NCSoft’s Horizon MMO Could Launch Next Year – With Big Changes

According to Wccftech, NCSoft officially announced Horizon Steel Frontiers at G-Star 2025, revealing it’s an MMORPG collaboration with Guerrilla Games targeting PC and mobile. The game is set in the Deadlands region modeled after Arizona and New Mexico, where players cooperate against machines while competing for resources and fighting rival tribes. During NCSoft’s Q3 2025 earnings call, executives confirmed the game could launch in 2026 or early 2027 and boasted about receiving acclaim from early players who gave a round of applause after demonstrations. The development has progressed significantly internally, though NCSoft needs to discuss specifics with IP holder Guerrilla Games. Major gameplay changes include the addition of greatswords for proper melee combat with parries and counterattacks, plus new mechanics like using the Pullcaster to climb damaged machines and set traps.

The melee problem

Here’s the thing about adding greatswords to a Horizon game – the entire combat identity of this franchise has been built around ranged tactical combat against machines. Aloy’s spear was basically a last-resort weapon, and for good reason. You don’t want to get close to a Thunderjaw. So now we’re supposed to believe players will be parrying and counterattaking massive mechanical creatures? That feels like a fundamental shift that could alienate the core Horizon audience while not necessarily attracting the traditional MMO crowd who expect different combat systems entirely.

NCSoft’s MMO track record

Look, NCSoft knows MMOs – they’ve been doing this since Lineage in the late 90s. But their recent track record has been… mixed. Throne and Liberty had its own set of issues at launch, and adapting someone else’s IP is always risky. When you’re working with Guerrilla’s baby, there’s going to be creative tension about how far you can push changes to the core formula. And let’s be honest – how many cross-platform MMOs have actually delivered a great experience on both PC and mobile? It’s usually one platform that suffers.

The realistic timeline

So they’re talking 2026 or early 2027. Basically, which means 2027. Game development, especially for MMOs, almost always slips. Remember that this needs to work across PC and mobile, with all the balancing and technical challenges that brings. The fact they’re already getting positive internal feedback is encouraging, but early demos are always polished to perfection. The real test comes when thousands of players hit the servers simultaneously. I’d be shocked if we see this before late 2026 at the absolute earliest, and 2027 seems much more likely.

Why this matters

This could actually be huge for the MMO space if it works. We haven’t had a truly successful new western-style MMO in years, and the Horizon setting is perfect for the genre. But the pressure is immense – they need to satisfy existing Horizon fans while building an MMO that can survive for years. That balancing act is incredibly difficult, and we’ve seen plenty of licensed MMOs crash and burn. Still, if anyone has the experience and resources to pull this off, it’s NCSoft. Let’s just hope they don’t rush it to meet an artificial deadline.