The eagerly anticipated Forza Horizon 5 has launched on November 9th, 2021 on Xbox Series X/S and Windows PC, and it has proven to be a rather demanding game specs wise, especially if you’re looking to get the most out of the game.
The game can run in 4k, which already tells us that the specs are going to be a bit on the higher end, though as with many games, the requirements are flexible, so we’ve chosen the laptops that can run the game at minimum, recommended and ideal specs, as cited by the Xbox Game Studio.
System requirements
The Xbox Game Studios has released ‘ideal specs’ requirements for Forza Horizon 5, and they are quite substantial. Though they have also released the minimum specs for the game, we recommend that you aim for a gaming laptop that is above the minimum specs, as this will ensure that the game can run at good FPS even at medium settings. If you end up going for the minimum specs laptop, please be aware that the game may not run optimally when it comes to frame rates, but it will run Forza Horizon 5 well.
Your choice of laptop will depend on what other games you’re wanting to play; all the laptops we’ve chosen have decent specs and can do a lot more than just run Forza Horizon 5.
As we’re nearing Christmas time though, it’s a good time to choose one as a present for a gamer in your life. Due to the game being so graphically demanding, the laptop we've chosen below will more than
Minimum specs for Forza Horizon 5
- CPU : Intel i5-4460 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200
- RAM : 8GB RAM
- GPU / Video Card : Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 / AMD Radeon RX 470
- Storage : 110 GB HDD space
- Operating System : Windows 10 version 15063.0 or later (64-bit)
Recommended gaming laptop
MSI Katana GF66 is a 144hz gaming laptop that can run Forza Horizon 5, albeit at 1080p, if you’d like to keep the frame rates above or around 60 FPS. While you may not be able to run the game at 4k while at the same time experiencing the 144hz the laptop is capable of, it is more than sufficient to run Forza Horizon 5 and still be able to experience the game without issues, if you’re smart about your settings.
In addition to Forza Horizon 5, you can hope to run all major e-sports, as well as AAA games, and it is a good choice for a starter gaming laptop. MSI Katana also comes with GameMax Razor mouse as well, making it game-ready right out of the box.
Although this laptop fits the minimum requirements for Forza Horizon 5, this is a mid-range gaming laptop that is capable of handling a lot of games in addition to Forza Horizon 5. Due to the game being so graphically demanding, even the minimum spec laptop will be a gaming station that endures well beyond Forza Horizon 5.
Recommended Specs for Forza Horizon 5:
- CPU : Intel i5-8400 / AMD Ryzen 5 1500X
- RAM : 16 GB RAM
- GPU / Video Card : GeForce GTX 1070 / AMD Radeon RX 590
- Storage : 110 GB SSD space
- Operating System : Windows 10 version 15063.0 or later (64-bit)
Recommended gaming laptop
The recommended settings for Forza Horizon 5 are a lot more demanding than the minimum specs, with just the recommended RAM being double the minimum specs. Gigabyte G5 is an excellent gaming laptop that is more than sufficient to run Forza Horizon 5 and while it is not as good as the ideal spec, it is better than the recommended settings, so if you’re on a budget you can still fully experience Forza Horizon 5 at good frame rate and graphic settings.
Gigabyte G5 will also run vast majority of AAA games as well, so it is an excellent alternative to the ideal specs if you’re on a budget. The laptop also comes with AORUS H1 gaming headset and a GameMax Razor mouse, making it a perfect and complete portable gaming bundle.
Ideal Specs for Forza Horizon 5:
- CPU : Intel i7-10700K / AMD Ryzen 7 3800XT
- RAM : 16 GB RAM
- GPU / Video Card : GeForce RTX 3080 / AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT
- Storage : 110 GB SSD space
- Operating System : Windows 10 version 15063.0 or later (64-bit)
Recommended gaming laptop
The ideal specs for Forza Horizon 5 are a testament of how demanding the game really is, but also how much it can do. These specs were cited as Ideal by the Xbox Game Studio, and they demand an RTX 3080 for the best experience, including 16GB of RAM, a processor with 8 cores and 16 threads. ASUS ROG Strix Scar sports all the ideal specs and a 1TB SSD, making this an absolute beast of a gaming laptop.
Looking at the specs of this laptop, we can’t think of any game that it wouldn’t be able to run at max FPS and high settings as of today, so as a gaming laptop investment, it will serve well beyond Forza Horizon 5.
The laptop comes with GameMax Razer mouse and three months Xbox Game Pass, so even if you’ve not yet bought the Forza Horizon 5, you can play the game for free with the Xbox Game Pass. In addition to Forza Horizon 5, the Xbox Game Pass will give you access to 100s of AAA and indie titles that the ASUS ROG Strix SCAR will run without a hitch, at maximum settings and maximum frame rates.
