Forza Horizon 5 review

Last updated : 25/12/2022 [Incomplete, will never be updated]

- Introduction -
- Disclaimer -
Storyline | Main story | Showcases | Sub-stories | Gameplay / Progression | Races | Cars | Online
Performance
- Other insignificant points -
Conclusion

Introduction

This is probably something I haven't done at all, but will probably do for some games (particularly those that I have played, at least). But still, here we go - a review for Forza Horizon 5, the blatantly overhyped simulation / arcade / "open"-world racing game of 2021.

Disclaimer

Storyline

First, let's tackle the weakest link of the game - the story.

Main story

In a nutshell, here's how the main story boils down to :

In addition to these, you also have "expeditions", which unlocks new Horizon outposts & events. All of them involve the player going to different places, maybe do some optional objectives, and finally go to the place where the outpost will be located. The expeditions are listed & nutshelled below :

Showcases

All showcase races can be nutshelled into this : You race in a prebuilt shitbucket (not the shitbucket that you chose & tune to your specs) against non-car opponents who dominate you hard until the finish line, where they magically slow down to let you win. Most of them are optional, allowing you to ignore them. All of these will be listed below.

Sub-stories

There are several sub-stories in FH5, all of which are going to be listed & nutshelled here, without any order of relevance. All of the pre-updates sub-stories (except for one) locks their final chapter behind the Hall of Fame.

DLCs

Gameplay / Progression

The progression system is tied to Accolades, which is earned by doing anything - winning races, discovering locations, doing stunts, even spending cash. As you earn Accolades, you also gain Accolade Points (and other rewards) which contribute towards your Horizon Adventure. Once enough Accolade Points are obtained, you will be abruptly & forcefully stopped as you are forcefully notified that you can unlock a chapter of Horizon Adventure. This repeats until you reach the Hall of Fame.

As for the car progression, you basically get none by default. You get 3 (4 if you count the Hoonigan Cossie you get from the forced showcase) decent starters (B-class Ford Bronco, A-class Toyota GR Supra, S1-class Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Coupe), and you can buy your way into either the lowly 70s Toyota Celica or that ultra-expensive Koenigsegg Agera as soon as you get the cash for it, instead of having to start in a shitbucket (such as the common Acura Integra, the absent Chevrolet Cobalt SS, or some old Honda Civic) then working your way up to that super-OP Koenigsegg Regera (or something like Mazda Miata > Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX > Toyota Supra RZ > Chevrolet Corvette C7 ZR1 > Mercedes-Benz AMG ONE). The Hot Wheels DLC tries to fix this by having you start out on a B-class Boneshaker (maxed out for its class) & locking your cars out if they are at a higher class than the class you can access, but that's about it - this restriction is only present on the Hot Wheels DLC.

Races

For the races, there are 4 kinds, listed below.

In general, the races are subject to these rules :

Cars

This section is incomplete.

Online

I won't be saying much for the online gameplay as I don't access it, but here are a few things that stick out to me :

Performance

Of course, this game review won't be cosidered a "valid" game review without some mention of performance, so here goes. In short, on 2019's i7-9750H & GTX 1050 (in other words, my ROG Strix G531GD), it runs decently smoothly for me, assuming you're not around either of these 3 : flashing lights, a festival, and/or racing at night.

The graphics settings I use are listed below for reference.

Other insignificant points

Conclusion

On one hand, FH5 offers a somewhat decent racing game. However, its issues, severe & plentiful, completely destroys it. Not to mention pirating the game is worthless since 1.527.960.0 because that version broke offline mode & no one has fixed them yet.

I originally rated it "geh", but here's one who gets to say it better:



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