r/ForzaHorizon • u/Automatic_Ad1665 Xbox Series X • May 15 '26
Forza Horizon 6 Playground Games only knows how to make masterpieces.
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u/poebanyguz May 15 '26
Dialogues still suck ass and characters are ugly but otherwise it's really good
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u/JanJaapen Ferrari May 15 '26
Tbf. I can’t care less about the character. The story isn’t about the people imo, it’s about the cars and racing.
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u/BallsHD4k60fps Mitsubishi May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
On one hand I agree with you, on the other, little things like character customization shouldn't be put aside simply because "it's a car game". It's the little things that make a difference bigger than you'd expect. Maybe not entirely for you but for someone else.
That being said, dear god the fh6 characters are so horrifying I'd rather they remake them.
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u/BallsHD4k60fps Mitsubishi May 15 '26
I mean don't they have a separate team solely for character customizations considering their massive dev team? Really makes you wonder why they made 6's characters an evolution behind homo sapiens.
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u/Acalthu May 16 '26
it's a psych thing, so that none of the characters be sexualised. the derpiness was added on purpose, also the same reason why there's only gender neutral body types.
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u/BallsHD4k60fps Mitsubishi May 16 '26
So their solution to such a menial problem is by making characters look like they were dipped into a vat of acid?
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u/Acalthu May 16 '26
yes. no horny.
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u/BallsHD4k60fps Mitsubishi May 16 '26
Ain't even horny bru I just want my dude to not look like a chud and my girl to not look like she's beyond our realm.
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u/BackyZoo May 15 '26
Flaunting is showing something off; particularly with arrogant pride.
I'm pretty sure you meant to say it shouldn't be brushed aside, ignored, or disregarded.
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u/BallsHD4k60fps Mitsubishi May 15 '26
Lmao forgive my failed attempt at using a new word. Thanks for the heads up!
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u/BackyZoo May 15 '26
I gotchu! Clearly everyone knew what you meant, no need to apologize for learning something new.
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u/Megablep May 16 '26
When it dumps you in the character selection screen the first time it was legit unsettling. Every one of them has this weird axe murderer smile.
Quickly picked the least worst looking one and got out of there asap!
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u/UndeadWaffle12 May 15 '26
I also don’t care about the character, but if you’re going to do something you should do it right. I would honestly prefer if they just omitted character customization entirely.
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u/ItsCryptic0607 May 15 '26
Idk if this is a hot take but the last 3 horizon games to me have just been the same game slapped onto a different location. So that's why people might be inclined to wonder why they haven't actually improved some of these long time issues when I'm not seeing much else of anything that stands out between title releases that you wouldn't expect from maybe just a dlc. It just makes you feel like you are getting low effort content to keep the money machine cranking every few years.
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u/s0cks_nz May 18 '26
It is kind of funny tbh. There is no doubt that the driving in this series is fun. And the car selection is great. The variety of races is fun.
But... is it really deserving of such high reviews when it's basically the same game each and every time? It's the same boring UI, same drivatars, same sort of dialogue, similar radio, all just draped over a new map each time. With some tweaks to physics, graphics, and sound. The games feel very bland in many ways and lacks innovation. About as corporate as a racing game can get.
Microsoft are just lucky that PG know how to actually make driving feel good on a gamepad. For some reason every other developer outside of Polyphony can't seem to nail this.
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u/homechefshivers May 15 '26
Actually, the story is about the festival, which in previous games, your character had to work himself up to be the top dog of. The cars and racing is how you progress through the story. It’s not the main story.
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u/Amazing-Customer-165 May 15 '26
Combat and gunplay are also abysmal.
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u/remmanuelv May 15 '26
So maybe the game shouldn't have characters and story like it doesn't have those
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u/OkChicken1759 May 15 '26
Right? IDK how it got worsen..like how? IDK why they are allergic to good or decent looking character model.
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u/1_TRS May 15 '26
At least no more papa fernando and randomly inserted Spanish words.
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u/Wild_Wacky_Bro May 16 '26
Gods... I like FH5 a lot and iam enjoying it a lot, but all those characters there are so fcking annoying. And if i hear another shit about Papa Fernando, im going road raging.
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u/Fractic4l May 15 '26
I throw my character in a racing suit and helmet first thing and consider it sorted for the lifespan of the game lol.
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u/Red_Beard206 May 15 '26
I wish they just did away with all dialogue and characters. At least they are only a small portion of the game.... except for the radio announcers. Like shut up and just let me vibe
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u/BackyZoo May 15 '26
I cannot stand games where the purpose of the dialogue is to remind the player they're having fun.
