Forza Horizon 6: New Details and Gameplay Footage Revealed
Today, during the 2026 Xbox Developer Direct, Playground Games gave the first look at Forza Horizon 6 gameplay and shared a treasure trove of details. We’re going to give you a full breakdown of everything we know so far, including car count, release date, features, and other details. Let’s get into it,
Forza Horizon 6 Gameplay Video
When is Forza Horizon 6 Coming Out?
Let’s get this out first. Forza Horizon 6 is coming to Xbox and PC on May 19th, 2026, and on PlayStation later in the year, “when it’s ready.” That last bit suggests that Playground Games is reserving the right to delay the PlayStation 5 port if needed. Though if we had to guess, we’d expect a Q4 launch for the PS5 version. If you’re surprised that Forza Horizon 6 is coming to PlayStation, don’t be. Xbox made it pretty clear last year that it is no longer interested in the so-called “console wars” and has already started porting some of its biggest titles to PlayStation 5, including Forza Horizon 5.
How Many Cars Will Be Available At Launch?
According to Playground Games, Forza Horizon 6 will have over 550 cars at launch. While a full list wasn’t provided, the gameplay reveal showcased a variety of car types and plenty of JDM gems, including the first-generation Honda Civic CVCC, the Mitsubishi 3000 GT VR-4, the Nissan Silvia S15, the Toyota Supra, and more. There were also off-road buggies, Kei-trucks, and drift cars. We might put together a spotter’s guide listing all the cars we’ve seen so far in the gameplay footage shown, so stay tuned for that.
What’s The Cover Car?
In a “surprising, but not surprising,” move, the Toyota GR GT will be the official cover car for Forza Horizon 6. The new supercar was recently revealed, alongside its GT3 race car and Lexus LFA variants. Though it won’t be alone. The Toyota GR GT will share the Forza Horizon 6 cover with the 2026 Toyota Land Cruiser. While the GR GT3 race car and new Lexus LFA concepts weren’t confirmed to be in the game, we would be folding money that when Toyota signed on with the GR GT, it was a three-for-one deal.
Japan Open World
When it comes to Forza Horizon locations, things never take a step backwards. Naturally, that means Playground Games is touting the Japan open world map as the biggest in the series. The developers promise the Japan map for Forza Horizon 6 will feature a healthy mix of locations, separated into “districts.” Districts will include suburbs on the outskirts of Tokyo, the docklands district (aka an industrial port), and, finally, downtown, which will feature places like Shibuya Crossing, Ginko Avenue, and Tokyo Tower.
You can also expect to find vast farmlands, forests, and mountain roads. For those who love bounding around the desert in buggies, you may be bummed out. However, while Japan does not technically have a desert, it does have the famous Tottori Sand Dunes, which overlook the Sea of Japan. The Sand Dunes were not mentioned in the reveal, though we’re not ready to rule out their exclusion from the game yet.
The Story is a “Fresh Start”
Aside from the changing locations, another trademark of the Forza Horizon series is the loose story that revolves around the player in each entry. In Forza Horizon 4, the player was an up-and-coming racer, and in Forza Horizon 5, the player was already a champion defending the throne. Forza Horizon 6 takes you back to the beginning as you play the role of a tourist who wants to enter the Horizon Festival.
To do that, you’ll have to earn your spot by competing in a Horizon Qualifier event. Once qualified, you’ll compete in races and other events, which culminate in a showcase or the new “Horizon Rush” obstacle course events, to earn a wristband (yes, wristbands are returning) to move up to the next level. Once the player obtains the golden wristband, they’ll be granted access to “Legend Island,” which features exclusive events, tracks, and other areas.
New Features
In addition to the new Horizon Rush event, there is a host of other new features coming to Forza Horizon 6, starting with the Collection Journal. The Collection Journal is inspired by Japan’s stamp-collecting culture. The Journal will be where the player collects digital mementos by taking photos of murals, landmarks, mascots, and other notable areas, which will add stamps to the collection.
Next are Car Meets, which is a new spin on a feature from previous Forza Horizon games. Car meets are places where players can meet other players, check out cars, download custom paint jobs and designs, or even purchase a version of a car that they like. There will be three Car Meet locations in Forza Horizon 6: the Horizon Festival, the Alps at the Okuibuki parking area, and Daikoku, which is inspired by the real-life world-famous Daikoku car meets.
The new “Aftermarket Cars” will seemingly replace barn finds (we’ve reached out to Playground Games for confirmation). As players travel across Japan, they’ll find these one-off aftermarket cars parked in driveways across the map. If they’re anything like barn finds, they may not be all that easy to find, so be prepared for a hunt.
When it comes to customization, there are several notable additions. Playground Games has listened to the long-time player requests and has finally extended decal designs to vehicle windows in Forza Horizon 6.
Houses are returning, and this time, garages will be customizable so players can arrange them to suit their personal style. Players will also be able to invite other players to check out their garages. We don’t have any more details on how deep garage customization can go, but we expect Playground Games to fill us in before launch, so stay tuned.
The design lab that allowed players to create their own tracks and courses is returning, but this time it will have the new “CoLab” feature that essentially turns the design lab into a multiplayer affair. Now two players can work on designing a course at the same time, which should lend itself to some wild collaborative efforts.
Stay Tuned
We’ve covered a lot here, but there is so much more we want to know about Forza Horizon 6, so we’re going to follow this story as closely as we can. With the game set to release in May, we hope that Xbox and Playground Games will be willing to share more in a few months. As soon as we know more, we’ll share it with you, so stay tuned. If there is anything else you want to know about Forza Horizon 6, let us know, and we’ll see if we can pass on your questions to the developers. In the meantime, check out the gameplay footage and screenshot gallery.
One More Thing…Freakin’ Gundam?!
As one last tease at the end of the reveal Playground Games teased a wild collaboration as what appeared to be a giant Gundam mech walked into the frame just before it cut away to the next game. Could one of the showcase events involve a giant walking Gundam? Unfortunately we’re going to have to wait a few months to find out…
Forza Horizon 6 Screenshot Gallery
