As you rumble across the tarmac in a flashy sports car as you enter a new country, aiming for a beat-to-the-beat pace, there's something very special about unwrapping the shiny plastic of a new Forza Horizon box and sliding the disc into the console for the first time as you begin the first drive to whatever new locale Playground is experimenting with, whether it's the UK, Mexico or now, Japan.
I guess these days it's more… unzipping the sweet, sweet pre-install button? Doesn't quite have the same visual oomph.
I may have bounced off Forza Horizon 5 and never really clicked with the series like I did the more arcade-like relics like Burnout, Need for Speed and Midnight Club (all of which are overdue for a return), but those opening moments are searing in my mind, and I often find myself restarting the game just to relive them all over again. But with Forza Horizon 6, you don't have to throw away your progress to jump back into the prologue – for the first time in the series' history, it's replayable.
As pointed out by u/SpeedStepGD on the series subreddit, you can now access the prologue at any time from the map, allowing you to “relive” the first run. You may have missed this if you are one of the many players currently enjoying the advanced access, as it is not immediately shown to you. As noted by u/The_Accountants, the first device remains “hidden until you discover the exact location,” as you can see in the image below.
Where to find the first unit
“It's kind of on the top, left, above the first estate you unlock,” u/The_Accountants explained. “Just drive to it, and it will pop.”
It may have taken six entries for Playground to add a replay option, which sounds like an obvious quality-of-life feature in hindsight, but in all fairness these initial units are lightning in a bottle and risk losing their star quality after a few replays. Still, it's nice to have the option after all these years, rather than having to restart the game over and over again or dive back into the demos.
There are lots of fun little details like this coming out ahead of the full launch on May 19, such as a tidbit revealed by design director Torben Ellert who each trees are destructible, with the exception of cherry blossoms due to their cultural significance in Japan. Players have also noticed that mascots change their expression when they are run into them, and there is a giant cigarette that just floats in the water (the “bigaret” as one fan put it). Oh, and there's a dinosaur hidden in the garage.
- Released
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May 19, 2026
- ESRB
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All / Mild texts, users interact, in-game purchases
- Developer
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Playground games
