Forza Motorsport Series Reportedly Canceled – What Does This Mean For Forza Horizon 6?
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Following the layoff confirmations at Microsoft this week, which affected a whopping 50% of the studio, things may be worse than initially thought.
Now, a former employee at Turn 10 is claiming that the Forza Motorsport series has been completely shut down.
Image credit: Forza Motorsport
In a post on his personal Facebook account, Fred Russell stated, “Turn 10 Studios has shuttered the Forza Motorsport space and the team is no more.”
It’s surprising this is the first we’ve heard about it, and it comes from a personal account of someone who hasn’t worked at Turn 10 for years.
Given that it’s not yet officially confirmed by Microsoft, it remains a strong rumor at this point.
If it turns out to be true, it wouldn’t come as a huge surprise given that the series has declined in recent years, especially for drifting fans.
Forza Motorsport Failed To Meet Expectations
For most drifters, the holy grail of the series continues to be Forza Motorsport 4, which was released nearly 14 years ago. Since then, things haven’t been quite the same.
Initially, the latest Forza Motorsport title (which arrived in October 2023) had very little support for fans of drifting. Even the target market of racing game fans wasn’t particularly impressed, either.
Thankfully, over time, new updates trickled out, and the game gradually improved, especially from the perspective of drifting game fans.
Image credit: Forza Motorsport
In October 2024, a year after its release, we were treated to new ‘drift modes’ and some pre-tuned Formula DRIFT cars.
The best news was the return of the legendary Fujimi Kaido touge track, which made a comeback after nearly 15 years of drifting fans begging for it, coinciding with Forza’s 20th anniversary.
Admittedly, the game was steadily improving from a drifting perspective. Despite that, key features were still missing, and the whole rollout felt more like a somewhat poor effort to keep the drifting fans quiet.
The main appeal of FM4, for example, was the public drift lobbies.
Despite adding the new drift modes, they still didn’t include this all-important feature, despite knowing it’s what the fans wanted. They even stated that they were “planning to add public Drift Meetups in a future update” in the release notes.
Unfortunately, if the recent rumors are true, that’s never going to happen now.
If Confirmed, What Does This Mean For “The Next Forza”?
Although the Horizon series is now suffering from a lack of updates, there are no signs of any cuts coming, especially following the success of the recent PlayStation release.
Image credit: Forza Horizon
There was also the recent confirmation from Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer last month that “the next Forza” is coming in 2026, which is now more likely than ever to be Forza Horizon 6 (or something very similar) if today’s claims are true.
As speculation grows surrounding the apparent cancellation of Forza Motorsport, there’s an increasing number of rumors that some of the FM team “is now a support studio for Forza Horizon and ForzaTech.”
A former Turn 10 employee is reporting that Xbox has basically shut down the Forza Motorsport team at Turn 10 Studios. It looks like the studio is now a support studio for Forza Horizon and ForzaTech. Forza Motorsport has been an Xbox pillar for over 20 years.
— Klobrille (@klobrille.bsky.social) 4 July 2025 at 08:39
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If this is the case, it could be good news for Forza Horizon fans. Like Forza Motorsport, many fans believe that past games were better than the most recent offering, Forza Horizon 5.
Fans feel that the latest addition to the series, set in Mexico, has lost any clear direction in recent years, mostly churning out the same ideas in different locations.
At the same time, most drifting fans feel that the extent of the arcade-style physics has made the sideways action in the game too simple to enjoy.
Meanwhile, senior members of the original Playground Games team expressed concerns that the series lacks direction, opting to start their own studios, with upcoming games in the pipeline that have yet to be announced.
If the Playground Games and Turn 10 teams can join forces to deliver the best of both games, creating an epic new direction for the Horizon series, we could be in for a real treat.
All we know for now is that “the next Forza” is on its way, and whether we’ll hear any further details on what that entails before 2026 is yet to be seen.
It’s a sad ending for the Forza Motorsport series that has been around since the start of Xbox’s journey, but will this bring an entirely new, much-needed shake-up for the Forza series? Only time will tell.
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Bill is a writer and photographer who has been part of the Drifted team since 2015. His work extends to various print and online publications, including Wangan Warriors.
As part of the King of Nations team, he traveled extensively for several years, capturing top-tier international drift events worldwide. His hands-on experience, including rebuilding his own Nissan Silvia S15 drift car, gives him unique insights into drift car building and global drift culture.
When not behind the lens or keyboard, Bill can be found browsing classifieds for his next JDM project or shredding virtual tires on popular simulators like Assetto Corsa, CarX, and Forza.
You can learn more about Bill’s story here or follow his socials on X (formerly Twitter), Flickr, Facebook, and Instagram.
