The ‘Horizon Festival’ has finally arrived in Japan, a location fans have long dreamed of. As the first entry in the series to feature an Asian setting, ‘Forza Horizon 6’ captures almost everything needed for that signature ‘fun racing’ atmosphere, using Japan—a place synonymous with street racing—as its backdrop.
Players begin the game as a tourist visiting Japan for the Horizon Festival. While you get to enjoy various types of racing and soak in the sights, the tutorial ends with you failing to qualify for the festival itself. Your primary goal is to build a reputation by exploring every corner of Tokyo with a local friend and passing the qualifiers to earn your spot in the Horizon Festival.
Japan is finally the stage—welcome to the ‘Horizon Festival’
The game is structured around two tracks: the ‘Horizon Festival’ and ‘Discover Japan.’ Each has its own tier-based collectibles—wristbands and stamps, respectively—and you must stay busy traveling across Japan to collect the highest-tier items.
To advance to the next tier in the Horizon Festival, you must participate in an event called ‘Horizon Rush.’ By enjoying various races and field content (speed traps, drag races, smashing signs, etc.) to build your reputation, you naturally earn the right to enter the Horizon Rush. Winning these events earns you the next tier of wristband.
‘Horizon Rush’ differs in concept from the standard racing you encounter on public roads. You might have to perform ‘Carkour’ (a challenge involving parkour with cars) by climbing winding, maze-like structures, race against a light aircraft, or even compete against a giant robot. With the festival’s hype-man announcer and upbeat radio music, racing through these events feels like a great way to blow off steam.
‘Discover Japan,’ separate from the festival, consists of content focused on exploring the Japanese setting. You can take day trips to various regions or hunt for cars to enter into the festival alongside Yuji, a vehicle tuning expert. There are also elements that let you roam freely, such as helping a photographer capture landmarks across Japan, allowing you to escape the pressure of competition.
Tokyo Drift, and the romance of the car enthusiast
What stands out most in the Tokyo exploration is, of course, ‘drifting.’ Like that song you think of when you hear ‘Initial D’ (Déjà Vu!), Tokyo and drifting are inseparable. Just as the Lancer Evolution and Nissan GT-R are icons of cool, the influence of Japan’s automotive industry on car enthusiasts worldwide is immense.
From 1:1 races on winding mountain passes to meetups where car enthusiasts from around the world gather in highway parking lots, Playground Games has packed every fantasy that car lovers associate with ‘Japan’ into ‘Forza Horizon 6.’
And that’s not all. This meticulous attention to detail even extends to the radio. The ‘Gacha City Radio’ added in this latest release is themed after a Japanese radio broadcast, with a playlist consisting entirely of music from Japanese subculture. It features tracks from artists who have gained popularity in Korea, such as YOASOBI and ZUTOMAYO, as well as songs by Ado, one of the hottest artists today.
‘Forza Horizon’ has already reached its sixth title, and this global festival of cars has only become more solidified. From street racing and circuit racing to off-road, rally, and cross-country, almost every activity you can do with a car takes place right here in Tokyo.
That different vehicles and race types offer unique driving sensations will be obvious to anyone who has played previous entries. ‘Forza Horizon 6’ is no different. The feel of a car gliding over smooth pavement in a standard race is vivid, while the rally stages, where you kick up dust on unpaved roads, will keep your hands sweating on the controller.
Even equipped with FSD(?), Horizon is accessible for beginners
‘Forza Horizon 6’ goes a step further by offering various assist features for beginners. Options like steering assist and braking assist alleviate the stress of cornering, which is where genre newcomers struggle most.
If you activate all the assist systems, it’s possible to complete a course without ever lifting your foot off the accelerator. Additionally, ‘Forza Horizon 6’ caters to beginners who may not be familiar with car upgrades and tuning, with the NPC ‘Yuji’ serving as a guide. As you engage in the car maintenance story with Yuji, he briefly explains the effects of each tuning option, allowing you to fine-tune your own cars for specific races or download tunes created by other players.
The game also includes an autonomous driving feature, where you can ask your AI assistant, ANNA, to take control during long distances between races or even during races themselves. While autonomous driving can make it difficult to overtake due to its consistent braking, utilizing some ‘body-checking’ at the start can help secure first place and finish the race effortlessly with the auto-drive feature.
Despite these features, the autonomous driving system may divide opinions as it can turn many races into repetitive tasks for advancing to the next tier. This aspect contributes to some of the shortcomings that will be discussed later on.
Looking for a superior option? Armchair racers need look no further than this.
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Experience a Japan-themed festival that fulfills fans’ desires -
Immerse yourself in a map design that captures the essence of the locale -
Enjoy a driving assist system tailored for beginners -
Experience Korean voice support right from launch
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Maintains excitement throughout the later stages -
An enticing display of progress created by a flawless formula
Review Platform: PC (Review Build)
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