Wow, Forza Horizon 5 Is Really Coming to PS5 This Spring

The formerly Xbox-exclusive Forza Horizon 5 is officially launching on PlayStation 5 this spring, development studio Playground Games announced Thursday. After decades of releases on Microsoft consoles, PlayStation players are getting a crack at Forza for the very first time. An offshoot of the older, more sim-oriented Forza Motorsport series, Horizon pits players against each other in an open-world, multiplayer racing arena that offers everything from old-school street racing to drift competitions and even battle royale-style games of tag.

Each installment in the series takes place in conjunction with a fictional “festival” celebrating all things automotive. The locales are inspired by actual locations. Forza Horizon 5 is set in Mexico, and the game world is littered with scaled-down versions of actual cities and natural features. Players roam the map looking for racing opportunities, barn finds, experience boosters, and other hidden treasures, and are heavily encouraged to take the adventure off-pavement, where exploration and massive stunts are the objectives.

Forza Horizon 5’s persistent online world is kept fresh with a seasonal mechanic incorporating rotating challenges and rewards, including rare cars and trucks—occasionally even some widely recognized “ringers” that can render some challenges (or entire race categories) trivial even at the toughest difficulty settings. And while FH5’s physics have been dialed down to keep the game approachable, its cars behave like real-world automobiles except with a lot more grip, nudging players toward realistic racing lines rather than encouraging a manic, indiscriminate game of bumper cars.

“With nearly 900 cars available in the game, over 40 thematic game updates, two expansions, and so much more content, our team is excited to announce that this spring, PlayStation 5 players will be able to explore Mexico’s beautiful roads and experience the Horizon Festival for the first time as we are officially launching Forza Horizon 5 on PS5,” Playground Games said in its official announcement.

The original Forza Motorsport launched as an Xbox-based rival to the PlayStation-exclusive Gran Turismo series back in 2005, aiming for a similar blend of real-world physics, career-based progression, and vehicle upgrades and classing. Forza Motorsport even managed to leapfrog GT’s hyper-realistic approach by being the first to offer a damage model that was more than simply cosmetic. The debut Horizon entry was released in 2012 as an offshoot of the more punishing Motorsport games, but through the years it’s grown to become the larger of the two series in terms of player count.

Once upon a time, it would’ve been unthinkable for either Forza title to land on Sony’s rival platform, but here we are. Microsoft has gravitated away from the traditional model of console-exclusive first-party titles in recent months, pledging to bring blockbusters like Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle to PS5. Now, FH5 will join them, offering PlayStation gamers an automotive sandbox unlike any they’ve seen before.

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