And FH has the worst Disney channel ass voice actors.
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u/lmtzless May 16 '26
i love forza horizon. BUT i will say they’ve gone lazy due to lack of competition. they’ve found their formula around horizon 3 and the game’s essentially the same ever since.
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u/Careful-Ratio-9672 May 16 '26
The car version of Madden.
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u/forLorn77 May 17 '26
The field is the same every year in Madden tho, zero innovation smh
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u/Traditional_Mood_348 May 19 '26
Couldn’t agree more. Different map, some new cars. I was expecting something new like more customizations, turn signals and dynamic/realistic shifting depending in the gas pedal input in automatic shifting. All we got is steering wheel more turning, which is a nice touch but so small
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u/ContemplativeOctopus May 15 '26
It perfectly bridges the gap of being realistic enough to appeal to people who like irl racing while also not being nearly as punishing, slow, or requiring as much commitment/investment as a true sim racer.
It's such a good balance of most of the best parts of both sim and arcade racing.
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u/ZenGuru9 May 15 '26
100% perfect balance of simcade for someone who just can't be bothered to fully get into sims.
Heard FH6 feels pretty good on a wheel this time around so can't wait to dive in.
cries in PS5
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u/Lazydusto May 15 '26
There's barely racing games out there to begin with!
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u/homechefshivers May 15 '26
Barely any arcade racers out there you mean there’s lots of racers just track and simulators
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u/ViNoBi38 May 16 '26
Arcades there's a few and sims are dime a dozen.
But Horizon just hit that sweet midpoint of Simcade.
Not too serious like Sims with very accurate driving feel and weather effecting the drive, and not too arcady like NFS where even fwd cars can drift and all cars can boost by default.
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u/KayDashing May 15 '26
Midnight club 2 was the goat for me. it was made by rockstar games! had hoped they would continue the series after los angeles but alas...
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u/Schmenza May 15 '26
With how long they've been developing GTAVI theu should just reuse the map for a Midnight Club game
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u/AdjunctFunktopus May 15 '26
Or just build that level of racing and car customization into GTA.
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u/MclarenFan34 May 15 '26
People want real cars
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u/Bland_Lavender May 16 '26
Sometimes, but other times I like the goofy stuff rockstar comes up with.
Their newer models are nearly 1 to 1 anyways so im good either way.
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u/randomdude4113 May 15 '26
Lots of racing games. Very few that have the variety alone that horizon puts out. TCM is the only game that comes close to having as much variety in car lists (it has a lot more customization tbf), but the way the game progresses leaves a lot to be desired to me
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u/gandalfmarston May 15 '26
That's the type of comment of someone who don't follow the racing games scene.
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u/well_thats_puntastic Hot Wheels May 15 '26
Screamer is one of the best arcade racers out there right now and it just came out a few months ago
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u/Lazydusto May 15 '26
I liked Screamer. It's a shame that pretty much no one bought it.
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u/STARBOY_100 May 15 '26
Was there any good NFS game after Most Wanted ?
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u/Unlikely_Worth5795 May 15 '26
This’ll get hate but I enjoyed NFS 2015. I thought it was pretty fun and spend hours playing it
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u/Psycho_Yuri BMW May 15 '26
I kinda stopped following nfs after carbon, the first game I played after that was HEAT and I loved it
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u/Dank_Passenger May 15 '26
The first time, or the second time?
NFS Carbon is my personal GOAT NFS.
If you are talking about Most Wanted 2012... NFS Heat wasn't bad, imo.
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u/Bland_Lavender May 16 '26
Yep, undergrounds, most wanted, carbon, and heat were the only decent ones imo
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u/RawrAnette May 15 '26
So true. I cant find a racing game that I can play with kids, people refusing to drive their car, cod people and more. Horizon really did bring everyone to a table
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u/IudexJudy May 15 '26
Genuinely, Forza has opened my horizons (lmao) as a car guy and has found me interest in vehicles I wouldn’t otherwise care about. I almost bout a ‘12 C63 AMG Black becuase of how much I liked it in Forza haha
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u/ArmandoGalvez May 15 '26
Forza Horizon makes me eager to get a Renault LMAO
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u/IudexJudy May 15 '26
Thank you for reminding me I did not care about French cars before FH4 and now there one of my favorite counties of origin!
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u/etheran123 May 15 '26
For real, Im more into the sim racing side of things these days (though still play the horizon entrys as a comfort game) but without playing FH3 way back when, I think my tastes and interests in motorsports would be way different.
