Horizon Forbidden West director attributes game delay to avoiding crunch at the studio

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A new interview with Mathijs De Jonge outlines Guerrilla’s work culture

Screenshots from Horizon Forbidden West running on PS5
(Image credit: Sony)

The director of Horizon Forbidden West has said that part of the reason for the game’s original delay was due to wanting to avoid crunch at the studio. 

In an interview with NU.nl, Horizon Forbidden West director Mathijs De Jonge talked about the reasoning behind the game’s delay last year, revealing that: "Forbidden West might have been released at the end of last year, but then we might have had to work overtime. [...] That also played a part in the decision to release the game now."

Elsewhere in the interview, the director revealed more about Guerrilla’s work culture, explaining: "We are very aware of the disadvantages of crunching, so we take that into account a lot in our planning. To give an example, at Christmas we said that there would be no work and that everyone could just have a two-week vacation. The company was closed, you couldn't even go there to work."

If you weren’t already well aware, Horizon Forbidden West is now out in the world and players are already showing their appreciation for the series online. In fact, one fan recently shared their Horizon Forbidden West custom PS5 controller which they achieved using a number of vinyl decals. 

Also kicking off today is PlayStation’s Plant and Play initiative which encourages players to do good whilst gaming. For each person who plays Horizon Forbidden West and collects the 'Reach the Daunt' trophy from now until March 25, 2022, PlayStation will plant a tree in collaboration with the Arbor Day Foundation.

If you just can’t get enough of Aloy and the machines, we also have some good news of the yellow brick variety. Announced just a couple of days ago, Lego is releasing a Horizon Forbidden West set which will include a Tallneck build and adorable Aloy Minifigure. The Lego set will cost $79.99 however won’t be released until May of this year. 

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Hope Bellingham
Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.  

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