Playground Games News Articles
Friday30th Sep 2022
News Forza Dev Confirms Horizon 4 Won't Be Delisted Anytime Soon
"No need to worry"
A Forza series community manager has squashed concerns over Forza Horizon 4 potentially being delisted in the coming months. In a Forza forum thread discussing Horizon 4's 'end of life' status, community manager T10ManteoMax (as their forum name goes) had this to say about the future of Playground's fourth Forza Horizon game:...
Saturday3rd Sep 2022
News Xbox's Matt Booty Is 'Excited' To Show The New Fable Game
But can't until Playground Games is ready...
One upcoming first-party Xbox title that's got many people excited is the new Fable game by the Forza Horizon developer Playground Games. There have been some minor development updates over the past few months, but what's the latest? In a special storytime session at this year's PAX, Head of Xbox Game...
Saturday20th Aug 2022
Pick One What's The Best Racing Series In Xbox History?
C'mon, it's PGR!
Right, after our recent rant about Forza Horizon's current direction and the greatness of the PGR series, we started to think about some of the most popular racing series' on Xbox, past and present. Forza, as a whole, has been a platform mainstay for years now and is absolutely one of the best racers out there when you look at the...
Monday1st Aug 2022
News Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels Hits 1 Million Players In Under 2 Weeks
Speedy progress
Last month, Forza Horizon 5's first expansion in the form of Hot Wheels finally arrived, marking Forza's second crossover with the iconic franchise. In a little under two weeks since that launch, the DLC has already surpassed one million players worldwide, which is quite a feat! The stat comes from the DLC's in-game 'Hall of Fame'...
Wednesday20th Jul 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Series 10 Is Now Live, Here Are The Full Patch Notes
Download it now
Playground Games' Hot Wheels expansion for Forza Horizon 5 is now live and it means Series 10 of the game is available as well. Included in this latest update are a bunch of new features as well as some major game fixes. We've got the full rundown courtesy of Forza support's social channel and the official web page: Forza Horizon...
Tuesday19th Jul 2022
News Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels Launches Today, Discounted For Xbox Game Pass Members
Expansion 1 is upon us
As Dusk Falls has been getting a lot of attention in the run up to its launch later today, July 19th, but we shouldn't forget that Forza Horizon 5's first expansion is also dropping on this way-too-hot British Tuesday in mid-July... Yep, Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels goes live later today, bringing a whole new...
Wednesday13th Jul 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels: Full List Of Xbox Achievements Revealed
Achievements for the base game & expansion
Ahead of the July 19th release of the Hot Wheels expansion for Forza Horizon 5, Playground Games has revealed the Xbox and Steam exclusive achievements coming in the Series 10 Update. All up, there'll be a total of 28 achievements to unlock for a total Gamerscore of 500. Here's the list, courtesy of the...
Sunday10th Jul 2022
News Control Writer Becomes Fable's New Narrative Lead
"Some exciting news to end the week"
There's been a lot of movement within the walls of Playground Games, and the latest development comes from Anna Megill - a writer known for games like Control and Dishonored, who joined Playground Games as a lead writer in 2020. In a new update, Megill has now taken charge as the narrative lead of the new Fable...
Sunday3rd Jul 2022
News Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels Is Now Live For Pre-Order
It releases in just over two weeks!
We're getting pretty darn close to Forza Horizon 5's first expansion, as the series returns to the Hot Wheels well later this month. Ahead of DLC 1's July 19th launch, the Xbox Store page is now live with a little more info about the add-on, and the ability to place a pre-order. Here's the new developer...
Wednesday22nd Jun 2022
News Major Forza Horizon 5 Update Adds Co-Op To Horizon Stories, New Hot Wheels Content
Series 9 is here
A pretty big Forza Horizon 5 update just dropped yesterday, June 21st (roughly 16GB on our end) ahead of the Hot Wheels DLC launch next month. While this sizeable patch could well contain some of that Hot Wheels expansion content tucked in there, it also brings a bunch of new features to the main game, for the here and now...