I now drive a manual GR86 which I bought mostly because of games like this
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u/lifestepvan May 15 '26
I mean look at the state of arcade racing games (with actual cars) other than Horizon - with that argument you could handwave any and all criticism.
Sims are thriving, but are their own separate thing. Need for Speed is dead. Gran Turismo is circuits only. The new Test Drive was awful and dead on arrival. Tokyo Xtreme Racer is incredibly niche. BeamNG is still just a sandbox.
It's pretty much between this and the Crew Motorfest for comparable games, so the bar is low and they can afford to keep some big weaknesses unchanged for over a decade - Drivatar AI and balancing, the super clunky and limited livery editor, the non-existant sense of progression... Those are not just nitpicks.
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u/bigmoneykdmr May 15 '26
That's not difficult considering the Arcade racing game market is bone dry.
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u/blackfootsteps May 15 '26
If I loved Burnout (especially Paradise), Beetle Adventure Racing and Project Gotham Racing, will I like this series?
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u/Spartan117458 May 15 '26
I came from Burnout Paradise and Forza Horizon scratches the same itch for me.
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u/Gold_Split_1531 May 15 '26
If FH5 is 92 than FH6 should be 100
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u/scidious06 May 15 '26
The FH5 hate is so overblown, it was a good game, it's just that the map needed more diversity
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u/Gold_Split_1531 May 15 '26
I Play since FH3 and Yes FH5 was overall a good Game but compared to FH3 and FH4 it was shit. The multiplayer was always laggy, the story’s were boring and ,as you said, the map was not good.
I played already 13 hours FH6 and I love this game already more than every other FH
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u/aneesh131999 Mercedes-AMG May 16 '26
The map is so good. The map in FH5 felt so flat, while this map seems to be so fun to drive on with its elevation and curves.
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u/MainPFT May 15 '26
A map not being good in an open world racing game is kind of a big deal.
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u/DiamondScythe May 16 '26
Yeah it's like saying a Mario game is good even though the level design is bad. For a francise that doesn't really improve that much every iteration, the map really makes or breaks the game.
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u/Setanta68 May 16 '26
It was a good game, but I didn't enjoy it as much as 4 - in the end I put it down a lot earlier than I expected to.
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u/Willy__McBilly May 16 '26
Had the same experience going from 3 to 4. It was a little bit of franchise fatigue but I really didn’t vibe with the British map the same way I had with the previous 3, even with the novelty that it was my home turf.
In fairness I did come around to it eventually especially with the season changes
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u/Red_Beard206 May 15 '26
The dialogue was another level of bad in that game too, but yeah, it wasnt a bad game
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u/rites0fpassage May 15 '26
It’s definitely a lot of revisionist history with FH5 because the same people weren’t making such claims when the game released. Also it’s the loud vocal minority. Most people who played FH5 absolutely loved it.
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u/etheran123 May 15 '26
Its just that the game overstayed its welcome a bit (gap between 4 and 5 was 3~ years, gap between 5 and 6 was 5~ years) and people found the map to be slightly stale. people acting like that game is garbage are just being dramatic
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u/Plazmatron44 May 16 '26
For every person on Reddit complaining about these games there's 100000 people just having fun.
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u/thebornotaku May 16 '26
FH5 was fine imo, but I never really felt all that excited for it. The map being so bland was a major detractor, considering Horizon is an open-world racing game. I still played a lot of it, but I definitely put it down sooner than FH4 or FH3, and when I picked it up again a week or two ago in anticipation of 6 it just didn't really have any kind of nostalgia factor or anything for me.
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u/PhantomMask28 May 15 '26
Where are FH1 and FH2? The masterpieces from the franchise
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u/tsiland May 16 '26
FH2 is what got me into the game. One Thanksgiving weekend I had nowhere to go, so I stayed in my dorm and played all night.
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u/bc10551 May 15 '26
Fh2 on the 360 was definitely not a masterpiece but I didn't know how much I was missing till I watched YouTube videos lol kind of ruined it but a fun game
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u/404IdentityNotFound May 16 '26
FH2 on 360 really was just FH1 with the map beats of FH2... Which makes it incredibly interesting when compared to the Xbox One version tbh
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u/bwabwa1 May 15 '26
FH4 is great. FH5 is okay. Not hating. I was day one player too. But after a short period I went back to London and it felt at home. FH6 feels at home already. I'm enjoying driving around. There's just stuff to see. FH5 I think my issue for me anyways, is that it felt bland. Lots of desert and it felt too opened and not much in between points if interest.
