Gran Turismo 7 vs Forza Horizon 5 – What's the difference?

The release of Gran Turismo 7 has fuelled much debate online as to which racing game is better: Gran Turismo 7 or Forza Horizon 5? For the sake of argument, Gran Turismo 7 shouldn’t be measured against Forza Horizon 5, given that the latter is vastly different in scope and game design.

It’s worth adding that to truly compare and understand the differences between Gran Turismo 7 and a Forza game; it’s best to measure the game against the latest Forza Motorsport game to pit these racing masterpieces side-by-side.

While it has been more than five years since Forza Motorsport 7, the next entry in the Motorsport series is currently in development at Turn10 Studios. So, without much delay, we’ll be differentiating these vastly different racing games on some core features, including graphics, framerates, game modes and car lists.

Gran Turismo 7 vs Forza Horizon 5: Graphics and framerates

The most contentious category which sparks the most significant difference between these racing games is the graphics. To compare which game is more visually appealing, we must outline both games’ graphical features.

Forza Horizon 5 also offers additional graphical modes for the Xbox Series S version: a performance (FPS) mode which runs at 60FPS and 1080p, and a quality mode at 30FPS at 1440p. The Xbox One version has a rocksteady graphical performance of 30FPS at 1080p but at the cost of less NPCs and render distance.

In terms of loading times, Forza Horizon 5 has faster loading for its Xbox One X|S versions; 17 seconds for the Xbox Series S and 18 seconds for the Xbox Series X. The downfall comes from its Xbox One and One X versions having reported longer times, almost over a minute, due to the addition of more loading screens at launch.

Unlike Forza Horizon 5, Gran Turismo 7 will run at 4K at 60FPS on the PS5, while the PS4 Pro will run at 60FPS at 1080p. The PS4 supports 60FPS at 1080p; however, the developer has noted that with no ray tracing available for its PS4 consoles.

In the case of loading times, the PS5 and PS4 are significantly different between each generation. The PS5 clocked in nearly two seconds, while the PS4 has recorded around 42 seconds and the PS4 Pro at 37 seconds when loading.

Forza Horizon 5 Vs

Gran Turismo 7: Game modes

Gran Turismo 7 includes a variety of gaming modes for its players to enjoy. These include their multiplayer lobbies and Sport Mode, where you can compete in competitive racing with friends or players online.

Forza Horizon 5, in retrospect, included various multiplayer modes like Horizon Open, Arcade, Rivals and its take on the battle royale genre, the Eliminator. As Forza Horizon 5 is an open-world racing game, it doesn't support split-screen multiplayer, like Gran Turismo 7, but Forza Motorsport 7 has enabled this feature in-game.

Gran Turismo 7 vs Forza Horizon 5: Car lists

Gran Turismo 7 launches with 400 cars, expecting more to be announced post-launch. On the other hand, Forza Horizon 5 launched last November with over 500 cars, with the current tally placing it well over 570 cars within four months. 

While we can't determine which game boasts a more extensive garage currently, Forza Horizon 5 did launch with more cars than Gran Turismo 7. This excludes cars included in the Welcome Car Pack, Car Pass, and other expansion packs, included in the game's other editions and sold separately.

Both games have unique features and impressive performance settings that the racing community should equally regard. Gran Turismo 7 and Forza Horizon 5 will have incredible successes for their respective platforms, and their players should be delighted for both games to coexist in a highly competitive market.

We want to thank the YouTube channel, ElAnalistaDeBits, for the graphics comparison videos for Gran Turismo 7 and Forza Horizon 5.

• Read more: Are microtransactions included in Gran Turismo 7?

Featured image courtesy of Polyphony Digital & Playground Games.