Games by Playground Games
Reviews of Playground Games Games
Review Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure - A Love Letter To Rally
Eat dirt in this latest expansion
Rally has played a significant role in the automotive industry over the years, and Forza Horizon 5 is now acknowledging this important history (and the many rally games over the past few decades) in its latest ‘Rally Adventure’ expansion. Surprisingly, this isn’t the first time there’s been a rally add-on...
Review Forza Horizon 5: Hot Wheels – Back For An Enjoyable Second Lap
The skies above Mexico are calling
There was definitely some confusion when the first Forza Horizon 5 expansion was leaked on the Steam Store – indicating it would be Hot Wheels (again). While it was thought to be placeholder artwork for something else at the time, it was in fact another Hot Wheels expansion. This announcement received mixed...
Review Forza Horizon 5 - An Amazing Game, But One That's A Little Too Familiar
We feel like we've been to Mexico before...
When the Forza Horizon series originally showed up on Xbox 360 in 2012, it was quite a surprise for fans of the racing genre and was perhaps the first real competitor EA’s Need for Speed series had faced in a long time. The Xbox Game Studios franchise has since gone from strength to strength and is now...
Review Forza Horizon 2: Storm Island (Xbox One)
Making it rain.
When crafting a DLC package of any significant weight for a game that has gone down really well with gamers and critics alike, developers have to be careful. What they add can’t interfere with the mix that they already had, as they really don’t want to be messing with a successful formula. Playground Games found a way to ensure...
Review Forza Horizon 2 (Xbox One)
Bring us the horizon
Every so often, a game comes along that you imagine that you’ll be reminiscing about as a ninety-year-old while sipping a cup of weak tea in an old people’s home with your friends. Of course, the games of your youth will come up first. The arcade game that you beat with a single credit when you were on holiday with your...
Latest Playground Games News
Monday26th Jan 2026
News Fable Likely To Be A Huge Hit On PS5 As Sony-Hosted Trailer Hits 1 Million Views
Doubling Xbox's number already
Following Xbox and Playground's latest look at Fable, we learned that the upcoming RPG is launching day one on PS5 - and if the first Sony-hosted trailer is anything to go by, that could be a pretty shrewd move by Microsoft. In the wake of Fable showing up at Xbox Developer Direct, PlayStation uploaded the title's new...
Sunday25th Jan 2026
Feature Fable Could Finally Be Xbox's Big 'Game Of The Year' Contender, But There's One Problem
Hey, hey I wanna be a rockstar
There's been a long-running narrative for some time now that Xbox never quite seems to make the Game of the Year cut, particularly at The Game Awards showcase that happens each and every December. There's no doubt that Microsoft has produced some great games in recent years, but that big TGA award always seems to...
Friday23rd Jan 2026
News Forza Horizon 6 Is Tweaking Progression In The Hopes Of Addressing A Common Series Complaint
Making your way through the ranks
Xbox has finally lifted the lid on Forza Horizon 6 this week, and while lots of the focus so far has been on open-world Japan and what Playground Games is packing into the world, we've spotted a nice bit of fan service that could have a major impact on how Horizon 6 plays. Kicking off its gameplay overview at Xbox...
News Playground Games Explains Fable's Open World & How It Compares To The Forza Horizon Series
"There's tons to explore..."
With this year's Fable reboot, the series is going truly open world with the backing of Forza Horizon specialists Playground Games, and that leads to questions about the size of the world and how it compares to other genre examples. In a new interview, Playground's Ralph Fulton has talked about just that - and how it all...
News Forza Horizon 6's Controversial Game Pass Upgrade Costs As Much As The Game Itself
Here in the UK at least
Forza Horizon 6 made a big splash at last night's Xbox Developer Direct, with an impressive showing that finally gives us a glimpse at Playground's vision for open-world Japanese racing. It's launching soon too — with a May release date on Xbox — but folks are starting to spot that the game's DLC is l
Thursday22nd Jan 2026
News Fable Showcases Stunning Gameplay Deep Dive, Arrives On Xbox, PC & PS5 Later This Year
A fabled reveal
After what feels like an absolute eternity since it was first announced, Xbox and Playground Games have finally pulled back the curtain on the upcoming Fable reboot - and wow, this could be an Xbox game for the ages if all comes together in Autumn 2026. The Forza Horizon specialists are set to deliver a sprawling open world RPG with...
News Forza Horizon 6 Officially Launches On Xbox In May, Here's Your First Look At Open-World Japan
It looks stunning!
