Authentic Mexican culture in Forza Horizon 5

When it comes to the design and development of the Forza Horizon series of games, the Playground Games team has one priority above all else: an authentic, open world. Cool cars and great music are certainly important, but these elements alone are not what makes an authentic one Forza horizon Experience. With past games in the UK, Australia, Southern Europe and Colorado in the US, the team turned its attention to Mexico for Forza Horizon 5.

From the beginning, the team has taken conscious and deliberate steps to bring its vision of Mexico into Forza Horizon 5 is as close to reality as possible, especially when it comes to celebrating the country’s incredibly rich culture. “Our goal for Forza Horizon 5 is to go beyond capturing Mexico’s signature landscapes and give players the opportunity to learn about the country’s people and traditions, ”said Mike Brown, Creative Director of Forza Horizon 5 at playground games. “We value the Mexican and Latinx communities and want to ensure that we authentically celebrate the diverse community in the most truest and most respectful of ways.”

To bring this world to life, Playground Games hired a consultant named Lalo Alcaraz (a writer for Nickelodeon’s “The Casagrandes” and Mexico cultural advisor for the Pixar film “Coco”) to work with his team on depicting Mexico. which lead to changes to the campaign, characters and the overall appearance of Mexico. He played an important role in bringing the game’s characters to life and bringing deeply important local customs into the game Forza Horizon 5.

“I’m a cultural advisor who can advise you on whether something is authentic or not, but then I can present you with alternatives on site,” says Alcaraz. “I can do it with the character’s voice because I’m a writer too. And that’s actually my favorite part. “

Alcaraz announced that he was doing his best to share equal parts reassurance and caution. He and the team attach great importance to bringing Mexican authenticity into the game and striking the playful and lively tone Forza horizon is known for all of the art, music, and plot of the game (like the stories of Lucha de Carretera and Vocho).

In addition to writing, Playground wanted to bring Mexico’s vibrant and diverse cultural heritage to life with traditional wall art. As a result, the game features original art for the game created by Mexican artists from different regions of the country. This led to collaborations with famous artists such as Farid Rueda, Star27, Fun, senkoe, Raul Urias, and Cix.

When designing the murals, each artist pursued his own unique approach and drew from his own individual perspectives and inspiration. Rueda, for example, combined Mexican colors and shapes with generally recognizable animals like lions and bears to help players around the world connect with Mexico and highlight what really makes the region and its culture special. Urias focused on elements of his Chihuahua homeland, including the Tarahumara culture, landscapes, ceramics, and flora and fauna. By creating a portrait of what Chihuahua represents to him, Urias aims to share the unique aspects of Chihuahua that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

When creating Forza Horizon 5, Playground sent teams to Mexico to visit each of the game locations to get inspiration and make sure they accurately reflect the country, weather, changing seasons, sounds, and more. They also met with residents to make sure this beautiful country, community and culture are represented in the right way. Creative Director Mike Brown said it best, “Most of all Forza Horizon 5 is a festival. It’s a festival of music, it’s a festival of cars and it’s a festival of Mexico. “

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