You are the Superstar Driver and can do no wrong. There's always something to do nearby in sunny and sandy Mexico and that something almost always results in more XP, more credits, more cars, and more fun. Or just aimlessly explore, taking in the splendor of it all. Engage in one of the many mini driving challenges sprinkled across the map that test how well you can speed, drift, and jump across Mexico. Rake in skill points by driving in an exuberant manner. Hunt down and satisfyingly smash into XP boards.
Each Expedition mission feels like it was designed to show off a specific topographical segment of the map and indeed provides some of FH5's most visually epic moments but, like Grand Theft Auto, the game is equally if not more enjoyable just fooling and driving around sans agenda. New for Horizon 5 are what the game calls "Expeditions": special driving missions that unlock additional Horizon Festival outposts, safe areas where you can buy new cars, customize acquired ones, and just chill out and catch your breath. Showcases, a small handful of undoubtedly Top Gear-inspired events in which you race a provided vehicle of note against a non-car method of transportation, also make a return and remain dopamine-releasing cool. These include Horizon mainstays such as garden-variety sanctioned road races, off-road dirt racing, very off-road cross-country scrimmages, nighttime and less-sanctioned street races, and drag racing. This time around, we're in Mexico.Ī healthy array of event types, side-mission-esque tasks, and passive driving challenges make sure there's always something to do and that you're always leveling up. Past entries have seen the in-game Horizon Festival's proverbial and literal traveling tents set up in Colorado, southern Europe, Australia, and the UK.
Like a globe-trotting series of action movies, each Forza Horizon game takes place in a different part of the world. A new-gen edition of the more serious and circuit-based Forza Motorsport is forthcoming but, for now, FH5 is Xbox's flagship racing game. This fifth entry happens to be the first new Forza title- Horizon or Motorsport-since 2018, and marks the first one to debut on the new generation of Xbox Series X and Series S consoles. What Is Forza Horizon? What Do You Do In It?įor the people in the back, Forza Horizon is the open-world spinoff of Xbox's Forza Motorsport racing video game franchise. Quick take: The "best arcade racing game of all time" is back and better than ever.
Base price (as tested): $59.99 or $9.99 per month with Xbox Game Pass ($99.99).It's a hell of a way to start, but the over-the-top fun doesn't stop there.
Within the first few minutes of gameplay, you will have driven a Ford Bronco down an active volcano after dropping out of an airplane and raced a Mercedes-AMG One hypercar against said airplane. It's also a prime example of what this game, at its core, is all about: taking a lifestyle that most of us could only dream of and putting it on the screen in glorious 4K.Īnd it accomplishes that mission spectacularly. It's definitely one of Horizon 5's quietest moments but this, ladies and gents, is how you do millennial fantasy fulfillment-let us own both a car and a house. In this instance, the camera slowly pans towards La Casa Solariega, a sprawling manor property with a water feature in the driveway and six guest rooms, as a bright orange Lamborghini Huracán Performante- my Lamborghini Huracán Performante-nonchalantly pulls in towards the front door. "Welcome home," the on-screen pop-up reads every time I check into one of the multiple estates I've purchased within Forza Horizon 5's digital interpretation of Mexico.