As part of today's Xbox Developer Direct showcase, Playground Games has given us our first proper look at Forza Horizon 6 - and what a first look it's turned out to be. The team has taken us behind the scenes at its Leamington Spa studio to showcase its greatest hits rendition of open world Japan - from the dizzying mountains of...
Tuesday20th Jan 2026
News Loads Of Leaked Fable Concept Art Shows Open World Environments, Dungeons & More
Full gameplay reveal coming this week
It's been a long time coming, but things are really kicking into gear now with Playground's Fable reboot. We've got the team's full gameplay reveal coming later this week via Xbox Developer Direct, and ahead of that showcase in a few days' time, a load of fresh Fable concept art has leaked online. Coming by way...
Monday12th Jan 2026
News Forza Horizon 5 Hits Huge Sales Milestone In Its First Year On PS5, According To New Estimates
Absolutely flying
We've consistently heard that Forza Horizon 5 has been selling very well on PS5 since its debut last April, and now the head of Alinea Analytics — one of the firms keeping us updated on those sales — has a new update for us here as we enter 2026. According to
Tuesday9th Dec 2025
News Ex-Forza Dev Says Horizon 5 Was Impacted By COVID, New Game Is 'In A League Of Its Own'
"I didn’t leave Playground to build another Horizon"
In a new interview with Traxion, former Forza Horizon developer Gavin Raeburn has talked about their new racing game being built over at Lighthouse Games, whilst also touching on 2021's Forza Horizon 5 and how the Xbox title was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. First off, let's look at FH5...
Thursday27th Nov 2025
News Forza Horizon 2 Super Early Xbox Development Build Leaks Online
Horizon 2 demake when?!
At this point, we feel like we've seen pretty much everything there is to see about the Forza Horizon series, going back all the way to the first game on Xbox 360. This morning, however, we've come across a very cool leak that shows a super-early development build of Forza Horizon 2 - one from before its eventual release back...
Wednesday8th Oct 2025
News Xbox's Playground Games Grew Substantially In 2024 To Prepare For Fable & Forza Horizon 6
70+ new employees
Xbox developer Playground Games has a big year on its hands in 2026 — with both Fable and Forza Horizon 6 due to release — and it seems the British studio has been growing substantially to prepare for these two huge releases. The team's financial statements for 2024 have just been released publicly, and they confirm that the...
Friday26th Sep 2025
Feature Six Things We Want To See From Forza Horizon 6 And Its Japan Setting
Our early wishlist for FH6!
Forza Horizon 6 is real, and the franchise is finally heading to Japan after years of fan outcry for the Asian nation to feature in the series. Truth be told, we've been happy with most of Horizon's location choices so far, but Japan is pretty exciting, so we're looking forward to heading East and cruising around with our...
News Forza Horizon 6's Map The 'Biggest Yet' As Dev Confirms Tokyo City Location
"The biggest city that we've done"
Details were light on yesterday's Tokyo Game Show reveal for Forza Horizon 6 - but a new interview with outlet GamesRadar gives us some more context on the game, and its much-anticipated Japanese location. First off, FH6's rendit
Thursday25th Sep 2025
News Forza Horizon 6 Heads To Japan In 2026, Day One On Xbox Game Pass
Your first look at the new Forza title!
It's real! After weeks and weeks of rumours that Forza Horizon 6 was going to be announced at Tokyo Game Show 2025, it's happened - and yep, we're going to be cruising around open-world Japan next year on Xbox Game Pass. You can get your first glimpse at Xbox's upcoming racer via t
Monday25th Aug 2025
News Forza Horizon 6 Will Apparently Be Revealed At Tokyo Game Show As Japan Rumours Circulate
Are we finally heading to Japan in FH6?
Last week, you may have seen chatter about Forza Horizon 6 being set in Japan, following news of the region's Kei Cars being scanned into the game. We covered the news here at Pure Xbox but were somewhat wary of giving it too much weight - but some fresh information from
Monday16th Jun 2025
Talking Point Would You Like To See A New Type Of Forza Game In 2026?
Or just more Horizon next year?
During the big Xbox Games Showcase last month, boss Phil Spencer teased a brand-new Forza game coming in 2026, which we're assuming will be Forza Horizon 6. However, if you could make the call, would you create a new Forza spin-off instead? It's something we've started to think about a little bit here at Pure Xbox!...
Friday2nd May 2025
Talking Point With Forza Horizon 5 Now On PS5, Do You Expect To See Horizon 6 Anytime Soon?
How close are we to FH6 on Xbox?
