Here are the biggest Forza Horizon 5 bugs and launch issues

Even Forza Horizon 5's smooth launch has some known issues ahead.

Forza Horizon 5 has taken to the roads of Mexico, presenting what's shaping up as one of the best racing games to bless Xbox consoles and PC. Developer Playground Games has delivered an expansive open world brimming with miles of roads, rainforests, and deserts to explore. It also introduces hundreds of vehicles, high-speed events, and other content geared to virtual petrolheads.

Forza Horizon 5 reviews recently dropped with widespread acclaim for the package, rolling out worldwide with its early access launch. The Nov. 5 launch provides four days of priority access, while its formal Nov. 9 release opens the world to other editions, plus those with Xbox Game Pass subscriptions.

While FH5 looks strong at launch, that doesn't mean a faultless experience. The game has dropped with an extensive list of bugs and launch issues across all platforms, including some you might frequently encounter during your early days in Mexico. We've rounded up the top bugs and known launch issues impacting the title so far, alongside some common remedies for those impacted.

Top Forza Horizon bugs and launch issues

Forza Horizon 5 has launched in early access, providing a select number of players four days of early access, ahead of its broader Nov. 9 release date. The title has seen a relatively smooth launch, with only a few tracked game-breaking issues among a subset of players. Playground Games has also maintained a bug-tracking page over on its Forza Support hub, drilling down into known minor problems to be addressed in future updates.

We're continuing to round up the outstanding bugs and launch issues as the game rolls out across the globe, including hiccups with loyalty rewards, crash reports, and more.

Forza Horizon 5 loyalty rewards not unlocking

Forza Horizon 5 introduces various "Loyalty Rewards" for returning players, presenting up to seven free cars for playing previous Forza installments. Rewards apply to those who played past Forza Horizon games, plus the three latest Forza Motorsport installments available on Xbox One. These one-time gifts are available when you first start the game on Xbox or PC.

Playground Games has acknowledged ongoing issues impacting Forza Horizon 5 loyalty rewards, preventing some from accessing unlocks at launch. One bug has prevented all players from accessing the 2013 McLaren P1 granted for playing Forza Motorsport 5, now slated to arrive n a future update for eligible players. The official Forza Support channel has also confirmed ongoing issues with rewards for other games and recommends those impacted raise a support ticket for further help.

Forza Horizon 5 crashing on PC

While Forza Horizon 5 has launched directly into the Microsoft Store and Steam alongside its Xbox console debut, some players have faced frequent crashes across various PC setups. Playground Games is yet to acknowledge the high volume of reports among early access players, although the issue has impacted vastly different hardware configurations.

Reports indicate crashing occurs throughout the Forza Horizon 5 introduction, which sees players introduced to various vehicles and environments. Most players face a hard crash with no on-screen error code provided, making troubleshooting and temporary workarounds a little trickier to manage.

We recommend ensuring your PC meets the Forza Horizon 5 system requirements while running the latest version of Windows 10 or Windows 11. Developer Playground Games has also published an extensive list of software that could impact overall stability and increase the chance of crashes. Some anti-virus software packages may prevent the game from booting entirely, while other third-party programs may affect stability once in-game.

Forza Horizon 5 crashing on Xbox

Some Forza Horizon 5 players also report crashes when playing on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. The closed nature of the Xbox console family makes it harder to find potential causes, with no official workarounds detailed at this time. We recommend ensuring Forza Horizon 5 is installed on your internal hard drive for the best possible results and otherwise keeping an eye on official support channels for future updates.

No audio on Xbox Series X|S with Quick Resume

Playground Games has acknowledged a bug where audio on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S consoles may disappear once starting from Quick Resume. Force quitting the application and restarting the game will fix the issue when re-entering the game.

Forzathon Shop not available

Forza Horizon 5's Forzathon Shop allows players to spend Forzathon Points to receive various in-game rewards. It returns from previous games, although it won't be available from launch. Playground Games has disabled the shop through release, announcing plans to open the marketplace in a future update.

Forza Horizon 5 server issues

Forza Horizon 5, like any new online video game, may suffer from connectivity issues through the launch period. The game has seen an influx of players through its Nov. 5 early access launch, while the Nov. 9 release expands access to more buyers and Xbox Game Pass subscribers. While the game has seen a relatively smooth rollout, general server instability and intermittent outages may occur through the launch week.

Other Forza Horizon 5 bugs and issues on Xbox & PC

Playground Games has published its list of issues providing granular insight into tracked bugs present at the launch. The exhaustive list details issues many players will likely never encounter, including bugs impacting specific features or problems that arise under certain conditions. The complete list of known Forza Horizon 5 issues follows.

