Gamescom 2021, held this week, gave us a sneak peek at the Forza Horizon 5. Microsoft Studios and Playground Games are busy making fans immensely eager about the Forza Horizon 5 release. The gameplay showcase at Gamescom 2021was enough for Forza fanatics to go gaga over its November release. Forza intro sequence sets a larger-than-life mood and Forza Horizon 5 is sure to offer the same or more.
Playground Games are keeping their hands full of revealing more and more information about Forza Horizon 5. We have come to know many details about the new title since the news of its release first surfaced. There have been multiple revelations about popular locations, star cars, tuning options, and more that will be included in the game. The Gamescom 2021 was more about the star cars that will be a part of Forza Horizon 5. One mention-worthy part of the Forza Horizon 5 Gamescom announcement was the gameplay of the Mercedes AMG One hypercar.
With the announcement of the Forza Horizon 5 nearing its release date, Microsoft has also announced the launch of the new Forza Horizon 5 Limited Edition Xbox Controller. The new controller accents the quirky color theme of blue, pink, and yellow of Forza Horizon 5.
Wee History of Forza Horizon
If you are new to this title, then embrace yourself for a wave of legacy and class that Forza has maintained through the years. It is a racing video game published by Microsoft Studios and developed by Playground Games for Xbox 360 on the 23rd of October 2012. If you want to dig deeper, you will find it was the first release on the original Xbox on May 5th, 2005. It is now available for Windows and mobile along with Xbox. It was the only game be released on the main Xbox at that time. Even in 2005, it consisted of 16 locations and 231 cars. Since then, it has never disappointed its devoted player base.
After the release of Forza Motorsport in 2005, the gaming world witnessed a whirling change in the racing world with the launch of Forza Motorsport 2, Forza Motorsport 3, and Forza Motorsport 4. Forza Motorsport 4 was the final installment of the Motorsport Xbox 360 titles and was the best of the series. Then came the Horizon series first title Forza Horizon on October 23rd, 2012, and was an immediate hit. Then came Forza Motorsport 5, Forza Horizon 2, Forza Motorsport 6, Forza Horizon 3, Forza Motorsport 7, Forza Horizon 4, Forza Street, and lastly, Forza Horizon 5, which we all are eagerly waiting for.
Sneaking Into Forza Horizon 5
For the first 8 minutes, the title will make its player enjoy all the seasons alongside some weather effects that include the latest dust storm feature. We all heard about the new biomes Playground Games talked about so often. Well, you will notice that all through the trailer of the game.
Not just the Mercedes AMG One, but you will get a peek into other cars such as Ford Bronco Badlands, 2020 Corvette C8, Koenigsegg Jesko, Baja offroaders, Toyota Supra, and many more.
There is even the latest casual Horizon Tour Mode that features a virtual car meet. Players can meet other players, check out their liveries. The Eliminator battle royale mode remains a constant with exciting twists and turns. There is an activity for everyone. If you are not in a mood for racing, you can explore the world, PR stunts, avenues for you to progress through, and much more.
Wait, up there is more! Microsoft will be releasing Forza Horizon 5 Limited Edition Xbox Wireless Controller with the collaboration of Playground Games. The controller imitated the color scheme for Horizon Festival with an almost transparent and livery yellow case that gives a see-through effect.
Other than this, the AMG One will be induced with multiple player-selectable modes. This is the first time that Forza is releasing such a feature. But, it is still unknown whether other cars of the title will have the same feature.
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Brief Gameplay Preview
When starting the game, you will first experience the “showcase” mission. It then is followed by a showcase. Each of these showcases will start with a vehicular airdrop in Fast and Furious 7-esque from a vibrant cargo plane. This is a fictional visual representation of Mexico. The 2021 Ford Bronco will be your first ride. The ride showcasing the cover art of Horizon 5 will parachute on top of the Gran Caldera Volcano, which is depicted as active yet snow-capped. It later approaches the Baja desert. This is where we get a tiny preview of Forza Horizon 5’s off-road circuit.
You will also get a 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray airdropped. This is where the gameplay gives a peek at the dust storm feature of the game. It is massive and can be localized to a certain area of the map. The storm is seen rising on the horizon in front of the player, slowly approaching the player for them to experience.
It is then followed by a crash landing of a Porsche 911 Desert Flyer in a Mexican jungle. This is where the gameplay makes you realize how diverse the 11 biomes are. Starting from snowcapped active volcanoes to green living desert. In the preview, the air of the desert seems to be thick with haze and humidity. It also features roads pitted with mud and water and compact foliage.
When the Porsche reaches a re-formed temple site witnessing the splendor of flamingos with their arrival, we get a glimpse o the Mercedes-AMG One. It drops from the cargo plane to make an ultimate spin to the Horizon festival. The car is Formula 1 powered and the most anticipated one by all arcade game fanatics.
Concluding Thoughts
Horizon 5 comes with the promise of being the best-looking title to date in the series. For the Xbox Series X owners, you can expect 4K graphics and the best quality of shadow and light there is. It will also be the first game in the Forza series to feature the ray-traced graphics. However, only in the Forzavista mode.
If you are a Series S player, you can expect 1080p graphics and even the ray tracing feature. This game is said to run smoothly on the Xbox One, but the quality of the graphics will not be there for players to enjoy.
