Guerrilla Games' Horizon Multiplayer: Ambitious Player Count or Preemptive Measures?
Guerrilla Games' upcoming Horizon multiplayer game is generating considerable speculation, fueled by a recent job listing. The listing suggests the studio is building live-service systems capable of handling over one million concurrent players. This raises the question: is Guerrilla predicting phenomenal success, or proactively preventing a launch-day server meltdown like that experienced by Helldivers 2?
Since Horizon Forbidden West's release in 2022 and its Burning Shores DLC, Guerrilla has remained relatively quiet, focusing on collaborations like Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered and LEGO Horizon Adventures. However, evidence of a Horizon multiplayer game has been accumulating for years, with job listings dating back to 2018 hinting at its existence.
A recent job posting for a Senior Platform Engineer explicitly mentions "proven experience building and operating multi-service, 1M+ user globally distributed systems." This requirement strongly suggests Guerrilla anticipates a massive player base for its Horizon multiplayer title, potentially exceeding one million users. This implies a significant investment in robust live-service infrastructure.
Avoiding a Helldivers 2 Repeat?
Alternatively, this focus on scalability could be a precautionary measure. The overwhelming success of Helldivers 2 led to significant server issues at launch, impacting both new and returning players. Guerrilla may be learning from this experience, aiming to avoid similar problems for its Horizon multiplayer game. While the Horizon game's success is not guaranteed, preparing for a large player base is a prudent strategy.
The Horizon multiplayer game has been in development for several years. Assuming development is progressing smoothly, a 2025 release is plausible, particularly given a previous Guerrilla job listing suggesting a new Horizon game launch within the year. Considering a new mainline Horizon title is still some time away, this 2025 release could very well be the long-awaited multiplayer project.
