Nine minutes of Forza Horizon 6 footage was released by gaming media giant IGN yesterday (5th March 2026), and the reaction was… mixed.
The pre-release footage took viewers on a journey through the latest instalment of Horizon’s Japanese setting, covering expressways, sleepy coastal villages and the confines of the country’s largest metropolis, Tokyo.
But if the footage was designed to bombastically show how polished the game is two months ahead of its 19th May release date, it failed.
The perfect storm
There are many reasons for this, but ultimately, the way the footage was presented showed the game in an unflattering light. For example, the video appears to run at just 30 fps, providing a slightly juddery look at the game’s beautiful vistas (and judging from earlier ‘in-engine’ footage, there’s no reason to believe FH6 won’t look the part when released).
HDR also appears to have muddied the visuals somewhat, leading to washed-out textures and contrast issues. Just look at the tunnel entrance compared to its surrounding landscape below. Jarring.
Although the video is available in 4K resolution, it looks more like 1080p, possibly due to the combination of factors above. Some visual pop-in was visible, too, but certainly not by an alarming or off-putting amount.
Another confusing decision was made regarding the choice of car. A Toyota GR Yaris, a Nissan Skyline, or a Mazda RX-7 would have been ideal vehicles to showcase the beautiful landscapes developer Playground Games has built.
However, we were presented with an all-American Saleen S7 LM (a car already in FH 5).
Sure, its meaty V8 engine sounds great and backfires vigorously, but it hardly screams ‘Japan’, does it? The car was mostly driven sedately, too, with zero sideways action (boooo).
In the land where drifting was born, and with ample opportunity to hang the Saleen’s rear-end out, it’s a jarring juxtaposition.
AI. What AI?
Perhaps the most noticeable issue from the gameplay footage is the lack of AI traffic. Seriously, Tokyo looks like a ghost town. However, it was later explained that this was a deliberate ploy:
‘A note on this for people commenting: the traffic was intentionally tuned down here in order to focus more on the environment/world of Japan,’ stated IGN’s Senior Executive Editor Ryan McCaffrey. ‘Obviously, the full game will have more cars driving around,’ he concluded.
It may have been more sensible to announce this fact when the footage was posted online, admittedly, but it should alleviate some concerns from those worried about the lack of computer-controlled cars on the roads.
Likewise, some of the odd behaviour of traffic can be explained by AI’s simplified implementation, with cars appearing not to steer properly around corners. Some even seem capable of catching air on steep inclines, even at slow speeds.
Wide load
One complaint many viewers raised was the width of the roads in virtual Japan. Even in Tokyo’s famously tight city streets, there’s easily enough space for three cars.
Those hoping this will change ahead of release will likely be disappointed, given that there are fewer than nine weeks until the big day. And why would it change, as FH games are renowned for their fun and forgiving gameplay? The in-game roads are going to be wider than in the real world, and that’s not going to change.
It’s not necessarily authentic, but given we’ve only seen a curated view of the game world, there could be tighter ribbons of asphalt just around the corner…
No worries
For all intents and purposes, FH6’s gameplay footage didn’t show much gameplay, instead acting as a gentle introduction to Japan’s various interlinking environments.
There were few signs of career progression (split into Horizon Festival and Discover Japan strands), and there were no events or races to pore over, which, on an ephemeral level, leaves an uninspiring impression.
However, you can’t criticise what isn’t there, so my hopes remain high that FH6 will feature similarly engaging gameplay as most of its predecessors have.
No doubt, the presentation could have been better, but developer Playground is experienced in producing slick driving experiences.
And there’s no reason to doubt this won’t be the case again with FH6.
Expect the next Forza Horizon 6 footage presentation to be super-slick…
Chat with the Community
Sign Up To CommentIt's completely Free