Last month, Forza Horizon 5's PS5 debut marked the first of Xbox's 'big three' franchises to move over, and despite the transition feeling a little weird to us here at PX HQ, fans have clearly been enjoying the game a lot over on PlayStation. Naturally though, we've been thinking more about what this all means for...
Wednesday23rd Apr 2025
News Xbox's Forza Horizon 5 Gets 'Big Visual Boost' On PS5 Pro, Says Tech Review
"The Pro is really where the action is at"
Forza Horizon 5 officially moves over to PS5 starting this week, and as you may have seen elsewhere at Pure Xbox, we've been slowly wrapping our heads around playing a Forza title on a PlayStation console over the last few days. <related ids="181382"> While we've been busy playing the game and...
Tuesday11th Mar 2025
News Xbox Login Raises Concerns About Preservation Of Forza Horizon 5 On PlayStation
Sony's been criticised for doing it on PC as well
Xbox's new strategy has it releasing more games on more platforms, but there are still certain steps new players must follow if they want to join in on the fun. One of them happens to be mandatory Microsoft account logins. We've seen this with Sea Of Thieves and now sure enough, it's come up with...
Thursday27th Feb 2025
Talking Point With Fable Now Delayed, Which Xbox First-Party Game Launches This Fall?
Microsoft has a gap to fill
Well, Microsoft delivered the news this week that its big Fable reboot has been delayed - and before this recent turn of events, the Xbox RPG was probably the team's biggest release planned for late 2025. However, even with this delay, Xbox still has some major games planned for this year including South of Midnight and...
Feature Five Things We Spotted In Fable's Latest Gameplay Footage
Something to make up for the delay
This week, Xbox announced the delay of the next chapter in the Fable series, with the anticipated fantasy RPG now scheduled to arrive in 2026. To make up for this, Xbox also showed some new "pre-alpha footage" of this massive project, and we've now rounded up some of the more interesting bits - highlighting a...
Tuesday25th Feb 2025
News Xbox Has Officially Delayed Fable Into 2026
"We are going to give Fable more time"
Talking on a fresh episode of the Official Xbox Podcast, new Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan has announced that Microsoft's Fable reboot has been delayed. Previously planned for a 2025 launch, Playground Games' new attempt at the Xbox fantasy RPG will now arrive in 2026. Duncan says that the pushback will...
Thursday30th Jan 2025
News Forza Horizon 5 Officially Announced For PS5, Drifts Over In Spring 2025
New horizons on PS5
Xbox developer Playground Games has announced that Forza Horizon 5 is officially launching on PlayStation 5, with the open-world racer set to move over in Spring 2025. First released in late 2021 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC, Forza Horizon 5 took players to Horizon Mexico in the series' fifth open-world outing on Xbox...
Saturday14th Dec 2024
Soapbox Paying Tribute To The Best Map In Forza Horizon History
Stick the kettle on, folks
This weekend, Forza Horizon 4 will be completely delisted from digital storefronts, as Microsoft sunsets yet another Forza title due ongoing licensing issues related to racing games. It is, unfortunately, a reality we've gotten used to at this point - every Forza game before this one has already disappeared into thin air...
Monday9th Dec 2024
PSA Xbox's Forza Horizon 4 Will Be Delisted In Less Than One Week
Grab it while you can!
Back in the summer, Microsoft and developer Playground Games announced that 2018's Forza Horizon 4 was set to be delisted on Xbox this December - and roughly six months later, that time is almost here. Yep, unfortunately, this brilliant open-world Xbox racer will disappear from digital storefronts on Sunday, December 15th -...
Thursday28th Nov 2024
Rumour Forza Horizon 5 'Will Arrive' On PS5, Despite A Delay From Xbox
"I don't know when, but it will arrive"
Earlier this year, we heard a strong rumour that Forza Horizon 5 would be another Xbox game to move over to PS5 at some stage - and now that very same source has provided an update on the situation as we near the end of 2024. According to prominent leaker eXtas1s, Microsoft's Forza Horizon 5's PS5 port is...
Monday4th Nov 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 Adds Halo Props So You Can Create A UNSC Racetrack On Xbox
Finish the slide
Developer Playground Games has detailed its latest Forza Horizon 5 update, and it contains a nice bonus feature for you Halo fans out there. Courtesy of Halo Studios, 71 props from the famous sci-fi franchise are now usable in Forza Horizon 5's EventLab mode - allowing players to create some wild Halo-themed courses and events...
Tuesday8th Oct 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 Makes It Easier To Acquire Cars From Past Updates
Horizon Backstage returns!
