Xbox Game Pass subscribers can now preload Forza Horizon 6. The open-world racing game went up for preload super early, presumably because it has one of the largest install sizes of any Xbox Game Pass title released to date.
With an estimated 40 million lifetime sales as of late 2025, the Forza Horizon franchise is among the best-selling racing series of all time. Its sixth mainline installment is thus easily the biggest first-party release that Xbox has in store for May 2026.
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Forza Horizon 6 Preload Goes Live 18 Days Early
The Forza Horizon 6 preload went live on May 1, allowing both PC and console players to download (most of) the game’s files early. An 18-day gap between the start of preloads and launch is about as long as such periods tend to get. Playground Games’ reasoning for the super early start does not appear to be much of a mystery, considering Forza Horizon 6 has an absolutely massive size, requiring 156 GB of storage space on PC and 144 GB on the Xbox Series X and Series S. Based on the current listings, the PC version of the game has no meaningful size difference between storefronts, with the same storage requirement listed on both Steam and the Microsoft Store.
Xbox Game Pass users can preload the upcoming title the same as anyone who pre-ordered Forza Horizon 6. As with other day-one releases, the open-world racing game will be available only through Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass, at least initially. When Microsoft launched the Standard tier of the service, now called Xbox Game Pass Premium, in September 2024, the company committed to bringing its new first-party games to the tier within 12 months of their original release. Based on that pledge, Forza Horizon 6 is likely to reach Xbox Game Pass Premium between November 2026 and May 2027. Since Premium-tier subscribers won’t be able to play it in the immediate future, they also cannot preload it.
All Currently Confirmed Xbox Game Pass Games for May 2026
|
Date |
Game |
Game Pass Tier(s) |
Platform(s) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
May 5 |
Final Fantasy 5 |
Ultimate, PC, Premium |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
|
|
May 12 |
Call of the Elder Gods |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
|
May 14 |
Subnautica 2 |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Game preview; day-one release. |
|
May 19 |
Forza Horizon 6 |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
|
May 21 |
Beastro |
Ultimate |
Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
|
May 27 |
Echo Generation 2 |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
|
May 28 |
Crashout Crew |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
|
TBA |
RV There Yet? |
Ultimate, PC |
Cloud, PC, Series X/S |
Day-one release. |
Forza Horizon 6 is one of nine titles already confirmed for Xbox Game Pass in May 2026. It will be preceded by JRPG classic Final Fantasy 5, Lovecraftian adventure Call of the Elder Gods, and the early access version of underwater survival game Subnautica 2, in that order.
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As things currently stand, even more titles will likely reach Xbox Game Pass before Forza Horizon 6 does. However, Microsoft is expected to reveal those additional releases as part of the Wave 1 lineup for May 2026, which it has yet to formalize. Based on the company’s usual cadence, that announcement is most likely to arrive on May 5, though it could also happen a day earlier.
- Released
-
May 19, 2026
- ESRB
-
Everyone / Mild Lyrics, Users Interact, In-Game Purchases
- Publisher(s)
-
Xbox Game Studios
Source: Nate [Korean]
