Forza Horizon 5 on PS5 Requires a Microsoft Account, as Other Xbox Games on Sony’s Consoles Do

Forza Horizon 5 on PlayStation 5 requires a Microsoft account, the company has confirmed.

Confirmation comes from a FAQ posted to the Forza support website: “Yes, in addition to a PSN account you’ll need to link to a Microsoft account in order to play Forza Horizon 5 on PS5. This process begins the first time you start up the game on your console.”

This policy is in keeping with other Xbox games released on Sony’s console, including Minecraft, Grounded, and Sea of Thieves.

However, it has caused a degree of controversy among some. Does it play?, which works to “ensure games and hardware remain accessible now and always,” tweeted to say the news “basically kills preservation for the PS5 version of Forza Horizon 5.”

That statement taps into a concern that Forza Horizon 5 may become unplayable even to those who bought it if at some point in the future Microsoft discontinues its account linking process without updating the game to be playable without a Microsoft account. There’s also concern that Forza Horizon 5 on PS5 will become unplayable if a player loses access to their linked Microsoft account for whatever reason. Adding to this concern is the fact Microsoft will release Forza Horizon 5 on PS5 digitally, and has no plans for a physical disc version.

Sony came under fire for forcing PC players of Arrowhead’s Helldivers 2 to link a PSN account in order to play, but that decision was reversed after a backlash online. In January, Sony announced gamers would no longer require players to link a PSN account to enjoy some of its PC games, but offered bonuses to those who did.

The reaction to the Forza Horizon 5 Microsoft account news among the PS5 community has been mixed, with most players left wondering if the game has cross-progression given the forced Microsoft account link.

Unfortunately, according to the FAQ, Forza Horizon 5 for PS5 does not carry over save files from Xbox or PC. Microsoft pointed out that this is also the same behavior between the Xbox and Steam versions of the game, where game files are separate and not synchronized.

You can publish UGC on one platform and download it to play on another, however you won’t be able to edit it unless you’re playing on the save profile it was originally created on. Some online statistics, such as your leaderboard scores, are synchronized if you log into the game using the same Microsoft account, the company added.

Forza Horizon 5 is the latest Xbox game to launch on a rival console as part of Microsoft’s big multiplatform push. Expect plenty more where that came from in the months ahead.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.