• Accessibility - Player is not informed that it is not possible to join the Horizon Life session when the Game Speed is lowered
• User is asked to save changes in Wheel Controls Settings regardless if changes were made
• Audio - Audio no longer works after turning on Dolby Atmos or Windows Sonic on PC
• Custom Controller mapping cannot be saved with unassigned actions
• Super 7 - The Horizon Super 7 progress is automatically reset when entering The Horizon Super 7 Screen after winning last Challenge Card
• Publishing an arena in EventLab navigates to the custom events screen which shows the newly-created event
• When changing output format from stereo to 7.1 (or any other combination) the game sometimes goes silent.
• Online friends are occasionally not shown in the Online Players List
• Cut-scenes lock to 30 FPS while user setting is set to "Unlocked Frame-Rate (Variable)"
• Non-standard aspect ratios do not have their native resolution set by default
• Game input intermittently non-functional on Press A To Start screen
• Challenge Cards can be created in offline mode even though they cannot be published
• Player is unable to set group/convoy run from map screen
• Player may become blocked after switching input devices in some areas.
• Cars visibly despawn in player's view
• After creating a Custom Layout player is unable to use any ANNA/LINK options
• Controller vibration suddenly stopped working after being disconnected from an online session
• User has to terminate and relaunch the title to apply an installed language pack
• Blueprint - Ramp assets placed during creation may not appear in race
• It is possible to change the state of a challenge card from "revealed" to "covered" while burning them
• Head-to-Head - Losing the race during rewind forces the player out of the rewind and causes the car to be stuck in place with high speed
• Players are not able to join another Player after they create a significant number of new convoys back-to-back
• Rebooting the console with headphones plugged into the controller and then booting the game results in only the radio audio being heard
• Eliminator - The Player may become unable to pause or open the map during an Eliminator session
• Black bars persist on top of the screen when creating a new route in playground games
• Telemetry overlay may not turn off preventing usage of other menu items
• There is no on-screen message while matchmaking for Horizon Open
• Event Lab - The "Set Player Objective" action in EventLab doesn't work in certain conditions
• Not completing Co-op "Buggy and the Beast" can cause persistent cinematic black bars
• Idle players are sometimes not properly kicked for inactivity
• Audio - The looped sound occurs when the Player gets kicked out for inactivity from the Seasonal Race Coop
• Navigation lines may be missing when using ANNA to complete more Horizon Stories for Accolades
• Checkpoints cannot be placed if creating a route blueprint at a Street Race location in EventLab
• Barn Finds - Unable to collect the Mk1 Ford Escort until after a reboot
• Props will occasionally fail to load in Challenges
• Players' dots on the map may appear to be driving a D-class car
• Player liveries may not load in free roam.
• Convoys - Joining a player after sending them an invite causes an absence of convoy leader
• "Off the Beaten Trail" Test Driver Story and certain optional Expedition objectives cannot be completed with maximum assists enabled
• The "No Music" option is not working when creating a Challenge Card in Super7
• Air Event volcano - GPS route did not update for Round 3 Danger Sign
• Buggy and the Beast - Player does not get the accolade "monster destroyer" if they win the event after a restart
• Prestige Stars may not display correctly in leaderboards
• Players may experience infinite "Waiting for Players" screens after finishing first stage of the Co-op Baja Expedition
• xCloud - The majority of game settings (including controller layouts) are not retained when playing on different platforms
• Expeditions - Canyon - Players are not able to finish expedition with the entire convoy
• Terrain may disappear temporarily during Co-op Expeditions
• Friends/Players shows no one online when a friend is actively playing
• The Trial - After "Event Starting" countdown solo players are not prompted if they want to participle in event
• Drag Racing: AI cars seem unusually difficult at higher difficulties.
• Accolades - Danger Signs - Don't Break It, There Isn't Many Left - doesn't tell the player about the specific danger sign you need
• xCloud - Players are unable to join or invite to a Convoy using LINK ('X' Action)
• DLC - Player may lose VIP crown and house after restarting the game
• Accolades - Some Accolades may display uncomplete even after being completed
• Crash - EventLab - Playing an Event that was created in Performance mode while playing in Quality mode causes a crash
• Accolades - When playing on Xbox some Accolades are missing icons in the Menu
• Some Drift Zone, Speed Zone, and Danger Sign Accolades may become impossible to achieve
• Mouse input may not work in some post-race scenes
• The Festival Pass "Max Points" score may occasionally be incorrect
• Quitting a club via the Club Info panel leads to invalid options in the UI
• Corrupted textures are visible on the road and terrain in certain areas of the map after completing a Horizon Arcade event
• A prompt saying that the convoy leader is already in a convoy sometimes appears when attempting to invite other players
• Long wait times can be experienced during matchmaking
• The livery or tune on a Gift Drop can be removed if an error is encountered while uploading it
• xCloud - Players may experience mouse control issues on the Replay screen
• Crash - When using Sogou Pinyin input software, the game crashes during the initial drive.
• Convoy - Players in a convoy may disappear and reappear repeatedly.
• Lotus Elise GT1 1997 tagged as Barn Find in Auction House
• When applying a livery players may notice the background to be filled in rather than being transparent
• Porsche Spyder 918 main body of the aero wing remains inactive when the car is speeding up or braking