Forza Horizon 6 leaks online ahead of official launch

Forza Horizon 6 leaked in its entirety just days before its official release on May 19, 2026. Developed by Playground Games, Forza Horizon 6 is the latest installment in the popular open-world racing series, this time allowing players to head to Japan to race in locations inspired by Tokyo, Mount Fuji, rural highways and more.

The game is slated to launch with over 550 cars, a deep dive into JDM culture, dynamic weather and seasons, expanded car and garage customization, car encounters and much more. WITH Forza Horizon 6 with over 500,000 pre-orders on Steam ahead of its launch, it has already established itself as one of the most anticipated games of the year. However, just before its debut, the game seems to have hit an unexpected roadblock.

Forza Horizon 6 has a huge file size on PC and Xbox

Playground Games' Forza Horizon 6 is taking up a lot more space than some might expect, with more than 100GB being used on the first day.

Forza Horizon 6 leaked online

As Insider Gaming reports, Playground Games accidentally revealed the full, unencrypted build of the game Forza Horizon 6 when running your 155GB pre-installed files via Steam Update. Since there was no encryption, dataminers gained unlimited access to the game's files. Within hours, the pirated community had already made the leaked build playable, as the title reportedly lacks an anti-tampering solution like Denuvo. This means that the leaked version is not the full experience. Players on Reddit and Twitter who managed to get their hands on it reported that many aspects of the online functionality were unavailable and the game would crash immediately after the first race.

Scratch & Peek

Identify the cover and scrape off as little of the foil as possible.

Scratch & Peek

Identify the cover and scrape off as little of the foil as possible.

EasyMediumHardPermadeath

Neither Microsoft nor Playground Games have yet officially commented on the situation. There are speculations that users who have accessed Forza Horizon 6 earlier or may face a hardware ban when trying to connect to online services. The developer previously used similar measures in Forza Horizon 5 against players found to be cheating or modifying the game in the game. A hardware ban will completely block access to the game by identifying system components such as motherboard IDs, SSD serial numbers, TPM data and other tags.

The Honda e. is sitting in a row of other cars in the parking lot

This isn't the first time a major game has been leaked ahead of its scheduled release. Even Pragmatics reportedly faced a similar problem when Capcom uploaded preloaded files without proper encryption, allowing players to access the game before launch. Death Stranding 2 also experienced the same issue when the game was made available a few days before its debut. While these leaks may seem like a win for some of the community, they also cause major problems. Developers can suffer significant losses in sales and revenue, while key surprises such as story moments, endings, maps, and hidden content are often spoiled. Additionally, leaked builds are often unfinished or unstable, which can leave players with a bad first impression.

GameRant Quiz

Easy (15s) Medium (10s) Hard (5s)

Despite the leaks, the excitement surrounding the racing game remains stronger than ever. Players who have purchased Forza Horizon 6 The Premium Edition will have access to the game early, starting on May 15, 2026. It is also confirmed that there will be a LEGO crossover coming soon that will allow fans to purchase exclusive sets modeled after the cars in the game. Many fans believe this Forza Horizon 6 could redefine the open world racing genre with its huge map, extensive vehicle list and new gameplay features.