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Sony Announces Horizon Steel Frontiers: A New Mobile MMO in the Horizon Universe.
Sony is expanding its renowned Horizon game series with a fresh addition called Horizon Steel Frontiers. This upcoming MMO game is jointly developed with the Korean video game giant NCSoft and will bring the Horizon experience to mobile devices and PC. Unlike previous titles in the series that focused on single-player storytelling, this game introduces a massively multiplayer online role-playing format, tailored specifically for mobile play and cross-platform interaction.
We recognize this move as a major step for Sony, marking their entrance into a genre that encourages players to connect and compete in a shared world, all centered around the iconic Horizon universe’s signature mechanical beasts. Horizon Steel Frontiers promises to carry over the series’ core theme of machine hunting but introduces large-scale player cooperation and competition.
Read more on our article of, PS5 Pro Review: Is Sony’s $700 Turbo Console Worth the Hype?, published on August 24 2025, SquaredTech.
Core Gameplay: Hunting Giant Machines in a Persistent MMO World
The heart of Horizon Steel Frontiers is its focus on battling giant machines, which has been the hallmark of the Horizon franchise since its inception. Jan-Bart van Beek, the studio director at Guerilla Games (a PlayStation subsidiary), explains that the game invites players to become machine hunters in a new region called the Deathlands, inspired by real-world locations like Arizona and New Mexico.
Players will operate in a vast frontier populated by thousands of other hunters, sometimes collaborating to take down enormous mechanical foes and other times competing with rival tribes for bounty and resources. This dynamic setup encourages both cooperative gameplay and competitive challenges, creating engaging moments that evolve naturally rather than being scripted.
Furthermore, Horizon Steel Frontiers introduces innovative gameplay elements. For instance, players can pick up weapons dropped by fallen machines and carry them on mounts to use strategically in future battles. This mechanic adds an extra layer of strategy to encounters and differentiates the MMO experience from previous games in the series.
The MMO will be free-to-play, expanding accessibility and attracting a broad player base across PC, iOS, and Android devices. This cross-platform approach allows gamers to jump into the action anytime, anywhere, fostering a larger and more connected Horizon community.
New Features: Custom Characters and Expansive Player Interaction
Unlike the original Horizon games, where players followed the journey of Aloy, Horizon Steel Frontiers offers a fresh approach by enabling full character customization. Players can create their own hunters, tailoring appearance and possibly skills to suit their preferred play style. This change positions the game as a more personalized MMORPG experience.
Executive producer Sung-Gu Lee highlights the excitement of translating Horizon’s core thrill—fighting colossal machines—into the MMO format. The intention is to replicate and expand the exhilaration of these battles by introducing new mechanics specific to multiplayer environments.
Early footage from the announcement video reveals lush natural landscapes familiar to Horizon fans, interspersed with high-tech, metallic structures. The graphics mix cinematic quality with pre-alpha gameplay, offering a glimpse of ambitious game design that tries to balance impressive visuals and smooth gameplay on mobile hardware.
Sony and NCSoft recently showcased this material publicly, including a revealing gameplay trailer on the Horizon Steel Frontiers YouTube channel. Both companies, while not specifying an exact release date, have confirmed they are aiming to launch the game as soon as development allows. This openness signals their commitment to delivering a polished experience without rushing to market.
SquaredTech sees Horizon Steel Frontiers as a significant expansion of the Horizon franchise that introduces ambitious multiplayer functionality while maintaining the franchise’s signature elements. The collaboration between Sony and NCSoft could set a new benchmark for mobile MMORPGs by combining a beloved narrative world with expansive player-driven interactions.
Will this new Horizon MMO capture the same magic that made previous games popular? The answer seems promising, given the strong team behind the project and the thoughtful integration of multiplayer game dynamics.
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