It is that time of the month again, when a whole new Series rolls around to the sun drenched shores of Mexico in Forza Horizon 5… Series 21 – Summer
This series, the 21st in case you were keeping count, is subtitled “Explore the Horizon” and promises to bring not only the new stuff that every Series does, such as new cars and so on, but more.
There is an overhaul to the Photo Mode to check out, including for the first time the ability to get out of the car when having a photo taken. Add to this new Pathfinder Accolades that seem to be actually about finding paths, believe it or not, and new Overlanding Modifications, and the scene is set for some new stuff to inject a bit of variety into the racing action.
Of course, we’re here for the racing, the tunes and best cars you need in order to complete the Festival Playlist Weekly Challenges of Series 21 – Summer in Forza Horizon 5. With lots of races to try and tunes to recommend, I best get to it to ensure that I’m not out of a job just yet!
Let’s see what is on the menu in Summer of Series 21, shall we?
Part 1: Weekly Car Challenge – Above and Beyond
The subject of this week’s car challenge is a cover star of Forza Horizon 4, the Land Rover Series III from 1972. Yes, this car is even older than me!
With styling cues that have been part of the Defender from it’s conception (ie a box on wheels) this mud plugger is renowned for not only going anywhere, but getting there pretty slowly. I’ve spent time in the back of an RAF-issue Land Rover when I was an Air Cadet, many moons ago, and I have never been in a more uncomfortable vehicle since.
Still, should you not have one in your garage, you can grab one from the Autoshow for 20,000 credits.
Chapter 1 -Series III
Get in your new car, take it for a spin and prepare to have your skelton pulverised.
Chapter 2 – Tough Mudder
We now have to win a Cross Country race in our Landy, and it has to be upgraded to C Class 600 along the way.
I did this, and the share code is a complete mystery, as the game won’t show me the cars any more. Do a search on my gamertag, Red620Ti, and it should pop up hopefully.
Chapter 3 – Ready for Anything
Now we need to hit a Trailblazer, any Trailblazer, and we have to score a minimum of two stars on it. Pick your favourite one and have a go.
Chapter 4 – Built to Last
To show how tough the Landy is we have to earn an Ultimate Wreckage skill in the vehicle. Basically, find somewhere with a lot of street furniture or fences and go nuts.
And with that, the weekly challenge is complete and we are five points closer to the first reward cars of Series 21.
Part 2: Weekly Challenges, Championships and PR Stunts
Well, it is now Summer and we need to Explore the Horizon, so let’s dive straight in to see what we are going to be doing this week.
The Trial – Ad-van-ture Time
Ah, The Trial, the weekly excuse for a dreadful pun and an invitation to find people on the internet who understand the meaning of working as a team. And they are scarcer than you might think.
The pun doesn’t really work this week, as the theme is Sports Utility Heroes tuned to a maximum of A Class 800. As always, when this question is asked by Forza Horizon 5, the answer I like is the ugliest car in the car, the Bentley Bentayga. My share code is: 118484657.
For winning two out of three races, we can walk away with a Lambo LM 002; a truly massive truck of a thing.
Eventlab 1 – SPF153060 Presents Sand Bank Slalom Beach Party 27
Now, this is a little different and we need to use an Off Road capable vehicle, in an A Class 800 range. Seeing as I do this in order, I just stayed in my Bentley Bentayga from the Trial and went nuts.
The course is long and really hard to follow, but not too bad in terms of enjoyment. It’s an Eventlab – I’m not sure they are meant to be ‘fun’.
The prize for zooming around? An AMG Hammer Coupe.
Showcase Remix – Splash of the Titans
Another remix of one of the showcases this week, and another chance to earn the achievement if you haven’t got it already.
This is a remix of the jetski race, and sees us pit a DeBerti F-250 against the trio of hooligans on their aquatic vehicles.
Should we come out on top, a Nissan Titan is our prize.
PR Stunt 1 – Danger Sign – La Mesa
Step forward the BMW X5M Forza Edition, with share code: 519084427.
For such a big car, this thing certainly does like to fly, and with the approach to this Danger Sign being off road it should serve us well yet again. We need to clear over 240m metres in order to be successful.
A Super wheelspin will be yours if you drive fast enough. And stick the landing of course…
PR Stunt 2 – Trailblazer – Jungle Traversal
Stay in the X5M from above for this event, as it is certainly more than capable off road.
We need to reach the finish line with more than 15 seconds remaining on the clock and the best advice I can give is to practice your lines.
Another Super Wheelspin awaits. You’ve practiced this, yeah?
Seasonal Championship 1 – Sick Dunes
We need to use any Unlimited Off Road vehicle for this set of races, as long as they are in the A Class 800 range of tuning, anyway!
