Forza Horizon has been one of the most popular open-world racing franchises on the market for more than a decade, and ever since it was confirmed that the sixth entry would take the series to Japan, expectations have only grown. Forza Horizon 6 is still set to arrive on May 19, 2026 for PC and Xbox Series X|S, with Game Pass included from day one, yet the most striking part is that the game is already generating serious money well before launch. By the latest estimates, Playground Games’ new racer is already moving like a hit while the starting lights are still red.

According to Alinea Analytics, Forza Horizon 6 has already passed the 500,000 mark in Steam pre-orders, which is an extremely strong result for a game that still has roughly a month left before release. That translates into about $30 million in gross revenue from Steam alone, meaning Microsoft and Playground Games are already cashing in before the game is even officially available. The market research firm also claims that more than 50,000 players pre-ordered the title on the very first day it went live for purchase on Valve’s platform.

Steam Is Already Pulling Hard, but the Real Flood May Come Later

Alinea Analytics believes Forza Horizon 6 could reach 2 million sales on Steam within its first 24 hours, which would be an enormous opening by any standard. And those numbers still only cover Steam. They do not include console sales, Microsoft Store purchases, or the player base coming in through Game Pass. That matters, because previous entries in the series have shown just how powerfully Microsoft’s subscription model can amplify launch momentum.

Forza Horizon 5, for example, reached more than 10 million players in its first week, with Game Pass playing a major role in that surge. Later, when it arrived on PS5, it reportedly turned into a sales phenomenon there as well, climbing to an estimated 5.7 million copies sold on Sony’s platform. In total, Forza Horizon 5 has now passed 50 million players across sales and subscriptions combined, so Playground Games has every reason to head into launch month with confidence.

Japan Was Always Going to Be an Easy Sell

Forza Horizon 6 is not only benefiting from the strength of the brand itself, but also from the simple fact that Japan is the kind of setting racing fans were always going to respond to. The 4K gameplay already shown makes that very clear, leaning hard into exactly the kind of imagery that sells the Horizon fantasy so well: Tokyo street runs, drift zones, nighttime drives, mountain roads, and postcard scenery around Mount Fuji. It is the sort of location choice that feels almost unfairly effective for a series like this.

At this point, Forza Horizon 6 is already behaving more like a finished success story than a game that still has weeks to go before launch. If it avoids major technical or content-related problems at release, everything points to Microsoft having one of its biggest wins of the year on its hands. And from Xbox’s point of view, the best part is obvious: the money has already started rolling in long before the real race even begins.

Source: 3DJuegos