Forza Horizon 6 has a radio station that references Pokemon

Forza Horizon 6 launched in Advanced Access last week, and many of you are already playing. With so many people playing the latest game in the series, some of its easter eggs have already been discovered, including a cute reference to Pokémon.

Gotta snap everyone

The Easter egg is specifically a reference to Pokemon and not an out-and-out mention because, well, this is an Xbox game that's not affiliated with Nintendo or The Pokemon Company. Knowing how Nintendo can be when it comes to others using its IP without permission, any overt mention of Pokémon in a Forza game would not go over well.

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However, that hasn't stopped Forza dev Playground Games from paying homage to the iconic monster-catching series. In a clip shared by wxrry, the UK hosts of long-running Forza Horizon radio station Hospital Records can be heard talking about the in-game challenge that tasks players with trying to take a photo of every car in the game.

“Grab the camera and snap them all,” says one host, to which their co-host replies, “It's like that Japanese collectible game that we're not allowed to name for legal reasons.” There are other games the hosts could be referring to – maybe they're talking about Capcom's Monster Hunter. But, the snap 'em all and the playful dig at how lawless those responsible for Pokemon's IP can be heavily suggest that this is a reference to Pocket Monsters, not Capcom.

Paying homage to Pokemon makes sense for a video game set in Japan

While it's obviously possible to use Japan as a backdrop and not mention Pokemon, it's such a big part of Japanese culture that it makes sense to reference it if you can get away with it, which is exactly what Playground has done here. I don't think there is anything in particular that triggers the easter egg – you just have to listen to the right radio station at the right time.

There could be even more Pokémon Easter eggs hidden in Forza Horizon 6, and it's even more likely that there are hints of the hat to other games around its giant map, especially games developed in Japan. Although not connected to a game, players have already discovered that you can destroy all the trees in the game except for the cherry blossoms due to their cultural significance in Japan.

So many people were waiting to play Forza Horizon 6 that the second its Early Access period was unlocked on Steam, it broke Forza Horizon 5's all-time concurrent player record. Its full launch, including its arrival on Game Pass, takes place tomorrow, and then it speeds up on PS5 later this year, when it will almost certainly be one of the best-selling games of 2026 based on these early metrics.