dawn is probably not the responsibility of Guerrilla Games itself, but a third-party studio. This is to be the Chinese team at Virtuous. Some of you may have hear the name, and not in nice context. The studio was responsible for the remasters of Heavy Rain and two Batman: Arkham games. In both cases, players have complained about problems with fluid animation, as well as some mistakes, including displaying the animation. Sound familiar?
Of course, such a general statement from Guerrilla Games couldn't satisfy the players who are hoping for a fix for the Steam release as soon as possible. The atmosphere was also heated up by an entry on Reddit. The author of the entry, who is involved in programming, claims that Horizon: Zero Dawn is a so-called debug version, used by developers to test the program. Of course, the users were outraged and considered it the final confirmation of how little effort was put into the port.
However, all this outrage proved a little premature. Frans "Otis_Inf" Bouma, a programmer with camera-related mods (e.g. for Star Wars: Jedi - Fallen Order before adding the addition of the official photo mode), spoke on the matter. The modder had a chance to check out the debug version of the game and confirmed that this is not was was released on PC. The code of Horizon: Zero Dawn PC does indeed contain lines related to debugging, but it's not surprising. You can find such fragments in games powered by Unreal Engine, for example.
He also disagreed that HZD's PC code was a "mess". In his opinion, everything is in order, and the errors result not so much from the mere presence or swapping of some lines as from overlooked indicators in some of the numerous code fragments added to the PC version. As a result, debug commands can run (or rather try running) during a normal game. Apparently, the author of the original entry agreed with it, as it was removed.
Such inquiries, although interesting, do not necessarily bother the regular players. What matters to them is that the game they bought should work, if not perfectly, then at least without major problems. So let's hope that Guerrilla Games will be able to deal with the problems of Horizon: Zero Dawn PC as soon as possible. For the time being, the creators can be glad that their game has conquered Steam anyway.
