Playground Games News Articles
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...
Tuesday9th Nov 2021
News Xbox Actually Yeeted A Real Life Car From The Sky To Promote Forza Horizon 5
No joke
We've seen some crazy marketing stunts in our time, but this one just takes the biscuit. To celebrate the launch of Forza Horizon 5, the Xbox team took it upon themselves to genuinely drop a car from the sky and then take it for a spin. If you're unaware, the opening of Forza Horizon 5 has you dropping out of various planes in an assortment...
Monday8th Nov 2021
News Forza Horizon 5 Early Access Surpasses One Million Players
It's off to the races
Forza Horizon 5 may not be officially launching until this Tuesday with Xbox Game Pass, but over one million players appear to have already dived into the early access edition of the game with the Premium Edition bundle. Following an immensely positive reception with its reviews, it seems players just can't wait until November...
Thursday4th Nov 2021
Roundup Here’s What The Critics Are Saying About Forza Horizon 5
Is the series still firing on all cylinders?
Xbox’s arguably first major first-party game of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S generation is upon us, as Forza Horizon 5 is finally making its way to our systems, with early access beginning as soon as this Friday. Five entries later, you’d be forgiven for thinking the series may be running out...
Sunday31st Oct 2021
News Forza Horizon 5's First Update Is Now Live, 20GB For Xbox Series X|S
Add that to the 100GB+ base game installation
Last week, as you might recall, the Xbox and PC pre-load for Forza Horizon 5 on Game Pass (and anyone who purchased the game) got released. It was over 100GB and even larger on the past-gen platform Xbox One. Some people have now taken to social media sites like Twitter to reveal the first update is now...
Tuesday12th Oct 2021
News Forza Horizon 5 Looks 'Very Good' On Xbox One, Enthuses Playground Games
"People are really gonna love it"
Judging by yesterday's previews of Forza Horizon 5, it's going to be a visual stunner. Many outlets were blown away by the game's visuals, and it's not surprising. Playground Games has perhaps crafted its most beautiful game thus far, and while the Xbox One version may not hit the same benchmark, the developer still...
Wednesday22nd Sep 2021
Video Here’s 11 Minutes Of Battle Royale Gameplay In Forza Horizon 5
The fan-favourite Eliminator mode returns
Forza Horizon 5 is getting a ton of previews ahead of its launch, with Playground Games revealing new information every week. The latest has focused (partly) on the Eliminator mode, accompanied by 11 minutes of new gameplay. Originally added to Forza Horizon 4 post-launch, the popular mode - which is...
Tuesday7th Sep 2021
Video Forza Horizon 5 Shows Off Its High Octane Single Player Adventure
Something for everyone
Playground Games has shared a new exciting look at Forza Horizon 5's single-player campaign, Horizon Adventure, which truly looks to be the biggest and best take on the formula yet. In a lengthy live stream, the developer went through what players will be doing in the campaign. Via an extremely colourful, fun map, players...
Tuesday24th Aug 2021
Video Prepare To Have Your Mind Blown By The First Eight Minutes Of Forza Horizon 5
In all its 4K glory
There's no denying Forza Horizon 5 is an absolute stunner. It looked gorgeous even during the 1080p Xbox Gamescom 2021 stream, and now the 4K footage has dropped, delivering the full jaw-dropping experience in all its glory. Playground Games has released footage of the first eight minutes of the game, and anyone who has played...
Thursday12th Aug 2021
Video Here Are Two Gorgeous Forza Horizon 5 Gameplay Videos In 4K
New car customisation, a look at the map & more
Forza Horizon 5 is coming to Xbox this November, and it looks gorgeous. We've been treated to an array of trailers, interviews and more, but these raw footage videos are perhaps the best look at the game we've had thus far. In the first video, we have just over 11 minutes of footage to gorge our eyes...
Monday9th Aug 2021
News Cyberpunk 2077's Senior Gameplay Designer Joins Playground Games To Work On Fable
He's "designing and implementing combat"
With how many games are developed every year, it always seems as though the industry is rather small when you see developers swapping between companies. Now, the latest change sees Cyberpunk 2077's senior gameplay designer making the move to Playground Games to work on Fable as a principal game designer. The...
Tuesday27th Jul 2021
Gallery The 11 Unique Biomes Of Forza Horizon 5
Seasons will also return
Forza Horizon 5 is headed to Mexico this November. The game's creative director Mike Brown has previously explained how it's a country with the "whole world" in one place - ranging from snowy mountains, epic canyons to beautiful historic cities - making it the perfect location to hold the festival. Now in an official...
Tuesday13th Jul 2021
News Playground Games Has Improved Car Sounds In Forza Horizon 5
There are also more than 320 brand new car recordings
While the Forza Horizon series could almost be described as the perfect game for car enthusiasts, the sounds of vehicles haven't always lived up to expectations. The game's community often talks about how car engines don't always match their real-life counterparts or sounded better in past...
Monday12th Jul 2021
News New Forza Horizon 5 Details Confirm Convertibles, Drag Races And Flamingos
Along with new customisation options
Forza Horizon 5 is, well, on the horizon, and it's shaping up to be a pretty ambitious title. Being the fifth entry in the franchise, the gameplay will be ramped up yet again, and some new confirmed details from Playground Games instil a lot of confidence. A ton of ground was covered by the team in a recent blog...
Wednesday30th Jun 2021
News Forza Horizon 4 Appears To Be Done With New Cars And Features
Season 38 will recycle older content
With Forza Horizon 5 festival kicking off in Mexico this November, it seems the latest update for Forza Horizon 4 will be the last one to include new cars and features. Here's what Playground's senior producer, Tom Butcher had to say about the future of the game: “With Forza Horizon 5’s release being our...
