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Although Forza Horizon, for a long time, existed as the yin to Forza Motorsport’s yang, providing a fun, vibrant foil to the sim’s more regular, realistic leanings. However, as its contemporaries have declined and, in some cases, vanished entirely, Forza Horizon has quickly become the quintessential arcade racing franchise. It’s really in the name of the game’s developer, Playground Games, who continue to create incredible open-world sandboxes for gamers to race through, while giving a glimpse of the world out there.
We’ve been to Colorado, the south of France, our own sunburnt country, Australia, Great Britain, and Mexico in past iterations, and their pared-back worlds are always incredible microcosms of the culture and people they serve to represent. The newest iteration, Forza Horizon 6, takes place in a fictionalised Tokyo, complete with the standard, exaggerated style the franchise generally packs in. Not only is this Japan the franchise’s biggest open-world, but this Tokyo City is also five times larger than any main city in series history. The expected landmarks all feature prominently, from Tokyo Tower right through to Mount Fuji via the bustling streets of a quasi-‘Electric City’. More so than any Horizon game I’ve played, there’s a complexity and density to the city layout that extends unexpectedly into the more tight-knit rural areas, far beyond the city’s limits.
Although the preview build gave only a small taste of the lead-up to one of the game’s early wristband events, the formula is relatively unchanged in Forza Horizon 6. Qualifying for and, more importantly, enjoying success at the wristband events grants better cars and more challenging races as the player gradually works their way through the ranks to be welcomed into the Horizon Festival. If you’ve played one of the past games, it’s safe to say you’d know what to expect.
The qualifying events I was able to take part in covered a wide range of on and off-road disciplines. I got to speed through the purpose-built Shirakawa Circuit in a retro Nissan, spin wheels through mud and muck in a cross-country sprint through an Ito region wind farm, and see even more of Japan’s beautiful countryside and airfields in a point-to-point race that finishes up by the bay. Though it was a small taste, it was a succinct reminder that Playground can do this shit with their eyes closed—and I’m not even talking about how airtight the racing itself is. It’s how ably they reimagine these incredible countries, turning their well-worn roads—the same, everyday roads they use to get to school or work—into bitumen beacons of exploration and discovery.
As expected, the car you’re in is, quite often, as important as where you are. Events do a good job of filtering ideal vehicles into the mix; what you do in free roam is up to you. Heavier mud runners are better suited to rural fields, as flighty sports cars would struggle to gain traction; every car is distinct and enormously customisable. With the freedom to swap cars on the fly, driving to the conditions is incredibly simple. Although I’m a sucker for centimetre-perfect, technical racing through Tokyo’s narrow back roads, there’s nothing quite like hitting a long stretch of seemingly endless highway and flexing the muscle of the 2013 Shelby Mustang GT500 you bought earlier.
Aside from the few events on offer, the game’s open world was effectively all there, free to roam and take in. Also found within this Japan are all of the usual bite-sized events you’d expect in a Horizon title, including speed traps, drift zones, and danger signs—all of which speak to the inherent thrill of stunt racing. I also love how ingrained in the game’s world events, like time attack and drag races, they are. Unlike marquee races, which require a brief load-in, these events feel seamless and are entered either by roaring past the starting line or by getting into position at the starting line. As someone who has, for decades, waited for someone to make drag races great again, because no one dared swim in Need for Speed: Underground’s wake, I can’t wait to change clutch and gearbox settings to manual and race for pink slips.
Aside from the events and sights, the world has a wealth of other collectibles, including destructible local mascots, which take the form of cultural cuisine staples like ramen, edamame, or tempura prawn, and bonus boards. It also has the hallmarks of a breathing world, such as the return of Drivatars, digital ghosts designed to mirror players on your friends’ list who can be challenged mid-cruise. Though I didn’t see anything similar to Mexico’s Barn Finds, there were still a bunch of aftermarket cars to find and spend your credits on within the map. The placement of them was always ideal, too. If there were drift gates nearby, you’d invariably find a ride suited to slewing, which proved to keep me on track, so to speak. As always, the game actively tracks your milestones and compares them against your friends, within the game’s world, from roads driven on (of which there are almost 700) to regions discovered. Despite only having a few key events to pick from, wanderlust quickly took over, meaning I never felt bored driving through this boiled down version of Japan.
So useful was the game’s automated navigation assistant, A.N.N.A, which is a veritable multitool designed to aid the adventurous and indecisive alike. With it, you’re able to “exit” your car to fly a drone around, which is a wonderful way to stop and see the world; however, I did find its handling somewhat unintuitive and its range kind of limited and underwhelming. There’s also an auto-drive function, which allows you to sit back and relax while the game takes the wheel, using your waypoint as a guide. There’s also an extremely handy “what’s next?” prompt that’ll give you a few options to pick from in an attempt to push through decision paralysis and throw a few event ideas at you. There was also a “world-builder” option, although it was greyed out for the preview, so it’s unclear whether this might tie into The Estate feature.
The only strange thing about this preview opportunity is that I don’t feel it served to showcase all of the game’s new features. Although we were able to customise the garage at Mei’s place, I would have loved a glimpse at The Estate. I don’t tend to prefer city or base building in games; however, with it being a pushed feature of this new game, I would have liked to get a sense of how ingrained in the experience it is. In fact, only The Estate and Legend Island were gated within the preview build.
As with past Forza Horizon titles, seasons will pass within the game’s Japan; however, the preview itself was locked to Spring. Of course, for those who’ve been, it’s a picturesque time of year, and Playground’s version of it is pretty as a picture. The city itself might be a little more overwhelming, but it stands tall as a testament to engineering and design, whereas the surrounding rural forests and farmlands are nature’s marvel. From the second I tore down a dog-legged mountain pass, forcing into the breeze the fallen cherry blossom petals carpeting the road, it was clear that Playground has delivered yet another world designed with a lot of care.
Pivotal to the experience are the cars themselves, and there’s equally as much care poured into rendering them in all of their glory. Taking a beat and giving your ever-expanding garage is the best way to appreciate every small detail that Playground has packed in. Featured in the closing stretch of the game’s prologue, which, as it always does, feels like a comprehensive summation of the experience at large, the game’s feature car, Toyota’s 2025 GR GT Prototype, feels like an apt choice to represent the game in the grand scheme of things. It’s sleek, polished, and sought after, which is rather fitting.
Unfortunately, despite never once feeling sluggish or laboured, the preview build was locked to the game’s 30fps fidelity mode. It, of course, looked irresistible, but I would have preferred to get a sense of how the game feels when performance is the focus. I’m not concerned, the series has always been incredibly optimised.
From what I’ve been able to experience, Forza Horizon 6, much like each game in the franchise that precedes it, seemingly achieves exactly what it sets out to do. It’s clearly a big celebration of car culture; in fact, it’s a rev head’s dream. But it’s also yet another beautiful encapsulation of a country outside of our own that we’re able to drink up from the comfort of our living rooms. As someone who perhaps didn’t get to see a lot of Japan on a recent whirlwind trip, I feel almost fortunate to be able to visit again through Playground’s latest entry in its car racing phenomenon.