If Rockstar Goes All-In on Racing, GTA 6 Could Accidentally Compete With Forza Horizon

If all goes according to plan, one of the most anticipated video game releases in history will finally arrive this November, when Rockstar Games releases Grand Theft Auto 6. The game’s predecessor. The Grand Theft Auto series took off with the move to 3D gaming on the PlayStation 2 with GTA III , a game that defined the open-world gaming genre and would come to become a major player in gaming.

While GTA III and the games that followed it up through several city-named titles and Grand Theft Auto IV were all popular and successful titles, and anticipation for GTA V was massive, it’s fair to say the game exceeded even the most optimistic of expectations. The multi-protagonist storyline and massive gaming area were a smash hit, and in GTA Online , Rockstar hit on one of the most beloved and enduring games of all time.

One of the major appeals to life in the latest Grand Theft Auto was the incredible range of experiences and minigames to take part in. Now, with the next game nearly here, we find ourselves asking what to expect from the open-world game, and whether it might just be capable of stealing some audience away from another of gaming’s most beloved franchises.

The Two Heads Of Forza Racing

The Forza racing games are well-respected and trusted in gaming, despite them coming in two highly different forms. On the one hand, you have the Forza Motorsports line of games that focus on realistic, simulator-style racing. This makes it an appealing option for serious racing gamers who want to get as close as possible to the real experience of driving a supercar.

On the other hand, there is the Forza Horizon series, which just launched Forza Horizon 6 to massively high reviews and sales. The Horizon series is for gamers who want an arcade approach. If you’re more likely to be playing with your thumbsticks than a steering wheel and pedal controller, you’re probably turning to Horizon , which offers games aligned more with a Need For Speed game than iRacing.

This is where GTA 6 becomes an intriguing potential spoiler.

Grand Theft Auto: The Everything App

The scope of modern Grand Theft Auto games, and players of GTA Online , have found great fun participating in sports and other activities, which the game handles as well as many single-sport games on the same subject. Players can pick up a wide range of sports, from pool and darts to golf and basketball.

Additionally, players have become very accustomed to making their own fun in GTA games, going so far as to roleplay normal lives and jobs within the game. Whatever you want to do for fun, you can probably find a way to do it in GTA.

Could GTA 6 Become a Surprise Forza Horizon Alternative?

As the godfather of open-world gaming, this aligns the automobiles in GTA with the racing experience in Horizon games.

Driving is always an important part of Grand Theft Auto games, which is not surprising given the title. The massive map and wide selection of vehicles provide a racing experience not that far removed from the play cycle of Forza Horizon games, where you explore the map, take part in races, and build out your vehicle collection.

If GTA 6 drops with enjoyable vehicle handling, a variety of racing missions and racing options, and a way for players to engage with each other on it in online play, it has the potential to become a must-play option for arcade-style racing fans.

Now, is it likely that GTA 6 will be viewed as any existential threat to Horizon 6? Unlikely, as the series remains popular for a reason. They deliver great games, and with a laser focus on racing, can serve players in ways that a more diverse game like Grand Theft Auto cannot. Where it could dent the bottom line for Forza Horizon is among the series’ casual gamers.

While a gamer who puts dozens and dozens of hours into every arcade racing title they buy is still likely to dive into Horizon , there are also those gamers who enjoy tinkering with some car design and racing for a few weeks before moving on to the next game. This is the subset of gamers who may find themselves having that itch scratched by GTA 6 and never feeling the need to give Horizon a look-in.

What do you think about the potential of GTA 6 as an arcade racer? Are you anticipating a lot of fun hours behind the wheel of the game’s varied auto ecosystem?