I went with a Jeep Trailcat as my chariot, liking the combo of AWD and a honking great engine.
The share code is : 118411445.
For winning outright solo, or best two out of three in a convoy, we can take home a Land Rover Defender from 2020.
Seasonal Championship 2 – Cupra Formentor VZ5
We need to use the car named above for this set of races, and luckily they should be landing in everyone’s mailboxes in time for the race. I tuned mine up a tad, and the share code is again a secret. Does anyone else out there have trouble with tunes just vanishing? Please do a search for my name and the keyword “cup”
For winning best two out of three in a convoy, or the whole thing solo, we can win a Cupra Race Suit. Still not changing from my dinosaur outfit!
Part 3: Other Challenges
Series 21 – Summer focuses on the usual Photo Challenge, a Treasure Hunt and a Collectibles challenge.
Photo Challenge – #Donkey
This week, the challenge is to take a car, of any flavour, to the north of Cascadas de Agua Azul, and take a wildlife photo near the camera equipment there .If that sounds rather vague, well, it does to me too.
I’ll post the location and my artistic effort below for your admiration/ridicule.
The reward? A new Forzalink phrase, “Donkey”. Marvellous.
Treasure Hunt – The Pathfinder Challenge
This Treasure Hunt seems a little different, this week as we have to find all three of the weekly Pathfinder Challenges in the Accolades page. Only then can the treasure be ours.
The three challenges in question are all trails to find, marked at the start by a pair of green balloons (see pic) and then there are a series of red balloons to follow, until the trail ends at more green balloons. They aren’t tricky to follow, so go nuts.
They start in Tulum, Guanajuato South and Aerodromo East.
The location of the treasure chest is shown below, and it has 250,000 credits inside.
Collectible Challenge – Where Wolf?
We need to drive around more Playa Tranquila, and smash ten of the Wolf cut outs that are nearby. I’m assuming they mean wolf, the animal, and not Wolf, the Gladiator from when I was a boy!
I’ll stick a picture of what we are looking for below.
For completing this challenge, we can get an Apex Predators Desert Scarf.
Part 4: Hot Wheels Events
If you have the Hot Wheels expansion and are an Elite Level player, then you get to enjoy a couple of extra events. More events equals good, yes?
Seasonal PR Stunt – Speed Zone – Treetops
Can you blaze this zone at over 180 mph? Well, if any car can do it, it’s that old faithful, the Koenigsegg Agera RS, and my share code is: 109282883.
A Super wheelspin is your reward.
Seasonal Championship – Orient-steering
This is going to be more sedate than usual for a Hot Wheels event, as the restriction this week is a Modern Rally Car, to a maximum of B Class 700. Now, as I may have said before, Modern Rally equates to Evo, and in this case, the Evo VIII MR, with a share code of : 141172186.
We can get a new horn for winning out, a “Legacy Rewind” one. Yay
Part 5: Rally Adventure Events
The Rally Adventure expansion brings even more events to the roster and provided you are already a Horizon Badlands champion, you’ll get access to…
Seasonal PR Stunt – Danger Sign – La Cantera
More jumping about is required here, so again, I reached for the BMW X5M FE, with share code : 519084427. This time we need to clear a distance of 400 metres in order to take home the prize.
A Super Wheelspin is the prize.
Seasonal Championship – Too Hot 2 Handle
We need to use a Hot Hatch class car here, to a maximum of B Class 700. Another slow race, I guess!
Still, making the best of a bad lot, I went with a Renault Clio R.S. 200 EDC, and the share code is : 262870774.
The prize for winning out, whether solo or in a convoy, is a Farid Rueda Lion Racesuit. Woop.
With a new Series we find new monthly rewards are up for grabs, as you’d expect. For a mere 80 points, you can take home a Wuling Sunshine, although I’m not sure I’d bother, and for 160 points you can have an Audi RS7 2021, which is a bit more like it!
The monthly Rivals challenges are also live, with them both being EV challenges, one in Ek’Balam and the other using a Cupra Tavascan Concept car. Make sure you take these in at some point during Series 21.
Grab enough points and Summer also brings new prizes, with this week’s cars being the DeBerti F-250 for 20 points and the Porsche Macan RR for 40 points.
And that’s your lot for this week and our little guide to the best cars and tunes of Forza Horizon 5’s Series 21 Summer offering.
To enjoy what these events in the Festival Playlist Weekly Challenges, you’ll need a copy of Forza Horizon 5. It’s available on Game Pass, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC and on the cloud via mobile. The Xbox Store will sort you out with a download.
As always, the comments section is below. We’d love to know if these cars and tunes have helped you out. And if they don’t, we’d like to know that too.
