Horizon Forbidden West gets three fancy new graphics options on PS5

Tilda and Aloy in Horizon Forbidden West
(Image credit: PlayStation)

Horizon Forbidden West has a brand new patch introducing new PS5 features like variable refresh rates and a "Balanced" graphics mode.

Just the new patch for Guerrilla's sequel launched just earlier today on July 6. Headlining the new update for Horizon Forbidden West is undoubtedly the launch of a variable refresh rate (VRR) graphics mode, which enables dynamic resolution scaling on 60Hz-enabled TVs.

Next, there's the launch of a high refresh rate (HFR) mode. Unlike the VRR mode, the HFR actually boosts the frame rate of Horizon Forbidden West a considerable amount on enabled TVs, meaning you could potentially be playing Aloy's latest adventure at 120Hz on capable TVs.

There's also a "Balanced" graphics mode for Horizon Forbidden West in the new patch. This mode, unlike the other two modes, actually scales the frame rate of the sequel back from 60Hz, and instead levels things out at 40Hz, while presumably providing other graphical upsides to the scaled-down FPS (which Guerrilla doesn't mention in the new Reddit post announcing the patch). 

Elsewhere throughout the new patch, there's a slate of fixes for Aloy's adventure on both PS4 and PS5 consoles. Just like other patches we've previously seen for Horizon Forbidden West, this one contains a wide swathe of bug fixes and crashes, specifically aimed at certain side and main quests throughout the huge game which couldn't be progressed due to a bug. 

With this new patch though, players shouldn't have any problem progressing quests like The Wings of the Ten, All That Remains, The Broken Sky, Shadow in the West, Night of Lights, and many other missions. 

Ahead of the Netflix adaptation of Horizon, fans are already casting their ideal choice for Aloy

Hirun Cryer

Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.