$69.99. Zero user reviews. Positions #8, #9, and #10 on Steam’s Top Sellers chart simultaneously.

Forza Horizon 6 doesn’t launch until May 19. That hasn’t stopped Playground Games’ open-world racer from occupying three spots in the Steam top ten — one for each of its Standard ($69.99), Deluxe ($99.99), and Premium ($119.99) editions. Nobody has played the finished product. Nobody has posted a review. The only thing moving units right now is the name on the box.

And what a name. The Forza Horizon franchise has become one of gaming’s most reliable commercial engines. According to analytics firm Alinea Analytics, Forza Horizon 5 generated $290 million on Steam alone across four years. Over a million players paid for early access to FH5 — not the full game, just the privilege of starting four days before everyone else. FH6’s early preorder numbers suggest strong momentum ahead of launch.

The Numbers Before Launch

Since its Steam page went live on September 25, 2025, following a reveal at Tokyo Game Show, Forza Horizon 6 has accumulated 2.6 million wishlists. Pre-orders opened January 22 after the Xbox Developer_Direct broadcast, and the game added 200,000 wishlists in the following 48 hours. As of February 9 — still three months from release — FH6 had sold 220,000 copies on Steam, generating roughly $13 million in revenue.

Nearly 7% of those wishlisters are based in Japan, according to Alinea Analytics, well above the country’s typical Steam share. The setting is doing real commercial work here. Forza Horizon 6 takes the series to Japan for the first time — a destination the community has been requesting for over a decade, as OverTake.gg noted in its edition breakdown.

Design Director Torben Ellert has called the map ‘the most visually, radically different space we’ve ever built for a Horizon game,’ promising neon-drenched Tokyo streets featuring Shibuya Crossing and Tokyo Tower, mountain passes, and industrial docklands. New systems include a Collection Journal inspired by Japan’s stamp-collecting culture, customizable estates built on abandoned properties, and three permanent Car Meet locations modeled on Tokyo’s famous Daikoku parking area gatherings. Over 550 cars are confirmed for launch.

Pricing Psychology

The three-edition structure is deliberate, and so are the numbers. The Standard Edition at $69.99 represents the new AAA floor. The Deluxe at $99.99 adds a Welcome Pack and a Car Pass covering 30 additional vehicles — but conspicuously excludes early access. That privilege is reserved for the $119.99 Premium Edition, which also bundles two planned expansions, VIP membership with gameplay boosts, and exclusive car packs.

Alinea Analytics identified this as a textbook decoy effect: the $100 tier exists primarily to make $120 look like the rational choice. You’re already spending triple digits — why not get the version that actually lets you play four days early?

Xbox is also testing how far it can push pricing. FH5’s Premium Edition was $100; FH6’s is $120 — a 20% increase. The Game Pass Premium Upgrade climbed from $50 to $60. Thus far, demand hasn’t budged.

The Company It Keeps

For context, look at the chart neighbors. Crimson Desert debuted at #1 this week, according to VGChartz. Slay the Spire 2 holds the #2 spot, with Death Stranding 2 debuting at #3. Resident Evil 3 holds #6.

Every title in that vicinity has community feedback, player counts, and word-of-mouth behind its position. Forza Horizon 6 has none of that. It’s running on franchise equity alone — and on Steam’s willingness to surface three editions of the same unreleased game as distinct chart entries.

The Platform Play

FH6 also marks a continued shift in Xbox’s distribution strategy. The game launches May 19 on Xbox Series X|S, PC, Steam, and Xbox Cloud — day one with Game Pass Ultimate. A PlayStation 5 version follows later in 2026. Steam is no longer a secondary channel for Microsoft’s first-party titles; it’s a frontline launch platform, and the Top Sellers chart reflects that investment.

Eight weeks out, Forza Horizon 6 has already answered the question that matters to Xbox’s bottom line. The game will sell. Whether it’s any good — whether Playground can deliver a product worthy of the commercial machine built around it — is a verdict that won’t land until May. For now, faith is the product, and business is booming.

Sources