Sony Just Gave PC Fans Bad News

Earlier this year, we got some pretty astounding news about Sony and one of its first-party exclusives. The company appeared to be backing away from its "PlayStation only" approach to game releases, allowing Horizon Zero Dawn to make its way to PC. Some saw this as a potential sign that Sony might go multiplatform to an extent, bringing PlayStation games to PC so wider audiences could enjoy them. Unfortunately, a recent interview with Hermen Hulst — the new Head of Worldwide Studios at Sony — poured a few thousand gallons of cold water on that idea.

That's not to say Horizon Zero Dawn isn't coming to PC; it actually is. But it seems Sony won't be making a habit of this — at least not right away.

"Yes, I can confirm that Horizon Zero Dawn is coming to PC this summer," Hulst told the PlayStation Blog yesterday. "There will be more information coming from Guerrilla, from the new studio directors [Michiel van der Leeuw, JB van Beek, and Angie Smets] pretty soon."

On that front, all the rumors we'd been hearing about a port of Guerrilla's title were right on the money. Horizon Zero Dawn will release on PC, which means those who've yet to immerse themselves in Aloy's world will get to do so on a non-PlayStation machine.

And now the bad news.

"And to maybe put a few minds at ease, releasing one first-party AAA title to PC doesn't necessarily mean that every game now will come to PC," Hulst continued. "In my mind, Horizon Zero Dawn was just a great fit in this particular instance. We don't have plans for day and date [PC releases], and we remain 100% committed to dedicated hardware."

So there you have it. Sony isn't going full Microsoft by making PC one of its key platforms. You'll still have to own a PlayStation to experience new exclusives on the day they're released. Horizon Zero Dawn, it appears, is making the jump because it's several years old at this point, and Sony has probably sold as many copies to PlayStation owners as it possibly can.

But we have to wonder where that leaves the other rumored PC ports we've been hearing about.

Right around the time the Horizon Zero Dawn rumors were flying around, we also heard rumblings that game creation engine Dreams could get a release on PC. This one would actually make tons of sense, as it would likely be much easier for artists to build assets they can share with others on PC. Dreams is out now on PlayStation 4, but if it does come to your Windows computer, when might that happen? Would Sony wait a couple of years like it did for Horizon Zero Dawn? Or would waiting a few months suffice?

And then there's the juggernaut: The Last of Us Part 2. Rumors were swirling that Naughty Dog's next epic adventure could make its way to PC, buoyed by an apparent job posting for someone who was familiar not just with AMD hardware, but Nvidia hardware, as well. The PlayStation 4 is built on AMD tech, and according to AMD itself, so is the PlayStation 5. This could point to yet another PlayStation exclusive being released on PC, though again, it's unclear whether Sony would wait a few months to make this happen or hold The Last of Us Part 2's PC port for a few years, as it did with Horizon Zero Dawn.

There are two major things we can take away from this Hermen Hurst interview. The first is that Sony is finally willing to admit that some people just don't play games on PlayStation, and there's a whole audience of gamers out there who might be willing to throw some money the company's way if PlayStation exclusives come to PC. Microsoft has long seen the Windows platform as an extension of Xbox, releasing first-party exclusives on PC the same day they come to console. Perhaps Sony recognizes there's some money to be made if it broadens its reach.

The second, though, is that Sony is not abandoning its usual approach wholesale. We will get Horizon Zero Dawn on PC later this year. We could potentially see Dreams and The Last of Us Part 2 on PC at some point. But if you want to play these games when they're released, you'll have to do so on a PlayStation. Sony knows its exclusives drive hardware sales, and it's not about to mess with that success.

As soon as we hear about a PC release date for Horizon Zero Dawn — or for any other PlayStation exclusives, for that matter — we'll let you know.