In the week of its launch, Forza Horizon 5 made history by becoming the largest ever release for Xbox Game Studios (XGS) with 4.5 million active players.
Forza Horizon 5 celebrates historic launch
News of the historic feat for XGS was first shared on social media by Xbox Head Phil Spencer, who revealed that the motorsport game’s fifth edition has three times more active players than Forza Horizon 4.
We've invested for years in Xbox so more people can play. With 4.5+ million players so far across PC, cloud & console, Forza Horizon 5 shows that promise coming to life. Largest launch day for XGS game, peak concurrent 3x FH4 high. Thank you players & congrats to @WeArePlayground
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) November 10, 2021
FH5 review: An instant hit for petrolheads
Race gamers with an Xbox machine will absolutely find the fifth instalment of the Forza Horizon series a mind-blowing ‘road trip that never ends.
Expert gamer Sam Byford wrote, in a recent piece for The Verge, that Forza Horizon 5 may well be “one of the best games of the year.”
“The physics feel somewhat grounded in reality, and you’ll notice big differences in how various cars handle, but the driving model is very forgiving, and it’s easy for anyone to pick up and play,” Byford said.
Vijay Pattni from Top Gear also heralded the Microsoft game as the “quintet of open-world Forza games.”
“Exploration is never a chore though, with the game’s multiple competing reward systems constantly tugging at your trouser leg like a litter of boundlessly energetic puppies,” he said.
Justin Towell from Rock Paper Shotgun easily crowned FH5 the best modern open-world driving game.
“It’s an open world racer of humongous scale, dressed up in beautiful, destructible environments that are nothing like the dioramas of old. Foliage flattens under your car, seasons change, and water splashes look the best they’ve ever looked in any racing game,” he wrote.
These are the critics reviews for FH5 since its release this week:
- Metacritic: 92%
- PC Gamer: 90%
- IGN: 10/10