Forza Horizon 5 is now the highest-rated new game of the year

Forza Horizon 5 has raced to the top of review aggregator charts, making it the highest-rated new game of the year so far.

At the time of writing, Xbox Game Studios’ open-world racer is the highest rated 2021 release on OpenCritic with an average rating of 92.

In joint second place are four new games each with scores of 89: Bustafellows (PQube), Swarm (Greensky), Psychonauts 2 (Xbox) and It Takes Two (EA).

On Metacritic, meanwhile, the game has an average score of 91 [UPDATE: It’s now 92] and is the sixth highest-rated game on the site for this year.

The best-reviewed new games of 2021

Source: Metacritic

1. Forza Horizon 5 – 92
2. Psychonauts 2 – 91
3. Chicory: A Colorful Tale – 90
4. Dusk – 89
5. It Takes Two – 89

However, the five games listed above it – Disco Elysium: The Final Cut, The House in Fata Morgana, Tetris Effect Connected and the Xbox Series X and PS5 versions of Hades – are all re-releases of games published in previous years.

So in terms of brand new titles released in 2021 for the first time, Forza Horizon 5 currently sits top, just above another first-party Xbox Studios title in Psychonauts 2.

The PC version of Forza Horizon 5 is also the joint-top reviewed game of the year on Metacritic with an aggregate score of 91.

Other than Hades, Playground Games‘ new racer is the highest-rated game on Xbox Series X|S, according to Metacritic. On PS5, only Demon’s Souls can match its aggregate score (92) but no game can beat it, other than Hades.

VGC’s Forza Horizon 5 review called the racer “the first essential game of the generation”.

“This is the best Forza Horizon has ever been,” our review reads. “Because of this, it’s among the best the racing genre has ever seen, and – as its predecessor accomplished before it – it’s easily one of the best games this generation has seen so far.”

Further reading

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Review: Forza Horizon 5 is the first essential game of the generation

Playground Games has delivered again with the best game in the series to date

It adds: “Forza Horizon 5 is the best game in the series and the best Xbox Series X/S game to date. Its flawless racing and wealth of activities are backed up by a gorgeous setting and a fantastic new progression system which encourages players to focus on the features they enjoy most. Utterly essential.”

Forza Horizon 5 will be released on November 9, 2021 for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC.

However, those who purchase the premium version will be granted early access to the game on November 5. Game Pass players will have access to the Standard version.