5 reasons to go loco for Forza Horizon 5!

It's been nearly 3 years since we last saw a new Forza game - The longest gap the series has ever witnessed - but come November 5th, that drought will come to an end. Now the Horizon Festival takes its high-octane thrills to Mexico and brings with it a whole host of features to get hugely excited for. There are plenty of them, but here are 5 highlights I've picked out:

The Best Looking Horizon Yet

Just when you thought Forza Horizon 4 was a marvel, Playground Games have worked their magic to somehow make Forza Horizon 5 even better looking. For the first time in the series, Ray-Tracing is enabled, but only in Forzavista. However, the game will support up to 4K on the Series X, while 60fps performance modes will be available for Series X and S consoles. We will find out more about how FH5 will perform on Xbox One consoles at a later date.

New ways to play

If there was one complaint about Forza Horizon 4 I had, it is the game felt too open-ended and lacked a sense of purpose. With the Horizon Story, the new game plans to rectify that. The player will be able to play through a "deep and rewarding" campaign, meeting characters along the way as they explore what Horizon Mexico has to offer.

More customisation than ever before

Forza Horizon 5 is set to receive the biggest overhaul to car customisation in the series to date - the UI will be overhauled and hundreds of parts are to be added, including new wheels and new body parts.

Character customisation has also received a significant boost too - Players will be able to a wider range of character presets and clothes. There are also new features including hairstyles, voices, prosthetic limbs and the ability to select pronouns.

Events Lab will quite literally be a game-changer

As of writing, I haven't tried out the Super 7 game mode in Forza Horizon 4 - I appreciate giving the players a greater scope for creativity, but it feels a little half-arsed. That's not the case with Events Lab - This is a new feature taking place in a stadium that gives players the ability to create their own races, events and gameplay experiences.

Drop tops out in the open

For the first time ever, you will be able to activate the roof of a convertible in freeroam. If you are a long-term fan of the franchise, you'll know how big of a deal this is! Who knows what other quality of life improvements lie in store...

There is still plenty more information to look forward to regarding Forza Horizon 5, including more details about the map, car list, radio stations and so much more. Roll on, November 5th!