New Horizon Forbidden West Patch Adds VRR, ‘Balanced’ Graphics Mode, And More

Guerrilla Games has been working hard to make Horizon Forbidden West even more enjoyable than when it launched. Updates have added transmog, fixed visual shimmering and improved graphics. Months later, the team is still adding new things to the game, which is exactly what today’s Patch 1.17 Does for the open-world RPG. 

Three new features are added to the game by Patch 1.17: Variable refresh rate (VRR) support, Refresh rate highSupport for (HFR), and a brand new “Balanced” graphics modeDisplays that are compatible with it will now be able to refresh at 40 Hz. 

The game only supports VRR on monitors or TVs that feature VRR and if yours does, you can expect improved “dynamic resolution scaling on 60Hz.” Both VRR and HFR target a refresh rate between 60Hz and 120Hz, so if your display supports it, you’ll see more frames than ever while playing Horizon Forbidden West, making it an even smoother gameplay experience. 

That’s not all Patch 1.17 does, though. Many fixes and improvements are included with the PlayStation 5’s new features.

Here’s the full rundown of the Patch 1.17 notes (there may be spoilers below): 

PROGRAMS AND FIXES

Performance and Stability

The Main Quests

• Fixed an issue in Main Quest “The Wings of the Ten” where the objective “Defeat Regalla” was not updating.
• Fixed an issue in Main Quest “The Wings of the Ten” where the “Sunwings” might be missing during the objective “Override a Sunwing”.
• Fixed an issue in Main Quest “All That Remains” where the cinematic with Tilda after the gallery might not start.
• Fixed an issue in Main Quest “The Broken Sky” where sometimes Dekka would be behind Hekarro’s throne during the objective “Talk to Dekka”.

Side Quests

• Fixed an issue in Side Quest “Shadow in the West” where the objective “Kill Vezreh and His Machine” was not updating.
• Fixed an issue in Side Quest “The Gate Of The Vanquished” where the objective “Defeat Yarra/Drakka” was not updating.

Activities around the World

• Fixed an issue in Errand “Nights of Lights” where collecting the “Gizmo” earlier would block progress.
• Fixed issues in Relic Ruin “The Stillsands” where the activity would be blocked.

Machines

• Fixed an issue where the “Dreadwing” would remain cloaked when knocked down.
• Fixed an issue where “Apex Clawstrider Hearts” would be placed in “Valuables to Sell” in the inventory

Waffen

• Fixed an issue where “Elemental Arrows” from fully upgraded bows would destroy canisters instead of detonating them.
• Fixed an issue where using “Elite Precision Arrows” with “Iriv’s Downfall” would not deal additional damage for enemies in “Brittle” state.

UI/UX

• Updated text for selecting “Ultra Hard” difficulty to clarify that the setting cannot be changed.
• When all skills are unlocked, and there is still time to earn skill points, the exclamation mark icon has been removed.

Andere

• Fixed an issue where “Desert Bird Wing” could not be looted from birds.
• Fixes an issue in which trophy “All Machine Types Scanned” wouldn’t unlock when scanning machines remaining on NG+
• Fixed an issue where changing the “Crouch/Slide” button to R1 would make it unusable.
• Numerous fixes and enhancements to subtitles and localization.

Waiting for Patch 1.17 is downloaded and installed, you can read more about the New Game+ release last month. Game Informer’s Horizon Forbidden West review to find out why it’s one of our favorite games of this year. Check out the latest details on Netflix’s Horizon TV show after that. 

Have you beaten Horizon Forbidden West yet? Are you the proud owner of the Platinum Trophy? Comment below to let us know!