Tuesday14th Jun 2022
News Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels Extended Gameplay Revealed
Gotta go fast
Playground Games has treated us to some more footage of Forza Horizon 5's Hot Wheels expansion, showcasing the DLC's diverse biomes and expansive track layouts. This might be a bit of a repeat of the Forza Horizon 3 DLC of the same name, but that doesn't mean it looks any less fun. The brief demo also touched on the nature of the Hot...
News Project Gotham Racing's Failed Reboot Helped Create Forza Horizon
Project pain
Alright, we're absolutely huge PGR fans here at Pure Xbox (maybe some more than others!) so you can only imagine our collective sigh when this morning, we heard that a Project Gotham Racing reboot attempt failed at Xbox, back in the 360 era. Bummer! In a new interview with GQ Magazine, the outlet sat down with multiple members of the...
Monday13th Jun 2022
News Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels DLC Is Packed With 4 'New Biomes' & Over 200KM Of Track
This one looks STACKED
At the big Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, Forza Horizon 5 developer Playground Games finally unveiled the game's much anticipated first expansion. We're returning to the world of Hot Wheels, much like Forza Horizon 3's 2nd DLC pack. However, this isn't going to be a simple rehash, as FH5: Hot Wheels is massively upping...
Sunday12th Jun 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels Expansion Launches This July On Xbox
Loop de loop
Finally, news on Forza Horizon 5 DLC! Well, the leaks were true, Playground Games is returning to the Hot Wheels well next month, with the launch of Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels on July 19th. In terms of what to expect, it looks rather similar for the Forza Horizon 3 DLC of the same name to be honest. Sure, it'll be bigger and broader...
Friday10th Jun 2022
News Forza Horizon 4 Just Got An Update, New Save System Added
Blast from the past
All eyes are on Forza Horizon 5 at present, as we eagerly await news on the game's first major expansion. However, plenty of folks are still tearing up Great Britain's many, many muddy fields in Forza Horizon 4, and well, it just got updated for the first time in almost a year. As part of Series 49, Forza Horizon 4 has received...
Tuesday7th Jun 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Passes 20 Million Players Globally Since Launch
Ultimate pass
Forza Horizon 5 was one of Xbox's biggest releases last year, as Microsoft's Forza sub-series has really hit its stride. Just over half a year on since launch, the game has now seen over 20 million players blast around its open world rendition of Mexico. The figure comes from the game's 'Hall of Fame' leaderboard, which when filtered...
Monday6th Jun 2022
News Fable Development Is 'Going Fine' Despite Rumours, Says Jez Corden
Normal development ensues
Fable has been in the headlines a little bit recently, as rumours on its progress continue to come to light. After last week's developer response ensured us that the game's 'scoping' was a normal part of development, this week, Windows Central's Jez Corden has made similar assurances. Phew! On a recent episode of their...
Friday3rd Jun 2022
News Playground Games Seeking Experienced Senior Gameplay Animator For The Next Fable
"You’ll be working with characters, creatures and props"
The new Fable is a game we're all very excited about here at Pure Xbox, but recently we've had little to talk about in terms of updates - aside from a Senior Producer responding to concerns about "scoping" earlier this week. Back in March, Playground Games appointed a new lead-level...
Monday9th May 2022
News Forza Horizon 6 Development Underway As Playground Games Searches For Staff
Are we there yet? Japan that is
Forza Horizon 5 only launched about six months ago, but 'Horizon 6' appears to already be in development. A new job post, spotted by XGP, shows developer Playground Games advertising for a level designer on its "next AAA title", as part of the Forza Horizon team. Now, we don't know about you guys, but that sure...
Sunday1st May 2022
News Forza Horizon Briefly Returns To The Xbox Store
And it's now gone again!
There are a lot of great entries in the Forza Horizon series, but one that's not exactly readily available anymore is the original 2012 Xbox 360 game. According to multiple reports, it resurfaced on the Xbox store this weekend and was available for purchase for a brief amount of time before being pulled: This open-world...
