The DeLorean returns in Forza Horizon 5 — Festival Playlist, Stories, and more detailed in latest stream

Forza Horizon 5 Store Screenshot
Forza Horizon 5 Store Screenshot (Image credit: Xbox Game Studios | Microsoft)

What you need to know

  • Forza Horizon 5 is an upcoming open-world racing title from Playground Games and Xbox Game Studios.
  • Before FH5 releases on Nov. 9, 2021, the team continues to share additional information through its Let's Go! streams.
  • The latest Forza Horizon 5 Let's Go! stream has concluded, and included information on the Horizon Stories, Festival Playlist, and more.
  • It was also revealed that the legendary DMC DeLorean is officially returning in Forza Horizon 5 immediately after launch.

We're officially just over a month away from the release of Forza Horizon 5, and players are rightfully getting excited. Playground Games is continuing to reveal new information about its upcoming title through the Let's Go! stream series, and Episode 9 has now concluded. This time around, Playground showed off its newly improved character creator, the expanded and more in-depth Horizon Stories, a first look at the FH5 Festival Playlist, and even revealed that a much-requested car is actually being added to the game.

Here's what you need to know about the most recent FH5 stream, which follows the online and multiplayer-focused Let's Go! Episode 8:

  • The character creator is better than ever. None of this is new info, but Playground did show the character creator for the first time, which revealed that players will have more characters to choose from, and will be able to customize options like the hairstyle, hair color, prosthetics, pronouns, voice, clothing, and accessories, all independently of each other.
  • Horizon Stories are bigger and grander. Horizon Stories return in FH5 as little "slices" of story content, but this time they go deeper and tell more. There are a ton of Horizon Stories in Forza Horizon 5, each with multiple chapters, potentially branching paths, and more. Players will also be able to replay the Horizon Stories whenever they feel like it.
  • The Festival Playlist is redesigned. The Festival Playlist was a highlight of this Let's Go! stream, as there's a ton to talk about here. The Playlist has been redesigned to be easier to navigate and use, while lots of additional activities have been added on top of the community's returning favorites. Here's what you need to know about the Festival Playlist in Forza Horizon 5:
    • Series 1 officially kicks off on Nov. 11, 2021, in the Summer season
    • From Nov. 5 to Nov. 11, early players will have access to a much smaller "Welcome Week" set in Spring
    • Every Series will have a theme, which will actually evolve and change the Forza Horizon 5 map. The first Series will be "Welcome to Horizon Mexico," while the second Series will likely be Holiday themed
  • The DeLorean is back. That's right, the DMC DeLorean, lovingly referred to as the DMC-12, is making a comeback in the Forza Horizon 5 car list! Available as a reward during the Summer season of Series 1, the DeLorean is one of the community's most requested vehicles. Now, with FH5, you'll be able to theoretically travel back in time, assuming you're able to get up to speed.
  • Over 10 Barn Finds. A small detail, but it was revealed that Forza Horizon 5 features at least over 10 Barn Finds. Playground isn't ready to reveal an exact number, yet, but there should be a few to look forward to for players.
  • Forza Horizon 5 Achievements. A list of Forza Horizon 5 Achievements was revealed on Xbox Wire, and is now available for players to peruse.
  • Route Creator now includes Super7 features. The Route Creator is returning in Forza Horizon 5, and has apparently been augmented by Super7 features introduced late in FH4's lifetime. Now, Route Creator sits under the EventLab creative umbrella.

Forza Horizon 5 officially releases on Nov. 9, 2021 (Nov. 5 for Premium Edition owners) for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox Cloud Gaming, and is now available to preorder.

I recently discussed why Forza Horizon 5 is more than just another racing game, and every appearance of the game continues to support why players should be excited about this open-world racing title, and why Forza Horizon 5 may become one of the best Xbox racing games around.

Zachary Boddy
Staff Writer

Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter @BoddyZachary.