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If there was any lingering doubt about Forza Horizon 5’s success on PlayStation after a mid-2025 release on PS5, then a new report from Alinea Analytics has wiped it away and then some.
As first spotted by Eurogamer, Rhys Elliot, Alinea’s head of market analysis, shared on social media that Forza Horizon 5, a title that was originally released in 2021 as an Xbox and PC exclusive, managed to cross five million copies sold on PS5 alone.
That equates to a whopping $300 million in revenue, a massive boost for Microsoft that it wouldn’t have otherwise gained had the game remained locked to Sony’s flagship home console.
The numbers further emphasize just why Microsoft would entertain a third-party approach, even if its abysmal console sales may have forced its hand otherwise.
What’s more, Forza Horizon 5’s numbers come on the back of two major developments. The first being that Avowed, an Obsidian-developed Xbox exclusive in 2024, will be coming to PS5 next month with some major additions. And that Fable, which will be discussed during the Xbox Developer Direct on Jan. 22, may also release day-and-date on PlayStation hardware.
Forza Zoomed Onto The Charts For PlayStation Pre-Launch And At Launch
Those lofty numbers should come as no surprise, particularly if you keep up with sales and charts on the PlayStation Store. Because within days of Forza Horizon 5 becoming available for pre-order, both the Standard and Premium Edition became some of the biggest pre-order sellers on multiple versions of the PS Store (U.S., Canada and UK).
Things didn’t stop there, either. At launch, Horizon sold 1.4 million copies within its first eight days on the market, becoming the fastest-selling Xbox game on PlayStation to date in the process. By its first month on the market, it had already hit two million copies sold, a number some games barely reach over an entire lifetime.
Worth noting: Unlike Gears of War, Indiana Jones or Doom, Forza Horizon 5 was a digital-only release. It remains to be seen if the eventual Horizon 6 will have physical copies.
A few months later in July, the title, now ancient by this point, was reportedly outperforming some heavy-hitter new releases like the latest Assassin’s Creed and Monster Hunter Wilds.
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It’s a shame, then, that Forza Horizon 6, which will take place in highly-requested Japan, will not come to PlayStation 5 at launch later this year. It’ll come at some point, though, and it appears the port simply wasn’t ready for a day-and-date launch. Perhaps it might be for the best, especially if Microsoft is still squeezing life out of FH5.
