Forza Horizon 6 preview: the racing highlight of 2026?

Domagoj Belancic

8.4.2026

Translation: Patrik Stainbrook

Pictures: Domagoj Belancic

Support: Simon Balissat

With Forza Horizon 6, the chaotic open-world racing series is finally making its way to Japan. I got to try out what’s probably the most anticipated racing game of the year early – and I can’t wait to play the full release.

United States, France, Italy, Australia, England, Mexico. No, this isn’t a World Cup group (Italy isn’t even in it, after all), but rather a list of Forza Horizon locations so far. With the latest instalment in the racing series, Playground Games is bringing the eponymous Horizon Festival to Japan for the first time. It’s a setting fans have been hoping for for years. I mean, it makes sense, right? Every game series gets better when it travels to Japan.

This also marks a dream come true for our resident otaku and car nerd Simon. My fellow editor will be publishing an in-depth review of Forza Horizon 6 when it launches in May. But before that release, I had the chance to try the open-world racer as part of a limited preview. Sorry, Simon! But hey, at least our racing game expert was able to grill me with questions after my hands-on session. Here’s what’s for sure already: I’m really looking forward to this game and can’t wait for it to come out.

Simon: You got to play Forza Horizon 6. At last, the action’s happening in Japan. Fans have been clamouring for Japan ever since Horizon 2… Between two otaku: how authentic is this version of Japan?

Domagoj: I’d say it was worth the wait. Development studio Playground Games has successfully recreated various regions of Japan with great authenticity. From the very start, the team worked with a cultural consultant, Kyoko Yamashita, to create as realistic a portrayal of Japan as possible.

What I particularly like is that this virtual Japan in Forza Horizon 6 is more than just cheesy cherry blossom-lined avenues and postcard-perfect views of Mount Fuji. Just as often, you speed through small villages with rice paddies, snow-covered mountain roads, and idyllic beaches with crystal-clear water. Japan is incredibly diverse – and Forza Horizon 6 reflects that.

How much were you able to check out?

During my preview, I got to experience the beginning of the game. The prologue features a wild montage of different race types, a sort of appetiser before the main course. I zoomed alongside a Shinkansen in a lightning-fast race car, careening down a snow-covered mountain in a buggy and drifting through a winding mountain pass in a sports car. Awesome!

After that, I tried to qualify for the upcoming Horizon Festival across a total of three races.

My first challenge, the Airfield Trail, had me navigate uneven, muddy terrain. Perfect timing and precision are essential in turns; otherwise, your drift attempt ends with a crash into the barrier. The track ends with a high-speed section on paved ground. A nail-biting finale’s guaranteed.

The Wind Farm race is a cross-country event featuring 4x4 pickup trucks. This race takes you through wooded areas, rice paddies and sandy beaches. Every now and then, I performed some insane jumps where my race car flew through the air over several metres like an Angry Bird, only to crash right into the pack of cars ahead with a devastating wallop. Total chaos – I love it.

Shirakawa Circuit takes you through a small village with narrow streets and curves in a retro sports car. A simple yet visually stunning race I tackled in my baby-blue Toyota Supra 2.0 GT.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to experience the Horizon Festival itself – my demo ended after I successfully qualified. At least I got to freely explore the entire game world, take part in smaller events and search for collectible items.

What other events did you discover throughout the game world – and did you have a chance to try out the new Rush events?

These events should look familiar to Horizon fans: there’s Speed Zones, where you race past speed cameras as fast as possible. Then there’s Trailblazer races, where you have to get from point A to point B as fast as possible, no matter what. And finally there’s drag races on straight roads and drift zones on narrow Touge roads.

What I like are the collectible items. In each region, you have to run over different mascots. Anyone who’s ever been to Japan knows that cities, tourist attractions and even some dishes have their own mascots. That’s just so Japan – and a great idea for collectibles.

I didn’t get a chance to try out the new Rush events – they’re only unlocked when the festival begins. But they sound very promising. It’s simply a further development of the showcase events that fans will recognise from previous instalments. In other words, spectacularly staged races where you compete against aeroplanes, helicopters and other crazy things. Unlike previous events, which players would try once and then never touch again, Rush events are designed to offer massive replay value thanks to high-score mechanics and leaderboards.

Japan has its own unique car culture and iconic vehicles. Did the developers emphasise this?

I can’t say yet. In the preview build, I only had access to a limited number of cars. However, the development studio promises that the final version will feature over 550 cars, ranging from modern performance icons to JDM classics.

Cultural consultant Yamashita’s an expert on Japanese car culture too. In one blog post, she raves about kei cars, iconic vans, precision motorsports and the drifting scene that players will experience in Forza Horizon 6. I think you, a Japan and car enthusiast, will really get your money’s worth.

In the last Horizon, you already got to try a 1,000-horsepower hypercar after just half an hour of gameplay. I never felt like I was really making any progress. Are things different now?