Playground Games is unleashing yet another Forza Horizon 5 update this week, and it introduces a welcome feature - now that the 2021 racer has had so many updates over the last three years or so. Returning from Forza Horizon 4 is 'Horizon Backstage'; a feature that basically allows you to acquire old cars that you may...
Monday30th Sep 2024
Talking Point Xbox's Forza Horizon 2 Changed The Open-World Racing Game 10 Years Ago
The start of a racing game dynasty
Well folks, it's come to our attention that Forza Horizon 2 is a decade old today, so yep, we had to make all of you feel like you're getting on a bit as well. Aye, believe or not, Xbox's second stab at open-world Forza is now 10 years old, and we just want to take a moment to reflect on what's been a rather good...
Tuesday30th Jul 2024
News Xbox Dev Playground Games Opens Another Studio To Work On Fable
Now three in total!
For a while now, we've known that Xbox-owned developer Playground Games has been working on Forza Horizon and Fable simultaneously - and now the team has revealed that the Fable side of the studio is really ramping up. Spotted on LinkedIn, the Playground Games bio now states that three studios are operating at the British...
Wednesday17th Jul 2024
News Forza Horizon 4 Has A Ridiculously Good Discount On Xbox Right Now
All editions are at least 80% off!
Last month, Microsoft announced that Forza Horizon 4 would be delisted from digital storefronts this December - and all three editions of the game have an amazing discount right now as part of Xbox's big summer sale. The Standard, Deluxe and Ultimate editions of Forza Horizon 4 are all 80% off right now - a
Tuesday16th Jul 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 Adds New 'Coffee Shop' Car Meet Location In Latest Major Update
Grab a coffee and do some donuts
Another big Forza Horizon 5 update has been detailed, as developer Playground Games continues to deliver the goods for its 2021 open world racer. As you'd expect, we've got lots of new vehicles coming via the game's Festival Playlist this month, but it's the new car meet location that's caught our eye so far. Yep,...
Monday15th Jul 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 Still Growing As Playground Games Hits Impressive New Player Count
It's still incredibly popular in 2024!
The Forza Horizon series has been a consistent performer for Xbox over the past decade or so, and with the help of Xbox Game Pass, the last two entries in particular have been incredibly popular. Forza Horizon 5, the team's latest effort, just keeps on trucking - and Playground Games has now seen over 40...
Wednesday26th Jun 2024
Soapbox Forza Horizon 4 Hosted The Best Racing In The Series, And I'll Be Sad To See It Go
One more trip to the lakes
Well, Forza Horizon's British racing festival is about to close its doors - with Xbox announcing that Forza Horizon 4 will be delisted from digital storefronts later this year. Of course, the game will remain playable for existing owners after this date, but it's being removed from Xbox Game Pass
Tuesday18th Jun 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 'Universal Icons' Car Pack Brings Star-Studded Lineup To Xbox
And it's out today!
Playground Games has unveiled a new premium car pack for Forza Horizon 5, and this one brings five movie star cars to the open world racer. Available today for $10, Horizon's finest drivers can go hands-on with five new rides inspired by the likes of Jurassic Park, Back to the Future and Knight Rider. Up above you can take a...
Monday10th Jun 2024
News Eidos Montreal Confirms It's Supporting The Development Of Fable
Following a report late last year
Fable developer Playground Games has already called on the assistance of some other parties, and following the latest trailer it's now been confirmed Eidos Montreal is helping out. The studio made it official on social media with the following message earlier on, mentioning how it's been "supporting" development of...
Sunday9th Jun 2024
News Fable Officially Returns To Xbox In 2025, Featuring Even More Snarky Humour
Fable has a release window!
Playground Games has certainly gone in a different direction from Forza Horizon with its upcoming Fable reboot, but we're totally here for it. As part of the Xbox Games Showcase, the British developer gave us another fresh look at the title - featuring all the snarky humour you'd expect from the series. More than that,...
Tuesday26th Mar 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 'Race-Off' Update Brings New Cars, Collectibles & More To Xbox Game Pass
"Race towards the finish line"
Xbox developer Playground Games has detailed its latest Forza Horizon 5 update — 'Race-Off' — which begins this week at the Horizon Mexico festival. As usual, the new update brings plenty of new vehicles, events and more to Xbox's open world racer. Starting off with the 'race-off' theme, two new rides will be...
Monday26th Feb 2024
News Fable Reboot Gets New Co-Developer To Work Alongside Playground Games
A fabled assist
Things have been dark on Fable since last summer's big showcase, but news of a fresh co-developer is getting us all excited to see more of Playground Games' upcoming RPG reboot. Third Kind Games has revealed that it is working on the new Fable game, as mentioned on the company's website. The announcement doesn't bring any sort of...
