A surprise Forza Horizon 5 update has given us a perfect Barbie movie tie-in. As a Ken myself, my fate has always been tied to that of Barbie, so I’m of course very excited for her to take over the world once again this summer, and what better way to celebrate than cruising the streets of Forza Horizon 5 in her iconic baby-pink car? That’s right, the best racing game just got so much more fashionable – come on, Barbie, let’s go karty.
Ahead of the bizarro Barbie movie, which sees Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as the iconic duo as they head on an adventure out of Barbie Land and into the real world, it seems that their influence has also snuck into Forza Horizon 5. The latest update includes a pair of Barbie-themed vehicles – Barbie’s miniature Chevrolet Corvette, and Ken’s massive Hummer.
That’s right, you can now take to the winding roads of Mexico in the baby pink 1956 Chevrolet Corvette EV that Barbie and Ken drive during the film. Hilariously, it’s actually scaled pretty comparably to the on-screen version, giving you perhaps the best in-car glimpse yet of your in-game character and reminding you of all those questionable fashion choices you made last time you played.
Also included is a Ken-themed 2002 GMC Hummer EV pickup with special decals – sadly, this one just looks to be a slight livery touch-up for an existing car, so it’s not quite as exciting as the Corvette, but honestly that’s more than enough for me. I’ve yet to verify whether the in-game Barbiemobile is made of plastic, but I can confirm that it’s fantastic.
The tongue-in-cheek humor, star-studded cast list, and a delightful embracing of Barbie’s body positivity for a product that has so long positioned itself as the idealized image of beauty set the movie up to be a real highlight of 2023, and it’s an oddly perfect fit for the bright colors and carefree, wind-in-your-hair action of Forza Horizon 5.
Past crossovers include a Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels DLC that was pretty spectacular, which only serves to remind us how good Hot Wheels would be as a potential addition to the current run of toy-themed films.
The Barbie vehicles are currently viewable in-game via the Horizon Promo section, so it likely won’t be long until you can grab them for yourself. With Forza Horizon 5 free on PC Game Pass, subscribers to Microsoft’s service can jump straight in and start racing ahead of time – if you’ve never flown around the dusty roads of Mexico, I can’t recommend it enough.
It’d been a while since a racing game really grabbed me by the shoulders, yet I found myself utterly hooked on building out my collection of increasingly ludicrously-decorated vehicles. Time to add another to the collection!
We’ve got plenty more of the best open-world games for you to zip around, in or out of a car, or you can check out the very best upcoming games in 2023 to see what more the year has in store for us.