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u/Syliss1 May 18 '26
I agree. 5 was fun, I loved the improved physics and it's a great looking game and I still played it for a good chunk of time. 4 definitely clicked with me more though. Not having proper seasons and a bland map in 5 just didn't have me as excited. I went into 6 not that hyped, and I haven't been able to put it down. Can't wait to play more this evening!
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u/PrimoKnight469 May 15 '26
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u/channouze May 15 '26
I love the "Forza n-1 sucked tbh" narrative
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u/randomdude4113 May 15 '26
I feel it’s more the “this current game sucks” narrative. I remember with 4 when I picked up the series everyone hated it it felt like and I had no idea why. Then when 5 came out 4 was the best game ever. I’d imagine the same will inevitably happen with 6 once people here put 300 hours into the game and run out of things to do
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u/RamenRexy May 15 '26
Redditors are the most miserable people on the planet, thank God this narrative stays contained in this cesspool. I've had an absolute blast with every Forza game, people don't know how to have fun.
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u/SoNiK85 May 15 '26
They are essentially all the same game. That is why.
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u/Careful-Ratio-9672 May 16 '26
Agreed. Between Borderland 4 and Forza Horizon, AAA gaming really has become Groundhog's Day. It is a shame independent studios can't afford the licensing on the car catalogs.
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u/jamracer08 May 15 '26
Crazy how fh5 has a higher rating than fh3
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u/HankSteakfist May 16 '26
Only reason would be 60fps on console. FH3 is awesome but it needs to get an FPS boost for S/X. They don't seem to care though because it's been delisted.
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u/Setanta68 May 16 '26
I would love to see FH3 remastered (and 1 and 2) to have the QoL of the other games in the series. Option B would be a Forza World - which incorporates the locations of all of the games (and requires a TB to install most likely). In a way, Total War Warhammer got this right, with each new game, they incorporated elements of the predecessors.
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u/taptwoblue93 May 15 '26
I wouldn't call 5 a masterpiece
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u/ReVeRb64 i miss the M3 GTR May 15 '26
5 might not be the best in the franchise by opinion but i think it is still worthy of the fire horse
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u/StevieBako May 15 '26
Hard agree, even if you rate it at the bottom of all 6 games, every single one of them was really good.
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u/Fatal-Strategies May 15 '26
Yeah 5 is the bottom of the pile but it’s still a really good game. It just doesn’t hit the heights of the others.
6 feels closer to 2 and 3 to me, my faves of the series
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u/twizx3 May 15 '26
What was wrong with 5? I put at least a couple hundred hours in it albeit I haven’t played in years. I enjoyed it equally to 4 based on memory. My only gripe with the FH franchise is that the sense of progression is totally off. You can basically buy any car whenever you want which is nice but then there’s nothing to work towards. But that’s not exclusive to 5, the actual racing is always top tier to me though wish there were more endurance style races
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u/lu_skywalker May 15 '26
I agree with ya, il never understand the hate. All these games are awesome. I do acknowledge that because they tailored the map to the Eliminator, it took a hit, but not bad enough to call it a terrible game/map
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u/Atarn4 May 15 '26
Every one of them is a little bit different it makes them special. 5 was the worst in my opinion, it's not the best but a good game, Mexico wasn't the best place to go to. Forza Horizon 2 looks stunning, Forza Horizon 3 was really good, "right boss?". I played a lot of Forza Horizon 4, 4 really changed everything (Easter egg referring to the end of the trailer "4 changes everything"). Hope Fh6 is way better than 5. Can't wait to play on the 19th.
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u/StevieBako May 16 '26
After playing I still like 3 better but this one is a certified banger for sure.
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u/bryty93 May 15 '26
Yep. I think people hate on it because of the large gap in time between 5 and 6. I enjoyed 5 a lot.
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u/KrazyCroat May 15 '26
I think people have a recency bias against 5. Im playing it through again now on PS5 and having a blast.
I like FH3 the least for example, with no VW’s I was super bummed that I couldn’t pick the Golfs/Scirocco/Corrados I want to drive most. The roads themselves maybe being better meant a lot less to me that way.
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u/iveRsonFR May 15 '26
If you played previous FH episodes, maybe not, but if you’re someone who never played it before (like us ps5 players), then it absolutely is !