Wednesday7th Feb 2024
News Fable's Narrative Lead Joins Cyberpunk 2077 Follow-Up 'Project Orion'
The new game is entering its "early stages of development"
New information has surfaced about Playground Games' former Fable narrative lead Anna Megill, who left the company last August. As highlighted by Eurogamer, she's now joined CD Projekt Red North America to work on its Cyberpunk 2077 follow-up, codenamed 'Project Orion'. This project is...
Monday29th Jan 2024
News Forza Horizon 5 Details Huge Lunar New Year Update Arriving This Week
There's loads of fresh content coming to FH5
Forza Motorsport is here and adding fresh content each month, but let's not forget about Forza Horizon 5 either. Playground Games continues to build and build on its 2021 open world racer, and this week marks the start of its Lunar New Year update on Xbox and PC. Jam-packed with new content, FH5 is...
Friday29th Dec 2023
Talking Point Do You Think We'll See Another Forza Horizon Game Anytime Soon?
It's already been two years since FH5!
If you can believe it, we're already beyond the two-year point for Forza Horizon 5; the latest game in the Forza Horizon series launched in November 2021. At one point, a two-year release cycle was the norm for Forza releases, although that's clearly changed in recent years. The question is, how close are we to...
Tuesday5th Dec 2023
News Forza Horizon 5's Next Three Seasonal Updates Detailed
Starting out in a Winter Wonderland
Ahead of the festive season, Forza Horizon 5 developer Playground Games has detailed its next three major updates, and as you'd expect, the first one is appropriately themed for the winter season. Kicking off this month, 'Winter Wonderland' adds your usual array of Forza Horizon 5 goodies — including a new...
Tuesday21st Nov 2023
Soapbox After Finally Playing 'Rally Adventure', I Want To See More Of This From Forza Horizon
I've enjoyed my time with its linear campaign
A little over six months since Playground Games launched Forza Horizon 5: Rally Adventure, I finally got around to playing the add-on this past weekend thanks to its big Black Friday discount. Another Pure Xbox racing fanatic in Liam reviewed the DLC pack when it first arrived in March, but I wanted to...
Tuesday24th Oct 2023
News Forza Motorsport Is Out Now, But The Forza Horizon 5 Community Continues To Grow
Playground Games has hit another massive milestone
Xbox developer Turn 10 has finally delivered its next-gen vision for Forza Motorsport, but that isn't slowing down the juggernaut that is Forza Horizon 5. Despite the latter being out for almost two years at this point, the player base continues to grow - and it's just hit a new milestone. As you...
Wednesday11th Oct 2023
News Forza Horizon 5's 'Day Of The Dead' Update Now Live On Xbox Game Pass
Día de Muertos brings new cars, achievements & more to FH5
Forza Horizon 5 is celebrating 'Día de Muertos' this year with its new Day of the Dead update - now live on Xbox Series X|S, PC, and Game Pass of course! As you've come to expect from FH these days, the new update is jam-packed with new cars, Festival Playlist challenges, achievements and...
Saturday9th Sep 2023
News Forza Horizon 5 Gets A Free 'EventLab 2.0' Update Next Week
Includes the brand new location EventLab Island
The Forza Horizon 5 community was already doing all sorts of amazing things with the game's EventLab creator tool, but next week it's getting a free upgrade with the rollout of EventLab 2.0 on 12th September. This new and improved version of the tool features improvements such as multi-select, custom...
Thursday17th Aug 2023
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (August 17-20)
Included with Xbox Live Gold & Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox Free Play Days returns for the coming weekend! Microsoft is offering up four games to try for free this week, including its own open world racer Forza Horizon 5 alongside three smaller titles. Here's the full Free Play Days list: Blasphemous Forza Horizon 5 Let's Build A Zoo The Knight Witch
Wednesday16th Aug 2023
News Forza Horizon 5 Update Marks The Return Of Some Classic Italian Car Makers
Four manufacturers are back in the lineup
Forza Horizon 5's latest update is now rolling out, and the game's upcoming seasonal event is bringing back some major car manufacturers who've been missing since 2018's Forza Horizon 4. Yep, the 'Italian Automotive' update reintroduces Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Lancia to the Forza Horizon series - four...































































