What time does Forza Horizon 6 go live? Digital release time in your region and New Zealand trick

Forza Horizon 6’s release is just around the corner – which is fitting, being a racing game and all.

The latest in the critically acclaimed racing series from Xbox and Playground Games is set for release on May 19, but players with the Premium Edition will get early access starting on May 15.

That means it’s only a matter of hours before fans of the series can finally get their hands on the sixth instalment and start racing around Japan.

But when exactly will Forza Horizon 6 be released? Not just the date, but the exact second you’ll be able to play it?

This article reveals that information, and also explains a trick Xbox players can use to start playing a little earlier.

Forza Horizon 6 release date and time

Forza Horizon 6 will have a staggered release, where it will launch at different times in different regions.

While Xbox games sometimes launch at midnight everywhere, this time it’s a little different – some countries will indeed offer access from midnight, but a few others have a different start time.

On Steam, it’s a different story – it’s a global release everywhere, so everyone gets it at the same time.

Here are the start times for some of the more major time zones:

Premium Edition (Xbox)

• USA (Pacific Time) – May 14 at 19:01
• USA (Eastern Time) – May 15 at 00:01
• UK (BST) – May 15 at 00:01
• Central Europe (CEST) – May 15 at 00:01
• Japan – May 15 at 00:01
• Australia (AEST) – May 15 at 00:01
• New Zealand – May 15 at 00:01

Standard Edition (Xbox)

• USA (Pacific Time) – May 18 at 19:01
• USA (Eastern Time) – May 19 at 00:01
• UK (BST) – May 19 at 00:01
• Central Europe (CEST) – May 19 at 00:01
• Japan – May 19 at 00:01
• Australia (AEST) – May 19 at 00:01
• New Zealand – May 19 at 00:01

Premium Edition (Steam)

• USA (Pacific Time) – May 14 at 19:01
• USA (Eastern Time) – May 15 at 00:01
• UK (BST) – May 15 at 03:01
• Central Europe (CEST) – May 15 at 04:01
• Japan – May 15 at 08:01
• Australia (AEST) – May 15 at 12:01
• New Zealand – May 15 at 14:01

Standard Edition (Steam)

• USA (Pacific Time) – May 18 at 19:01
• USA (Eastern Time) – May 19 at 00:01
• UK (BST) – May 19 at 03:01
• Central Europe (CEST) – May 19 at 04:01
• Japan – May 19 at 08:01
• Australia (AEST) – May 19 at 12:01
• New Zealand – May 19 at 14:01

Forza Horizon 6 release date: New Zealand trick

If you know your time zone’s you’ll realise that with so many countries all getting the game at midnight, that means some will be getting it earlier than others.

Specifically, because New Zealand’s time zone is ahead of every other country in the world, players there will get to play before anyone else.

Luckily, there’s a way for Xbox players to temporarily pretend they’re in New Zealand so they can get access to the game too. All you have to do is:

• Go to the console’s Settings menu
• Go to the System tab
• Go to Language and Location
• Change the location of your console to New Zealand
• Fully restart the Xbox
• Launch the game from your library

This means players in the UK can start from as early as today at 1pm, while players in the US can start from 5am PT / 10am (ET).

Just remember to switch it back to your own country once the game’s officially out where you live, to ensure you get the right digital stores and the like.