Forza Horizon 6 Horizon Play Modes: All 6 Online Modes Explained
Every Forza Horizon 6 Horizon Play mode explained — Eliminator, Hide & Seek, Touge Showdown, Spec Racing, Drift, and Time Attack — and which suits you.
Horizon Play is where Forza Horizon 6 keeps its curated online modes, and it is the menu I tab to when I want structured multiplayer instead of just cruising in Horizon Open. There are six modes in it, two of them brand new to the series, and they cover everything from chaotic battle royale to precise mountain duels.
This is the overview. I go deeper on the individual modes in their own guides, but here is the full lineup and, more usefully, which one fits the way you actually like to play.
How to find Horizon Play
Pause the game, tab over to the online section, and select Horizon Play. It drops you into a hub listing the available modes. Everything below lives there. Cross-play is on across all of it, so PC and console players share the same pools, and you can roll into modes with a Convoy of up to 12 players.
The Eliminator
What it is: A car battle royale. Everyone starts in a weak level 1 car, drives the open world grabbing better cars from drops, and the safe zone shrinks until one player is left. Duels are settled by short head-to-head sprints.
Who it is for: Players who want chaos and quick highs. It is loose, unpredictable, and forgiving of mistakes because you respawn into new matches fast. A great first online mode.
The full strategy — which drops to chase, when to fight, final-circle play — is in my Eliminator guide.
Hide & Seek
What it is: A new asymmetric mode. One player hides while five players seek, across two timed phases — first blend into traffic and survive, then reach an end zone without getting caught. The hider has tools to break line of sight; the seekers share a proximity radar.
Who it is for: People who like mind games more than raw pace. It rewards map knowledge, traffic awareness, and patience. If you enjoy the tension of being hunted (or the hunt itself), this is the one.
I cover both sides — hiding and seeking — in the Hide & Seek guide.
Touge Showdown
What it is: A new 1v1 mode built around Japan’s mountain passes, rotating across several touge courses. Two drivers duel down a winding road in a cat-and-mouse format where holding position matters as much as outright speed.
Who it is for: Drivers who want a pure test of skill against one opponent. No pack racing, no luck, just you, them, and a tight mountain road. It is the most technical mode in Horizon Play and the most satisfying to win.
Car choices, course knowledge, and how to win the duel are in the Touge Showdown guide.
Spec Racing
What it is: Racing where every player drives the identical car with no custom modifications allowed, across road and dirt events. With tuning and car advantage stripped out, results come down purely to driver skill.
Who it is for: Competitive players who want a level playing field. If you are tired of losing because someone had a better-tuned car, Spec Racing removes that excuse entirely. It is the fairest racing in the game and the best place to measure yourself honestly. It also mixes dirt and road events, so you need to be well-rounded rather than a one-surface specialist.
Drift
What it is: Online drifting, returning to the series. Players chain drifts and rack up score; the highest score wins. It runs on the same scoring logic as the open-world Drift Zones but in a competitive lobby.
Who it is for: Anyone who would rather slide than race. Drift has a steep learning curve but a deep ceiling, and the online format gives you a reason to keep refining your runs against other people. If you are new to sliding, my drifting guide covers the fundamentals first.
Time Attack & Drag Meets
What it is: Two leaderboard-driven formats. Time Attack has you set the fastest clean lap on a circuit; Drag Meets are straight-line acceleration runs. Both are about posting a time and climbing the board rather than wheel-to-wheel racing.
Who it is for: Solo-minded grinders and tuners. If you love chasing a perfect lap or dialing in a drag build and watching it pay off in tenths, this is your home. It pairs naturally with deep tuning work.
Which mode should you start with?
Here is the short version:
- Want chaos and fast fun? The Eliminator.
- Want mind games? Hide & Seek.
- Want a pure skill duel? Touge Showdown.
- Want fair, competitive racing? Spec Racing.
- Want to slide? Drift.
- Want to chase the perfect time? Time Attack & Drag Meets.
I bounce between all six depending on mood, but most players find one that clicks and live there. The new modes — Hide & Seek and Touge Showdown — are the most worth your time early, because they are fresh and the community has not figured them out yet.
A note on rotation
Specific events, course rotations, and any featured Horizon Play challenges shift over time, and some tie into the weekly Festival Playlist. Check in-game for what is live this week. The six core modes themselves are the permanent backbone of Horizon Play.
One more thing worth knowing: Horizon Play is curated and matchmade, but it is not the only way to play together. Horizon Open drops you into free public lobbies for casual racing and messing around, and a Convoy lets you group up with friends before you ever pick a mode. Most of my sessions start as a Convoy in Horizon Open, then we vote into one of these six modes when we want something with structure.
For the wider picture of FH6’s online systems, including Horizon Open and Convoys, see my multiplayer guide.