Forza Horizon 6

I went into Forza Horizon 6 hoping for a fresh take on the series — Japan was the promise, and at first glance Playground Games mostly delivers. Tokyo is dense, vertical and fun to drive through, while the countryside and mountain touges finally give the map real elevation and character. The game feels like the best Horizon entry in years in many small ways: handling tweaks, richer car audio and a tighter progression loop. However, the launch has that familiar mixture of brilliance and rough edges — stutters on some hardware, weird DRM hiccups and questionable AI remain part of the ride.

Tokyo Streets and Mountain Touges

Driving in Forza Horizon 6 is immediately satisfying: Tokyo’s elevated highways, narrow downtown alleys and seaside docks offer a surprising variety of racing environments and demand different driving approaches. I found myself swapping setups more often than in FH5 because a power monster that dominates on the highway struggles on tight urban routes or twisty touges. Events are balanced around wristband progression, so you actually feel the step-up when new classes and restrictions unlock — a welcome return to pacing that rewards a little patience. Open-world cruising, PR stunts and the new Horizon Rush encounters mix things up so the map rarely feels repetitive.

Car Culture, Garages and CoLab Creativity

The game leans hard into Japanese car culture without trying to be a museum: over 550 cars, JDM classics and Forza Edition rarities are here, and the garage/estate system invites real personalisation. I spent hours arranging props in my custom garage and downloading impressive community layouts — EventLab and the new CoLab multiplayer tools genuinely let you build and share creative events anywhere on the map. Customization is a mix of subtle OEM+ options and familiar bodykit bits; if you’re into tasteful builds or small sleepers this will scratch the itch. Multiplayer is seamless most of the time: quick drag meets, Car Meets and Spec Racing feel natural and social, though a few matchmaking quirks still pop up.

Looks, Sound and Technical Wrinkles

Graphically Forza Horizon 6 is a stunner at times: cherry blossoms, neon reflections, rain-slick streets and believable city lighting are a pleasure at speed. The audio overhaul is equally notable — engines, blow-off valves and ambient road noise are clearer and more distinct than in FH5, which makes testing cars endlessly satisfying. But the game can be CPU-heavy and some players report microstuttering, especially on certain AMD configs or when ray tracing is maxed; DLSS/DLAA smearing and frame pacing oddities appear for some setups too. Launch technicals — DRM/Xbox app issues, some Wayland/Proton quirks on Linux and wheel compatibility edge-cases — are real annoyances, though many were fixable with driver updates or community workarounds. Overall: gorgeous presentation and smart new toys, tempered by platform-specific performance and the occasional online hiccup.

Forza Horizon 6 is an enjoyable, often beautiful evolution of the series: Japan breathes fresh life into the Horizon template and many QoL fixes make progression more satisfying. If you value a rich open-world, great car audio and community tools, it’s easy to recommend — just be aware of AI quirks and platform-specific performance issues at launch. Buy on sale if you’re cautious, but don’t be surprised if this becomes your summer driving addiction.