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Forza Horizon 6 Goes Gold

Forza Horizon 6 Goes Gold - News

by William D'Angelo , posted on 04 May 2026 / 3,702 Views

Publisher Xbox Game Studios and developer Playground Games announced Forza Horizon 6 has gone gold. This means the game is now being pressed onto discs for retails and prepared for digital release.

Forza Horizon 6 will launch for the for Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, and Xbox Game Pass on May 19, and for the PlayStation 5 later in 2026. Early Access will start four days earlier on May 15 for those with the Premium Edition or Premium Upgrade.

Read details on the game below:

With less than two weeks to go until Forza Horizon 6 Early Access begins for players who have purchased the Premium Edition or Premium Upgrade, we’re excited to share with you all that the game has officially gone gold! This milestone means the game is being pressed onto discs for retail and prepared for digital release.

In addition, there is exciting news about preload availability and the full reveal of Forza Horizon 6's radio stations, the rendering specifications of Quality and Performance modes on Xbox Series X|S, and we’re taking a closer look at the game’s accessibility features.

Preload Forza Horizon 6

To coincide with this important milestone, Forza Horizon 6 is now available for preload on Xbox Series X|S and PC via the Xbox app (Steam preload coming soon). You can now download the game in its entirety and ensure you’re all set to experience the breathtaking landscapes of Japan as soon as the game is available to you. On Xbox Series X, you will need to have at least 135GB of available storage (130GB on Xbox Series S), and on PC, 160GB and an SSD is required.

You can pre-download Forza Horizon 6 if you have pre-ordered the game (Standard Edition, Deluxe Edition, or Premium Edition) or with an active Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass membership. If you’re planning to purchase Forza Horizon 6 on disc, you can also preload the game today by using the Xbox app on smartphones. Simply find Forza Horizon 6 in the Store and hit “Download to Console” to get started.

If you already pre-loaded Forza Horizon 6 with the placeholder file, we highly recommend checking for game updates on your platform of choice to confirm the complete game files are installed. This will ensure you’re all set to play Forza Horizon 6 as soon as Early Access begins on May 15 with the Premium Edition or Premium Upgrade, or on May 19 once the game rolls out globally.

Your Horizon Festival Soundtrack

We’re thrilled to be so close to the release of the game, and to celebrate, we’re excited to reveal the music you will hear on your journey towards becoming a Horizon Legend. Music isn’t just at the backdrop of our games; it’s at the forefront of the Horizon Festival. Forza Horizon has had it all, from global sensations and smash hits to hidden gems and genre-bending beats that have infused our iconic line-up of radio stations, expertly curated for your listening pleasure.

With Forza Horizon 6, it should be no surprise that iconic J-pop songs are debuting at the Horizon Festival for the first time, and these are combined with our unique flavour of electronic anthems, energising drum & bass, feel-good electropop, heavy-hitting rock, alternative indie, hip-hop beats, nostalgic synthwave, and modern classical.

With 9 radio stations to choose from, Forza Horizon 6 features the largest number of tracks yet in a Horizon title. Over the coming days on our @ForzaHorizon social channels, we will be revealing the extensive track selection of radio songs in the game. If you want to listen to the soundtrack before release, we will also create a Spotify playlist for each station.

  • Horizon Pulse
  • Horizon Bass Arena
  • Horizon Block Party
  • Horizon XS
  • Hospital Records
  • Gacha City Radio
  • Sub Pop Records
  • Horizon Wave
  • Horizon Opus

Horizon Bass Arena

Artist Track
Feiertag Embers
Haywyre Chromatically
Ninajirachi Infohazard
Rusko Rubix Cube
Daniel Allan Can It Be Easy (feat. Lyrah)
Lindstrøm Cirkl
ALIGN Walls (feat. ellie d.)
Confidence Man I CAN'T LOSE YOU
Dom Dolla, Daya Dreamin (Eli Brown Remix)
Grey IDK
Milk Talk Sayonara Alpinist (Macroxx 82-99 Remix)
Pretty Girl Rewind
Subtronics Friends (feat. Linney)
Camden Cox, Punctual, Shift K3Y Surround Me
FISHER Stay
Gryffin Spin Me Slowly (feat. Julia Church)
it's murph, Emi Grace Stone Cold Eyes
Punctual Eden (feat. Hannah Boleyn)
TEED The Echo
Tourist Outside
Calvin Harris, Clementine Douglas Blessings (Odd Mob Remix)
Anna Lunoe Deep Blue Sea (Bryson Hill Remix)
ISOxo how2fly
Snakehips Pipe Down (feat. DijahSB)
Marshall Jefferson, Bart Skils Sweet Harmony
DLG., Yung Bae On The Dash
Urbandawn Yuki Touge

