Forza Horizon 5 - Your New Favorite Xbox Racing Game

There are few racing games that as fun as Forza Horizon 5. If you’re looking for the next racing game to get that special someone for the holidays, then Xbox has you covered.

From Google

Forza Horizon 5 is a 2021 racing video game developed by Playground Games and published by Xbox Game Studios. It is the fifth Forza Horizon title and twelfth main instalment in the Forza series. The game is set in a fictionalised representation of Mexico.

There’s more to Forza Horizon 5 than just racing. If you want to drive around and just smash XP billboards you can. Of course, there’s racing, but then there are stunts, barn finds, and events.

You’re not just racing standard cars either. With Forza, if it’s on wheels, it seems you can race it. There are classic cars, muscle cars, luxury cars, trucks, and SUVs. There are no motorcycles but that’s okay. Between the over 100 different cars, upgrading and designing every one, and XP and unlocks for each you’ll have plenty to do to keep you busy.

In Forza Horizon 5, set in Mexico, you’ll have a large map filled with all sorts of terrain to deal with. You can drag race, dirt race, street races, and obstacle courses. They don’t limit what you can race on those, but you better choose wisely if you’re looking to win. The game will adjust the AI racer to fit the style of car you pick, but each race has its own style and challenges and the wrong car will be difficult.

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One of the best parts of Forza Horizon 5 is it’s online. You can play against friends and strangers and keep the challenges coming. It does import your friend’s games as well and keeps track of their progress and accomplishments. If you do an event such as a stunt jump, it keeps their scoreboard, and will it give you the personal challenge to try and beat it. Of course, that can make selecting the right car important.

There are also seasonal events that keep you tracking style points to try to unlock even more rare cars. The game can be just as fun as it is frustrating. It can be a bit repetitive at times but you can break that up by just getting on for a good drive on a huge map.

The disappointing part of the game is the soundtrack. It seems like there’s only a handful of songs on each station and it would be great if they added unlockables the same way they do cars, horns, or styles. Racing games have to have the right atmosphere especially since the game is centered around a racing festival.

Forza Horizon 5 is one of the rare games where you can just get on and tool around for a little bit. Sometimes gaming just needs to be relaxing without direction. There are hours of gameplay alone, but there’s also the opportunity to just get on and wreck stuff up. If you need a new racing game for a gift, start with Forza.