The Forza Horizon series is one of the most consistent out there. Since the original Forza Horizon released on the Xbox 360 in 2012, each entry has given racing game fans expansive open worlds to explore, full of exciting events to conquer, and objects to destroy in the name of racking up combos. Forza Horizon 6 brings the established Forza Horizon formula to Japan, and unsurprisingly, it keeps the franchise’s hot streak going. Forza Horizon 6 doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it delivers yet another high-quality open world racing experience.
There may be some disappointed that Forza Horizon 6 doesn’t stray too far from the franchise’s tried-and-true formula, but I am of the belief that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Following an exciting and explosive introductory race typical of the series, Forza Horizon 6 lets players loose in its take on open world Japan, from the brightly-lit streets of Tokyo to the gorgeous countryside to perilous mountaintops. Forza Horizon 6‘s map is huge, but dense, and is absolutely overflowing with worthwhile things to do. There’s something fun to do around nearly every corner.
Forza Horizon 6 is Full of Worthwhile Content
Most Forza Horizon 6 players will likely busy themselves with the Horizon Festival events that section off chunks of the map for more traditional racing contests, and all of these are plenty of fun to do, but there are also jumps, speed traps, and drifting challenges to complete. Completing these lower-tier events earns points that unlock new wristbands, in turn giving players access to even more events and challenges. Beating enough of these will also give players access to the over-the-top Showcase events, which even include a race against a Gundman-style mech this time around.
Hours will fly by as you make your way through Forza Horizon 6‘s core content, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg. When players aren’t actively competing in Horizon Festival events, they will be looking for hidden treasure cars and barn finds, racing in multiplayer competitions, and joining Stunt Parties that challenge players to work together to rack up as many points as possible. There is so much to do in the game that it can almost be overwhelming at times, but it’s all worth it thanks to the steady stream of rewards.
Forza Horizon 6 has over 600 cars to collect (including loyalty reward vehicles you get from playing previous entries), with players able to purchase them outright using the in-game currency or win them from wheelspins and hitting certain thresholds in the various challenges. There’s also a ton of customization options to unlock, from specialized horns (including the Windows XP shutdown sound) to avatar clothing.
Most multiplayer features were not properly testable during the review period, but Forza Horizon 6 should offer an experience similar to past games, with returning fan-favorite modes like the battle royale-style Eliminator among the various co-op and PvP options available.
The rewards are the carrot on a stick that make it especially difficult to put Forza Horizon 6 down, but even if they weren’t a factor, the simple joy of driving around open world Japan, pulling off ridiculously high-point combos, and smashing into every breakable object in sight is enough to keep you glued to the controller for hours on end. Even after I had my fill of all the organized racing events, I still found myself booting up the game to drive around and take in the sights.
As the first game in the series to be built from the ground-up specifically with Xbox Series X/S hardware in mind, Forza Horizon 6 is nothing short of stunning. From little things like realistic puddle reflections to seeing the sun rise behind a snowy mountain to the game’s impressive suite of weather effects, Forza Horizon 6 is one of the best-looking racing games on the market. The cars look incredible, the world looks amazing, and even at the fastest speeds and maximum destruction, it never misses a beat. I experienced zero performance hiccups, even when I blew through a full-blown forest, knocking down dozens of trees in seconds at nearly 200 mph. Like its predecessors, Forza Horizon 6 is a technical marvel.
Forza Horizon 6 Isn’t Quite Perfect
That doesn’t mean it’s completely free of any rough edges, though. Forza Horizon 6 does have a few notable glitches that I experienced during my time with the game, like one issue where the Skill Song logo wouldn’t leave the screen even well after it was done, blocking important information and forcing a reset. And then there were a couple of story missions where I successfully completed the objectives, and the game acknowledged it and gave me credit, but still, the missions didn’t properly complete. This annoying issue popped up multiple times in my quest to finish Forza Horizon 6‘s story missions, but thankfully, the handy rewind feature kept it from being too frustrating.
Forza Horizon 6‘s story missions are the weak point of the package overall. Beyond the completion glitches, Forza Horizon 6‘s story missions are boring compared to the Horizon Festival content. They consist of no-stakes driving missions where players have to do things like snap a photo of a certain car at a specific location or follow their friends around to take in the sights. The characters are all generic with zero depth, and the stories themselves are rarely ever particularly interesting. It’s the only content in the game that feels like busywork to check things off a list as opposed to something that you actually want to do because it’s fun.
Forza Horizon 6 also lacks the one big defining new feature that helps it stand apart from its predecessors, so some longtime fans of the series might feel like the game is “more of the same.” As I said earlier, I am of the belief that a successful formula doesn’t need much tinkering, but it is still a little disappointing that there isn’t one big new feature to take Forza Horizon 6 to the next level. The new Horizon Rush events are obstacle courses that are fun enough but don’t feel all that different from standard racing events, and things like Estate customization, while appreciated, won’t hold most players’ attention for all that long.
Forza Horizon 6 is more of the same, but when the “same” is some of the best open-world racing ever produced, it’s hard to be mad about it. Racing game fans will easily lose dozens if not hundreds of hours exploring Forza Horizon 6‘s open world Japan and competing in its many campaign and multiplayer events, and while what’s here at launch makes the game worth the price of admission by itself, chances are there will be some fantastic post-launch support that makes the game even better. Simply put, Forza Horizon 6 is a safe investment for racing game enthusiasts and even those who typically don’t vibe with the genre.
- Released
-
May 19, 2026
- ESRB
-
Everyone / Mild Lyrics, Users Interact, In-Game Purchases
- Publisher(s)
-
Xbox Game Studios
- Beautiful, massive open world that’s a joy to explore
- Full of challenging and exciting racing events and other challenges
- A ton of worthwhile content to unlock
- Story content is disappointing compared to the rest of the package
Forza Horizon 6 launches May 19 for PC and Xbox Series X/S. A PlayStation 5 version is also in development. Game Rant was provided with an Xbox Series X/S code for this review.
