FORZA HORIZON REVIEW
Sometimes a game is worth your time, even if it’s not your favorite. You might hate racing games. They might be all you hate. They’re boring. Forza Horizon 5 is for you if this sounds familiar. I urge you to.
Playground Games created a world that is full of challenges, endless customization, and exploration. This takes the best parts about the franchise and makes it even more amazing. The series veterans will love the clever tuning. While new players will enjoy an extremely accessible open-world formula to discover.
Mexico hosts Forza Horizon 5’s festival. This map is more extensive and diverse than any previous titles.
Your entry to the land is a stunning display of what’s ahead and will be talked about for a long time. This is a journey that demonstrates the confidence of a studio in peak form, ready to show off its best game yet.
“The stormy sprint is a unique combination of shifting weather and epic music, with characters having the time or their entire lives. It’s pure, unfiltered fun.
You can do so much here, whether you are zooming by yourself or with a group. Events are plentiful and include traditional races, photo challenges, and other insanely addictive tests of skill such as flattening every chair on the deck in the name research at the beach.
Some of the most spectacular events are not my responsibility. The first involves daredevil motorcyclists blazing down a narrow track while you speed downhill. The second will send you racing into the midst of a storm. It’s thrilling and propelled forward with an accessibility that allows your car to go through tight corners and around chicanes without causing any damage.
These races often have light story elements and character talkter that helps to create a sense of occasion. Stormy sprint is a unique combination of stunning shifting island weather and epic music, with characters having the time or their entire lives. It’s pure, unfiltered fun.
This enjoyment extends to multiplayer components that are now firmly integrated within Forza Horizon’s open-world, where ranked play is being scrapped in order to foster a more welcoming environment.
There are three options for racing against your opponents: drifting, racing and elimination. The latter is surprisingly practical in the midst of the growing battle royale phenomenon. It is simple to see many racers racing towards the same goal at once, regardless of where they are located on the map. This adds an element of chaos that can often drive any strategy out the door.
“One Of Forza’s greatest assets, is a community who puts in the effort when creating new decals to everyone’s enjoyment.”
For players who are looking to share the challenges they face with their friends, co-op can be a game-changing tool. Many events can be enjoyed together. Forza Arcade is a fun element that offers mini-games to anyone within the area. It will also bring a laugh to your game if you play with friends.
Online servers were unstable during prelaunch. This can make it difficult to compete against other drivers for almost every task. The fun is hampered by stability issues and it will be more robust as more players join the game.
Forza’s greatest asset is its community. They work hard to create new decals that everyone can enjoy. Although the game isn’t yet officially released, I already have some impressive Pokemon, Batman and Jurassic Park designs in my garage. You could be forgiven for forgetting that there are still 500 cars to collect.
If you’re a fan of driving, then event creation might be for you. There are many user-created tracks available at pre-launch. They are all very sharp and show that the map is open for experimentation.
It’s no surprise that Forza Horizon 5 is a visual show stopper. Regardless of whether you play on Xbox Series X, PC or Xbox 360, a consistent frame rate is maintained in both quality mode and performance mode. This racer is now the most beautiful of all time, thanks to improvements in smoke effects and lighting.
It’s not surprising that Forza Horizon is in the mix with 2021’s Game of the year contenders
The visuals are enhanced by Mexico hosting the event. Forza Horizon 4’s greens and greys were stunning, but the contrast between volcanic rock, lush forests, and dusty deserts is breathtaking. It’s worth taking a look at the verticality of the island’s highest peaks. If you see it, make sure to climb up. The views are breathtaking.
It is simple to overlook a small, but highly appreciated improvement. Playground Games made more cars sound unique, which gives you greater feedback when switching between vehicles. Load times are shorter than ever before so it’s not annoying to switch between Jeeps and Ferraris while you’re moving between dirt roads, jungles, asphalt, or other surfaces.
The soundtrack is decent, with the likes Beastie Boys and Dua Lipa. It doesn’t do enough to increase the excitement. It’s not a criticism to say that this hinders the overall experience.
Forza Horizon 5 Accessibility
It is a great game for the wide range of accessibility options. This game has some truly thoughtful features that aren’t as common in other series, such as a Game Speed Modification mode which allows for slower gameplay.
You can also customize subtitles and choose from colourblind options. A screen narrator is also available. Playground offers text-to speech and speech-totext options. A future update will include sign language interpreters. This type of accessibility should be commonplace in big studios.
