Simply put, PlayStation 5 has nothing that quite compares to Forza Horizon 5.
The Crew Motorfest? It's close. Embracing the "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" mentality, its full-fledged festival vibe makes Motorfest feel more akin to the Forza Horizon series than its own predecessors.
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown? Unfortunately, no. While the Forza Horizon series owes a lot to the groundbreaking MMO racing of the original Test Drive Unlimited, Solar Crown ultimately overreached. An always-online racer with no dedicated single-player mode? The Horizon series has allowed players to effortlessly switch between offline and online play since 2014's Forza Horizon 2!
Need for Speed Unbound? Well, Need for Speed's impressive customization options definitely surpass Horizon's in several areas, but Unbound's arcade-style focus on high-speed police chases means it isn't really a direct competitor.
No, the undisputed champion of modern open-world racing is Forza Horizon 5—and now it's available on PlayStation 5 for the very first time. It's all here for PlayStation users, many experiencing it for the first time: its vast and stunning Mexican landscape, its wonderfully drift-friendly car handling, its enormous garage of over 900 vehicles that goes far beyond the basics and is packed with cult-favorite cars unavailable anywhere else.
The reaction has been a joy to witness.
The team was particularly eager to welcome this wave of new players.
“Yeah, I’m super excited,” says Playground Games art director Don Arceta. “Brand new players; for many, this will likely be their first Forza Horizon game ever. It's thrilling to think about that and recall what our own first Horizon experiences were like.”
Arceta is especially looking forward to seeing what kinds of locations and races PlayStation 5 players design using Forza Horizon 5's extensive Event Lab customization tools.
“You’ll even get some fantastic Halo content on PlayStation through the Event Lab props!”
“We now have over 800 props in Event Lab. Seeing what the community has built with that feature and their sheer creativity is mind-blowing,” he adds. “I'm really excited to see what PlayStation 5 users create and the new ideas that community will bring.”
“You’ll actually get some pretty good Halo content too on the PlayStation, with the event lab props!”
It's great to report that the PlayStation 5 version is as technically flawless as its Xbox and PC counterparts—a notable achievement given the game's massive scale and the fact its engine has never run on PlayStation before.
“As you might expect, since the series was built around Xbox architecture, a lot of our code and engineering was designed for that,” explains Arceta. “Bringing it to PS5 was a significant undertaking. It was a huge task.”
“The PlayStation 5 version was developed by Panic Button in collaboration with Turn 10 and our team, and Panic Button did an incredible job. You get the same top-tier experience found on Xbox and PC now on PlayStation, thanks to their amazing work.”
Personally, I've always seen the Forza series as the ultimate destination for the most impressive and diverse collection of vehicles. No other racing franchise offers such a wide array of fascinating cars I desire, plus countless others I never knew I wanted. As a car enthusiast, I love the thought of a whole new group of players possibly finding their dream cars in Forza Horizon 5—cars other racing games have overlooked.
For Playground Games lead game designer David Orton, however, it's the sheer scope of Forza Horizon 5 that he expects will win over new players.
“The breadth of Horizon is quite staggering,” says Orton. “We often see players jump in and discover what they truly enjoy, and because there's so much freedom, that can be absolutely anything.”
Horizon is a place where everyone is welcome, and there's something for everyone.“
“We take pride in giving players that agency and freedom to pursue their interests, and the game acknowledges and rewards that. I'm eager for players to simply discover the vast range of content. If you only want road racing, or if you're deeply into Rivals and track racing, you can do that. If you adore taking stunning photos, you can do that. If you're passionate about Event Lab and creating content for others, you can do that. Horizon is a space where everyone is welcome, and there's something in it for everyone. The moment people realize it's more than just a racing game is what truly excites me.”
“For me, success would look like players saying, 'I can't believe I never played this before,'” states Arceta. “That sense of surprise.”
“That, to me, is a win, because surprise leads to engagement—and a desire to learn more. So I'm really hoping for that: hearing players' delight, their astonishment, and their personal stories.”
Orton agrees.
“Yes, I think that's it,” he adds. “Players who've never tried Horizon before—whether due to platform exclusivity or simply never finding the time—finally diving into this world and discovering it's a genuinely warm, welcoming, and fun place, finding a home in Horizon.”
“New players realizing, 'Oh my goodness, how have I never played this before? This is incredible.' That, to me, is a victory. We're about to reach an audience that may have never played a Forza title. There's some uncertainty in how they'll respond, but looking at our track record, we've consistently refined our craft. We're incredibly excited to bring this to PlayStation. I believe we're going to attract a huge number of new players, and that's genuinely thrilling.”
If any pursuit is more tribal than car culture, it's the loyalty people feel toward their chosen video game console. For racing game enthusiasts, however, a major barrier has finally fallen.
Let's hope it isn't the last.
