Forza Horizon 5 was recently revealed during Xbox's showcase at E3 2021. The game was one of the biggest features of the event, with a large portion of time dedicated to describing Forza Horizon 5's setting and what new features and adventures players can expect when the game launches. The game all-around looks to be technically impressive, with an overhauled online system that allows players to see nearby drivers in real-time as well as recommending online activities through a new integrated AI assistant.
One of the biggest reveals about Forza Horizon 5 was also its setting in Mexico. The game's section of the Xbox E3 showcase went into a lot of detail by showing off a variety of different locations from dense jungle paths to a beautiful coastal city and the sprawling Mexico desert. The showcase also revealed that Forza Horizon 5 is incorporating art and murals from real Mexican artists to help bring the cultural wealth of the nation to the game as accurately as possible. The game looked undeniably beautiful, especially when shown in full 4K that would be available on the Xbox Series X/S.
Forza Horizon 5's New Graphical Features
The Forza series is well known for its graphical fidelity, especially the recently released PC port of Forza Horizon 4, but Forza Horizon 5 is able to take it to a whole new level thanks to some impressive graphical improvements. One of the game's biggest improvements is in its new day-and-night cycle and weather mechanics. In the showcase, Forza Horizon 5 details how the development team went to Mexico and recorded hours of the sky in different locations using cameras with 12K resolution to recreate it as realistically as possible. The footage allowed the team to implement a detailed lighting system in Forza Horizon 5 that constantly shifts and changes to be as accurate and lifelike as possible.
Forza Horizon 5 also features some locations that are recreated as accurately as possible using photogrammetry data. During the showcase, the team showed off a scene that included cacti with every needle rendered, citing that the photorealistic graphics in-game were possible thanks to the Xbox Series X. Another of Forza Horizon 5's impressive aspects comes from the game's draw distance. There is a moment in Forza Horizon 5's gameplay trailer that shows a player driving off the side of a mountain with miles of the landscape visible below in a beautiful spectacle thanks to the new console's superior rendering power.
Forza Horizon 5 truly looks like a next-generation title. The footage and details shown off during Xbox's E3 showcase are incredibly impressive and make the game look like a new leap in graphical fidelity and detail for the series. The reveal does seem to confirm the rumor from late last year that Forza Horizon 5 would release before the new Forza Motorsport title, as the latter title only got mentioned during the showcase in the form of a confirmation that the team is still working on it. Thankfully, players do not have too much longer to wait to get their hands on Forza Horizon 5 so that they can start racing across a beautiful recreation of Mexico.
Forza Horizon 5 releases on November 9 for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.