Forza Horizon 5 Won’t Have A Physical PS5 Release, And That’s A Concern

I am excited to see Forza Horizon 5 arrive on PlayStation 5 next month, even if typing that sentence out still feels like a fever dream. I am less excited about how much it costs through the PS Store, and any hopes of a physical release have been quashed. That has me a little worried for the future.

It’s been confirmed that FH5 will only be available digitally on PlayStation 5, in a short but blunt social media post. On X, the official Forza Horizon account simply responded to the question with “Nothing planned for a physical disc release.”

That means you’ll need to stump up the £54.99 asking price for the base title, or pick between the £69.99 Deluxe Edition or £84.99 for the Premium.

It’s worth pointing out this isn’t a case of Microsoft price-gouging new players who could instead opt to buy an Xbox console and get the game for cheaper. Those prices are reflected identically on its own marketplace, but the Xbox had a physical release which can be snagged for a lower cost.

One quick Google search revealed it’s £44.99 at Argos, for example, and that’s not a store well-known for being cheap for video games.

It doesn’t come as a surprise, however. Microsoft’s wave of recent new-to-PlayStation titles including Sea of Thieves and Hi-Fi Rush have so far remained digital titles.

What those games don’t have, though, are multiple licenses that will inevitably lead to them being delisted for sale. It was only last year that Forza Horizon 4 suffered the fate of being removed from digital storefronts, and every Horizon title preceding it has seen the same ending.

More concerning from PlayStation in particular is that Sony has a track record of making delisted games unavailable to download to those who have owned the title already once they’re removed from sale. A quick browse through my own back catalogue reveals I can't download some FIFA titles and NFS Rivals, plus a few other older games, despite the fact I’ve paid for them.

For the sake of preserving what is ultimately a huge moment in the history of racing games – Microsoft’s headline franchise landing on its biggest competitor’s platform in a once unthinkable move – let’s hope a disc release comes some day. I'm not hopeful, though.