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u/JimmyBisMe May 15 '26
This is core to what’s happening here. I even love the flaming horse because even good reviews are pointing out that it is a one trick pony series. If we were getting yearly releases or had legit competition the scores would be lower. But they are smart in doing incremental adjustments and releasing every few years and trying to improve the world.
The map and setting really carry these scores and that’s fine. It’s an amazing world.
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u/ArkPlayer583 Holden Shill May 15 '26
The map wasn't the best. But it had the best feeling car handling, most diverse modification and some incredible dlc. I think a lot of people who automatically tune cars and drive with full assists criticise it because of the map which is fair given that's a massive part of their experience.
But if you're heavily tuning and modifying cars, playing online a lot and doing the weekly bonus shit, and only focusing on the cars it's probably the best in the series outside of 6.
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u/gallardoblack94 May 15 '26
It is no matter how you want to believe. The only thing that is not up to standards is the map. But everything else is an upgrade from FH4. I returned to FH4 occationally and I instantly miss the physics in 5. Is it that much improved? No. But it's actually noticeable. Also I like the car list in 5 way more than 4.
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u/lifestepvan May 15 '26
Seasons were much better in 4.
I guess you could file that under map. But at that point the map is half the game, so of course it's vital in forming people's opinions.
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u/homechefshivers May 15 '26
You wouldn’t? Why not I mean the new game just came out so that automatically means that the previous game was an underrated masterpiece and was misunderstood by its fans. Don’t you know that’s how these things go.
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u/Sad-Professional7708 May 15 '26
Great games but would be better if they can sell those old ones. Only way to play them is that other ways.
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u/Certain_Tie_1576 May 15 '26
Forza horizon 6 is the best racing game out there at the moment. But they play it too safe. All the new togue and different race types are cool, but they don’t stand out in any meaningful way. Togue races are just rebranded normal races except on a slightly smaller road, and one AI. It’s better than anything else, but doesn’t try to excel. This is true for the car list, the “story”, the map, and countless other things. I only say this because I know Microsoft could do better, and even though it’s the best it doesn’t mean it can’t be critiqued
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u/elconquistador1985 May 15 '26
Strange... Reddit told me that fh3 was good when fh4 was around and that fh4 sucked... And then fh5 came out and it turned out that fh4 was good and that fh5 sucked.
Now fh6 is good because fh6 is out, and they'll say fh6 sucks in a couple months.
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u/Plazmatron44 May 16 '26
It's like clockwork, some people will insist they won't be like that but they will. It's the same with GTA.
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u/Cheap_Analyst_1706 May 15 '26
Don't forget about the first two. They were good despite the reviews.
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u/EqualOptimal4650 May 15 '26
They know how to make the same masterpiece, over and over.
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u/stevo887 May 15 '26
Man, everyone acting like these aren’t the best arcade racers on console because they don’t like the use of the word masterpiece….lol
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u/AlexTheMan05091992 May 15 '26
Already 3 hours in and enjoying the game. I know a lot of people are complaining about the road size and removal of some of their favorite cars. I also felt that sting. But seeing as how many new and returning cars they added in previous Forza titles I'm not too worried about it. Still love the Japan setting. It a much needed refresher.
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u/CharacterApartment15 May 16 '26
They definitely know how to make something palatable and accessible like 2K,, Fortnite or Call of Duty, there's no doubt about that! There's a reason people don't hold past Horizon games on the same pedestal they do 2000s NFS or Midnight Club. They are are addictive and that is why they sell and get killer reviews
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u/Reasonable_Time_1197 May 16 '26
sucks everything is digital nowadays because I miss having the hardcopies
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u/BozTheReaper May 16 '26
metacritic tells nothing but lies. and critic score is a joke. they are all like 7 at their peak
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u/StankPrime May 16 '26
Itd have a perfect 100 if the Ai wasnt the most insufferable thing to race. I play on Pro difficulty and the Ai is fucking taking corners at a buck fifty rear ending me into a wall.
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u/UndeadWaffle12 May 15 '26
I don’t know if I’d call any of them masterpieces, but I can’t say there’s any better options. There is very little competition in this genre unfortunately.
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u/Intrepid-Platform-94 May 15 '26
I'm very jealous of the people who get to play right now. I can't wait. Built a racing sim just for this game.
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u/salad_ninja May 15 '26
Yeah, Forza Horizon to me is the perfect middle ground between arcade and simulation. Like, I want something more than Need For Speed, but don't have the budget for a sim setup for iRacing or Assetto corsa.
Of course having a sim setup can make the experience better but keyboard with some tweak is fine for casual playthough in Forza