Thursday31st Mar 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Update Overhauls Online Racing, Adds New Rides
Update: Series 6 Update now live!
Update: Forza Horizon 5's Series 6 update is now live! Here's a rundown of the new features: Original story: Developer Playground Games has detailed its upcoming Forza Horizon 5 Series 6 update, which'll contain the usual array of Festival Playlist goodies to go at. However, this particular update also brings...
Wednesday2nd Mar 2022
Random Playground Producer Pays Respects To Former Fable Studio With Tattoo Tribute
"I never forget the studio that made me"
Last month, it was discovered another former Lionhead employee Amie Loake - previously an assistant producer on the cancelled co-op game Fable Legends - had signed on with the Forza Horizon developer Playground Games to work on the new Fable title. She'll be joining the new Fable team as a senior producer,...
Tuesday1st Mar 2022
News Huge Forza Horizon 5 Series 5 Update Adds Sign Language Options, New Cars
Increased accessibility
It's almost time for the next series update in Forza Horizon 5! As usual, series 5 adds a bunch of new cars to the mix, including a selection available via the free Festival Playlist. However, before the playlist changes over, Playground has added some new accessibility options to the game. Starting today, March 1, American...
Friday18th Feb 2022
News Former Lionhead Employee Signs On With The New Fable Dev Playground
"I hope we can make my fellow Lions proud"
The next Fable game is one of the most mysterious projects within Xbox Game Studios right now. So far there's been a single teaser trailer, but apart from that, nothing else is really known about this anticipated release. That's what makes any news about it that much more exciting and with this in mind,...
Thursday3rd Feb 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Series 4 Update Introduces The Horizon World Cup, New Showcases
And a whole lot more!
A lot of Forza Horizon 5's updates so far have focused on ironing out bugs, understandable, as the online mode was a bit borked at launch. Things are more stable now though, and alongside the latest festival playlist update, Playground Games is adding a few new features. First up is the Horizon World Cup. This event takes...
Thursday27th Jan 2022
News Forza Fans Won't Give Up On Japan As The Next Horizon Location
Is this the place?
It's been a few short months since Forza Horizon 5 launched, and debate is already raging on various platforms as to where the next game should be set. Fans are bringing up all sorts of requests, including Chile, Germany and even somewhere in Africa. However, you guessed it, Japan is right up there as a top request. In a Reddit...
Tuesday25th Jan 2022
News Sea Of Thieves & Everwild Artist Jumps Ship To Fable Developer Playground Games
"I will be starting a new chapter"
One of the most anticipated (and perhaps secretive) Xbox releases is the next Fable game. All we really know at the moment is that it's been in development for at least four years now. Although it seems the project could be well underway, the recruitment drive continues - with Playground Games apparently kicking...
Thursday13th Jan 2022
News Forza Horizon 5 Nominated For GOTY At 2022 GDC Awards
Much deserved!
Just as we thought last year's various award shows were done, GDC comes along with one more. The Game Developers Conference takes place in March, and it has its very own awards show to boot. The show contains the usual array of awards, including, of course, Game of the Year. There's some stiff competition here with the likes of...
Wednesday15th Dec 2021
News Forza Horizon 5 Gets A New Hotfix, Including Online Improvements
Update today
Although Forza Horizon 5 received a lot of praise on release, since its public launch the online and multiplayer component has been troubled with ongoing issues. Playground already rolled out an update and hotfix earlier this month to improve the overall state of multiplayer and online, and now it's released another update. The team...
Wednesday17th Nov 2021
News Forza Horizon 5 Players Are Finding The Game's Dialogue A Little Grating
Cheesy banter and Spanglish among the complaints
Forza Horizon 5 has launched to pretty much universal acclaim - it's currently sat at a whopping 92 Metacritic rating - and quite rightly so as Playground Games' latest open world odyssey is one of the very best arcade racers on the market. However, some players have taken to Reddit in order to voice...
