Put simply, there's nothing on PlayStation 5 quite like Forza Horizon 5.
The Crew Motorfest? It's close. Embracing the philosophy of 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em', its fully-fledged festival approach makes Motorfest more akin to the Forza Horizon series than its predecessors.
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown? Unfortunately, no. While the Forza Horizon series owes a nod to the trendsetting MMO racing of the original Test Drive Unlimited, Solar Crown ventured too far into always-online territory without a dedicated solo mode. In contrast, the Horizon series has offered seamless switching between offline and online play since Forza Horizon 2 in 2014!
Need for Speed Unbound? It boasts an impressive customization suite that outshines Horizon in some aspects, but its focus on high-speed pursuits sets it apart from being a direct competitor.
No, the undisputed champion of modern open-world racing is Forza Horizon 5 – and it's now available on PlayStation 5 for the first time. Its expansive and stunning Mexico map, delightfully drift-friendly vehicle dynamics, and a massive garage of over 900 cars – including cult favorites not found in other racing games – offer the complete package. PlayStation users are diving into this experience, many for the very first time.
The reaction has been thrilling to watch.
This influx of new players is something the team at Playground Games has eagerly anticipated.
"Yeah, I'm super excited," says Playground Games art director Don Arceta. "Brand new people; for many, this will probably be their first Forza Horizon game. It's super exciting to think about that and reflect on our own first Horizon experiences."
Arceta is particularly eager to see the creations PlayStation 5 players will make using Forza Horizon 5's robust Event Lab customization tools.
"You’ll actually get some pretty good Halo content too on the PlayStation, with the event lab props!" he adds. "We have over 800 props now in the Event Lab, and the creativity of the community is mind-blowing. I'm super excited to see what PlayStation 5 users will build."
The PlayStation 5 port itself is technically impeccable, matching the quality of its Xbox and PC counterparts – a testament to the hard work involved, given the game's size and the fact that the engine had never been used on PlayStation before."As you can imagine, because the series has been based around the Xbox environment and architecture, there's a lot of code and engineering that's worked with that," explains Arceta. "Bringing it to the PS5 was no small undertaking. It was quite a huge task."
"The PlayStation 5 version was developed by Panic Button, in collaboration with Turn 10 and ourselves, but Panic Button did an amazing job. So you get that amazing, quality experience that you get on Xbox and PC – now on PlayStation too," he praises.
As a car enthusiast, I've always viewed the Forza series as the ultimate collection of Hot Wheels. No other racing series offers such a diverse range of cars, from the ones I want to those I didn't know I wanted. The idea of a new wave of players discovering their favorite cars in Forza Horizon 5 is incredibly exciting.
For Playground Games lead game designer David Orton, the sheer breadth of Forza Horizon 5 is what he believes will impress newcomers.
"The breadth of Horizon is quite staggering," says Orton. "Players dive in and find what they really enjoy, but with so much freedom, that can be anything they want."
"Horizon is the space where really everyone is welcome, and there's something in it for everyone," he continues. "We pride ourselves on giving players the freedom to do whatever they want, and the game will reward them accordingly. I'm really looking forward to players discovering the breadth of content. Whether you're into road racing, Rivals, track racing, photography, or creating content with Event Lab, Horizon caters to all. The realization that this is more than just a racing game is what excites me."
"For me, a victory would be hearing players say, 'I can't believe I've never played this game before.' That surprise," says Arceta. "Once they're surprised, they're engaged – and they want to learn more. That's what I'm looking for. The delight from players, their surprise, and their stories."Orton agrees, adding, "Players who've never tried Horizon before – whether due to platform differences or lack of time – to jump into this world and realize it's a warm, welcoming place full of fun, and finding a home at Horizon."
"Players who've never played before realizing, 'Oh my goodness, how have I never played this game before? This is incredible.' That's a win for us. We're targeting a cohort of players who may have never played a Forza title before. There's an unknown to how people will react, but looking at the history of our titles, we're continually perfecting our craft. We're so excited to bring this to PlayStation and bring in a whole load of new players."
If there's any hobby more tribal than car culture, it's the loyalty to video game consoles. For racing game fans, however, one significant barrier has been broken down.
Let's hope it's not the last.
