Forza Horizon 6 has hit a higher peak player count than Forza Horizon 5 and it's not even out yet

I guess we can call Forza Horizon 6 letting players go to Japan and race against a mech a success then. The incarnation of Forza Horizon with kei trucks and indestructible cherry blossom trees in it is available four days early for people who buy the premium edition, and they have turned up in droves. It hit a peak of 178,009 players on Steam alone according to SteamDB, which puts it well ahead of Forza Horizon 5, the previous entry peaking at 81,096 players on Steam four-and-a-half years ago.

Racing games really have become one of those genres where a single competitor ends up streets ahead of everyone else, to the point where it's the only option for serious heads. Word is that Motorsport was killed off in Microsoft's cuts, and Need for Speed's been put on hold so Criterion can focus on Battlefield. Even Lego 2K Drive is being delisted.

It does seem like Forza Horizon 6 has earned that dominance, though. Our Phil Savage gave it an 84 in his review, saying, "There is a staggering amount to do, and an absurd number of cars to do it all in. No other racing series operates on this scale, with this much sandbox freedom."

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Those players forking out $120 for the premium edition (or £110 in the UK, or $190 in Australian dollarydoos), aren't just doing it for the privilege of playing four days early, though. That outlay also nets you two expansions, a car pass and two car packs, as well as a welcome pack and a VIP membership. If you know you're going to be buying the DLC anyway, I can see why you'd put your money down ahead of time. As the kind of person who bought a lot of Total War DLC the piecemeal way, I can understand why you'd rather take the hit to your budget all at once, in advance.

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