Horizon XS

Artist Track
A Day To Remember Bad Blood
BABYMETAL ー白炎ー (White Flame)
Sleep Theory III
Rise Against I Want It All
Biffy Clyro Friendshipping
Coheed and Cambria Searching for Tomorrow
Linkin Park Up From The Bottom
PassCode Ray
Poppy new way out
Snõõper Worldwide
Spiritbox Keep Sweet
Turnstile SOLE
BABYMETAL Gimme Chocolate!!
Spiritual Cramp Go Back Home
Ecca Vandal VERTICAL WORLDS
BAND-MAID What is justice?
Coach Party Disco Dream
GOKUMON(UchikubiGokumonDoukoukai) hatarakitakunai
Pendulum, AWOLNATION Guiding Lights
South Arcade Drive Myself Home
Teen Mortgage Disappear
Bearings Comfort Company
Death Lens Power
ONE OK ROCK Dystopia (Japanese Version)
Witch Post The Wolf

Quality and Performance Modes on Xbox Series X|S

On Xbox Series X|S, we’re including both Quality and Performance rendering modes so you can prioritize your preference for graphics or framerate while playing Forza Horizon 6.

On Xbox Series X, the Quality mode runs in native 4K resolution at 30fps with increased visual fidelity, while the Performance mode targets 4K resolution, scaling dynamically to maintain a smooth 60fps.

Meanwhile, Xbox Series S players can enjoy Japan in 1440p at 30fps with Quality mode, and 1080p at 60fps in Performance mode – with both options dynamically scaling the output resolution to maintain their targeted framerate.

Loyalty Rewards for Forza Veterans

The Forza community spans decades of games, and to show our appreciation to those who have been with us all the way, we have created a set of Loyalty Rewards for players of our previous games. Check out the list of games and cars below – if your Xbox Gamertag has played the game listed, you will receive its associated car in Forza Horizon 6 once you complete the Tokyo City introductory race with Mei.

Game Car
Forza Motorsport 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray
Forza Horizon 5 2021 Mercedes-AMG ONE
Forza Horizon 4 2016 Aston Martin Vulcan
Forza Horizon 3 2016 Lamborghini Centenario LP 770-4
Forza Horizon 2 2014 Lamborghini Huracán LP-610-4
Forza Horizon 2013 Dodge SRT Viper GTS

Customize Your Horizon Experience

Forza Horizon 6 includes the rich suite of accessibility features the Horizon series is known for and introduces some new options. AutoDrive can be accessed with ANNA by using the d-pad while you’re exploring Japan. Pause the game, open the map, set a waypoint to your preferred location, and use ANNA to initiate AutoDrive. Then you can sit back, relax and take in the breathtaking sights of Japan.

Meanwhile, Proximity Radar helps identify cars in your blind spots, making it easier to avoid unintentional collisions and keep the racing clean, especially when using cockpit, hood, or bumper cameras. You can choose which HUD location works best for you, and you can even enable audio cues. Our biggest new feature, however, is High Contrast Mode, which makes the game’s open world of Japan more visually accessible.

High Contrast Mode simplifies the screen to make it easier for players to distinguish important objects. It’s fully customizable, allowing players to calibrate the experience in a way that works best for them.

Other accessibility options returning to Forza Horizon 6 include full controller remapping functionality on all platforms, screen reading narration, subtitles, adjustable camera field-of-view options on PC, color-blind filters, Offline Game Speed modification, and our full set of difficulty settings and driving assists.

In a post-launch update, players will be able to enable American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) for cinematics which will feature picture-in-picture display of an ASL or BSL interpreter during cinematic game scenes, with the ability to change where the interpreter appears on screen.

Japan Awaits!

Are you ready to obtain your Festival Wristband? It’s your ticket to the greatest car culture and music event in the world – the journey to Legend Island is almost here!


A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can follow the author on Bluesky.


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9 Comments
HopeMillsHorror (on 05 May 2026)

Forza Horizon 5 getting delisted in 3....2....1....

  • +1
Chris Hu HopeMillsHorror (on 06 May 2026)

Not anytime soon since it was just released on the PS5 last year.

  • +1
Azzanation (on 05 May 2026)

Awesome news. Been awhile since a new Horizon released.

  • +1
BraLoD (on 05 May 2026)

Game looking pretty good

  • 0
firebush03 (on 04 May 2026)

Mina the Hallower went Gold a few weeks ago yet here I am still empty handed as FH6 fans await their shiny new game in just a few weeks… >:(

(I’m not actually angry lol.) This game looks like it’ll be very cool! Would definitely consider purchasing if the steering wheel set up wouldn’t cost my an arm and a leg… and if Yoshi + Bubsy weren’t also dropping the same week.

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Azzanation firebush03 (on 05 May 2026)

Yeah that game looked promising. Not sure what happened with that.

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firebush03 Azzanation (on 05 May 2026)

Release is imminent, no doubt. If the game has gone Gold, then that means its done, no?

  • 0
Chris Hu firebush03 (on 06 May 2026)

Usually when a game gone Gold it already has a firm release date. Well, I'm pretty sure NBA The Run is close to going Gold and it still has not has a firm release date yet either it just says June of this year. Also, Forza Horizon 6 went Gold last Friday already since that is when you could first download the full game.

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firebush03 Chris Hu (on 06 May 2026)

Ah I see. Well Mina just got confirmed for three weeks from Thursday, so I guess release was imminent after all.

  • +1