Here is your FORZA HORIZON 5 RALLY ADVENTURE! Conquer the rugged Sierra Nueva while piloting purpose-built rally vehicles. In Horizon Rally and Horizon Races, you can join one of three rally teams and take on the game’s most exhilarating routes ever. Experience the intensity of enormous dust trails and deformed sand roads in ten brand-new vehicles, as well as the exploding flames of anti-lag. Explore dramatic craters, a defunct quarry, and a completely destructible palm forest.
FORZA HORIZON 5 RALLY ADVENTURE comes with the Forza Horizon 5 Premium Edition, Expansions Bundle, and Premium Add-Ons Bundle. This expansion requires Forza Horizon 5 (separately sold game).
The highly anticipated second expansion to Playground Games’ all-conquering racing behemoth Forza Horizon 5 has arrived.
When I think of Rally Adventure, I am immediately reminded of the first Forza Horizon game for Xbox 360, which also featured a rally adventure. Several years have passed since then, so it is to be expected that everything here is tuned up to 11. Come with me to Sierra Nueva and the Rally Adventure in Forza Horizon 5! You might want to bring wellies – the terrain is a tad muddy!
Story? Who requires a narrative in a racing game? Well, it appears that we do, as this Rally Adventure features a narrative that focuses on the three individuals we interact with the most — Rami, Alejandra, and that Scottish guy Alex. Each individual is the leader of a team, the Grit Reapers, Apex Predators, or Horizon Raptors, with each team following a different discipline – Alejandra is all about racing on tarmac, Alex is all about racing on dirt, and Rami is all about night racing in the rain. Rami is a tad deranged.
Following a succession of trials designed to determine your worthiness, you can then challenge the remaining team leaders to become the champion of the Horizon Badlands. This unlocks two additional challenges in the weekly playlist, which is entertaining.
As expected from a Forza Horizon 5 expansion, the presentation is outstanding. The new map has an abundance of verticality and new features (breakable palm trees, anyone?). Even though it’s not the largest map in the game, the overwhelming number of activities ensures that it’s always very engaging. Completing all of the events and PR Stunts, along with the optional challenges as you progress, will require a significant amount of time. Not only does it appear great visually, but the audio has not been neglected either. Anti-lag turbo systems have been added to the vehicles, ensuring that the races sound epic. In addition, Epitaph Radio has returned and is playing loads of cool songs, so I am pleased with the overall presentation. And this is without mentioning the new automobiles.
So, let’s talk about the new automobiles, shall we? The Ford Focus that Colin McRae and Nicky Grist used to drive around is the Rally Adventure expansion’s hero vehicle, which you are granted for driving to Sierra Nueva. It is an absolute classic. And I must say that it is a joy to drive, navigating both asphalt and dirt with equal ease.
The remaining automobiles are trophy vehicles and off-road-focused buggies, which are essentially identical. Fortunately, there is one that stands out: the Hoonigan Scumbug, which was designed specifically for rallying in Mexico and therefore fits in well with the others. It’s not the fastest vehicle I’ve ever driven, but part of the joy of this vehicle is taking it out, wringing its neck until it’s howling, and then maintaining that position for the duration of a stage.
One criticism I do have, however, is the paucity of authentic rally cars from the era. Yes, the iconic Quattro is available, but why is there no Lancia? It feels improper to rally without a 037 or a Delta Integrale.
Regarding the gameplay, the news is as positive as ever. Without a doubt, Forza Horizon 5 is an excellent racing game, and while this expansion adheres more to the real world as opposed to the Hot Wheels-inspired bizarreness of the previous expansion, the atmosphere is spot on this time. Dirt racing is always entertaining, but particularly in Rami’s races where the level of insanity is amplified – racing at night, in the rain, with a helicopter hovering above your head is quite a sight. As for Alejandra’s races, the difficulty of tarmac racing is once again unique, but it feels more like the rest of Forza Horizon 5. In contrast, Alex’s contests are relatively tame.
Every race event in the Rally Adventure expansion has both Rally and Race modes. Race mode is essentially identical to any of the dirt races in good ol’ Mexico; you line up at the starting line with a group of AI-controlled Driverbots and compete to be the first to cross the finish line. Some of the course layouts are extremely difficult, and this is especially true for the Grit Reapers races, where it is dark, rainy, and the helicopter insists on attempting to illuminate the road in front of you, making it appear as though you are driving through fog. I have no idea why the helicopter is included in the race events, as it is completely unnecessary.
The Rally-style races are significantly more exciting, as they consist of a succession of time trials in which you are the only competitor on the stage and the team leader of the particular event type is in a helicopter shouting pace notes. These could be better timed, to be brutally frank, as the game seems to lag a bit and the instructions appear almost simultaneously with the corner. This is a problem if you are speeding through the desert while scarcely hanging on, and the next instruction is “hairpin left” just as it is too late to apply the brakes for the corner. My favorite instruction, however, is “Chickens!” as you smash through a flock of chickens standing in the midst of the road…
With Forza Horizon 5 staples such as PR Stunts, speed cameras, and drift zones crammed into the small Rally Adventure map, there is a lot of content to appreciate. Even more so when you consider that each team must also complete a series of challenges, such as driving from one location to another in a given amount of time, attempting two drift zones in less than three minutes, etc. Even after completing the expansion, there are numerous objectives to pursue. Add a multitude of new achievements related to the expansion, and the product will be complete.
This means that Forza Horizon 5 Rally Adventure is a lot of joy, but a few minor issues prevent it from being an absolute classic. If you are still immersed in Forza Horizon 5 on a daily basis, this is a no-brainer and will be a tremendously delightful companion. Simply do not demand perfection.
Forza Horizon 5 Rally: Here is your FORZA HORIZON 5 RALLY ADVENTURE! Conquer the rugged Sierra Nueva while piloting purpose-built rally vehicles. In Horizon Rally and Horizon Races, you can join one of three rally teams and take on the game's most exhilarating routes ever. Experience the intensity of enormous dust trails and deformed sand roads in ten brand-new vehicles, as well as the exploding flames of anti-lag. Explore dramatic craters, a defunct quarry, and a completely destructible palm forest. – kendajaya