You’ll probably find that out in your review. Here’s what I can say: in the preview build, I never felt like I was overpowered. On the contrary, the races and events on offer really kicked my butt. But that might also be due to the limited selection of vehicles – or my even more limited skills.

The first preview looked pretty empty: there was hardly any traffic on the streets and the world seemed lifeless. Did you notice the same?

You’re referring to the gameplay video IGN released last month. Yeah, it looked pretty bleak.

We now know that Playground Games reduced the number of vehicles for that demo to better show off the landscape. A decision that backfired since many fans were upset about the empty game world.

Based on my experience with the preview build, I can give the all-clear. Japan isn’t a post-apocalyptic, deserted landscape. There are actually other cars driving around acting as moving obstacles. However, especially in the more urban areas around Tokyo, I’d have liked to see a bit more oncoming traffic.

Another point of criticism based on the footage shown so far: the streets are all too wide. But you mentioned drift events – are there also more technically challenging Touge tracks?

Yes, some streets look ridiculously wide. But hey, Forza Horizon was never a racing series committed to realism. The tracks are designed to be as versatile as possible across various game modes.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t narrower sections. In addition to the drift events, I was also surprised by the narrower roads on Shirakawa Circuit, which I mentioned earlier.

Tokyo’s set to be by far the largest city in a Forza Horizon game. How does this feel in-game? Are there longer races that take place only in the city, for example?

According to Playground Games, Tokyo’s about five times larger than the biggest city in Forza Horizon 5 (Guanajuato). I’d actually estimate it to be larger. In addition to the city centre, there are also adjacent neighbourhoods that naturally expand the urban area.

Anyone who’s ever been to Tokyo knows just how huge the city is, so don’t expect an exact representation of the metropolis. It’s a miniature version in which numerous landmarks stand side by side, connected by exciting sections of track. I haven’t been able to race in the city yet. But there’s definitely potential for exciting tracks. I’m especially looking forward to the sometimes long stretches of highway that wind through the landscape.

In the past, Forza Horizon games featured clearly defined biomes. We raced from the desert through the jungle and then into snowy landscapes. Is it the same in Japan?

Forza Horizon 6 features the largest map to date in a Horizon game. The developer mentions 662 streets and 74 iconic areas. This scale also makes the game world feel more organic than before. Transitions between biomes are more gradual and take longer. I never suddenly found myself in a frigid landscape; instead, I had to work my way up snow-covered mountains.

To give you a better idea of how big the world is, I tried to get from one end of the map to the other as quickly as possible. I drove a Toyota Supra 2.0 GT with a top speed of over 230 km/h. Mind you, I didn’t tear through the game world recklessly; instead, I stuck to the roads. It took me about 16 minutes to travel from the northernmost point to the southernmost location (about 30 in-game kilometres). It took me about 10 minutes to go from the easternmost point to the westernmost area (about 22 kilometres).

Does the map focus more on urban or rural Japan?

Tokyo’s the only major settlement in the game. The focus is clearly on rural areas, small villages and the beautiful natural surroundings.

Aside from realism, graphics are also important in racing games – both for the cars and the environment. How does the game compare to its predecessor – and how does it feel to play?

I tested the preview build on my Xbox Series X in Quality Mode at 30 fps. A performance mode running at 60 fps is also planned for launch. When it comes to racing games, I always prefer modes that offer a smoother gameplay experience. I have to admit, though, 30 fps didn’t really bother me. The controls felt responsive, the game ran smoothly and motion blur did a pretty good job of masking the low frame rate.

Overall, it’s a significant improvement compared to Forza Horizon 5. Everything looks just a little better than before. The lighting’s more realistic, forests are denser, mud is muddier and environments look more detailed. By no means a graphical revolution, but a solid improvement. Just a shame the game isn’t coming out on the PS5 in May – I’m curious to see what the Pro version will look like.

On the other hand, I’m a bit disappointed by Tokyo at night. With all those bright neon signs, I was expecting more. But the atmosphere of night-time Tokyo doesn’t really come across. It all just seemed a little too… sterile? I guess I’ve been spoiled by other games with ultra-detailed levels – especially Yakuza.

What can you tell us about the soundtrack?

Awesome! Although there was only a limited selection of tracks in the preview build, they gave a pretty good idea of the direction things are heading. The preview playlist’s dominated by electronic sounds and wonderful ’80s retro anthems.

I’ll go ahead and tell you my favourite: Sniper Rouge. A fantastic catchy tune. Can you imagine how awesome it’ll be to tear through Japan with that song? I’m just so excited for this game.

Forza Horizon 6 will be released on 19 May for Xbox Series X/S and PC. A PS5 version will be released eventually. Microsoft gave me access to a preview build on the Xbox Series X for this preview.

Video games

Microsoft Forza Horizon 6

Xbox Series X, DE

Domagoj Belancic

Senior Editor

Domagoj.Belancic@digitecgalaxus.ch

My love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.

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