Developer Playground Games announced that it would be delisting Forza Horizon 4 from Microsoft and Steam Stores in December as the racing's license is set to expire.
This is the latest in a series of games being delisted and the studio said that sales of the 2018 open-world racer will soon end over licensing and partner agreements ending. The exact date that the game will be removed from storefronts is on Dec. 15, 2024.
Forza Horizon 4 to be Delisted
(Photo : Playground Games / Screenshot taken from Steam)
Despite Forza Horizon 4 soon being unavailable for purchase, the developers have scheduled the final in-game event from July 25, 2024, to Aug. 22, 2024. After that, some of the game's achievements that are linked to the seasonal Festival Playlists will no longer be unlockable.
What makes the situation a little bit more confusing is that Forza Horizon 4's DLC will be delisted now and not with the game later this year. Those who also played the game via Xbox Game Pass and bought some DLC, qualify for a token, according to The Verge.
This will let them download the full game and continue to play it even after it is delisted from Microsoft and Steam stores. That particular game code will be sent to qualifying players who have a fully paid Xbox Game Pass subscription in the following days and must be redeemed by June 25, 2026.
Another surprising thing is that Playground Games said in its FAQ that the servers for Forza Horizon 4 will remain even after the game is delisted. This means that both offline and online modes will continue to be available for those who own the game.
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Between this and players qualifying for a token to keep the game, it seems that the developer is trying to make the best of an unfortunate situation. This is something that has been happening often for those who have real-life car and music licenses.
Players who are looking to get Forza Horizon 4 before it inevitably gets removed from storefronts can enjoy some discounts in the near future. Playground Games said that it will run various sales, including one on the Xbox Store that will start on July 14, 2024, said IGN.
Issues With Licensing
After the game is delisted on Dec. 15, 2024, the physical copies will still work as normal, Playground Games said. The popular racing game was initially released in 2018 for Xbox One and PC.
The main setting of Forza Horizon 4 is the United Kingdom and introduced changing seasons among other new features for players to enjoy. Some reviews said that the game combined a beautiful world with a constantly rewarding and self-renewing racing experience.
Despite the unfortunate turn of events, the situation with Forza Horizon 4 is not the worst that players have seen. Previously, The Crew, another racing game, became completely unplayable even for those who bought it, according to PCGamer.
That particular game was published by Ubisoft and after it was announced that live service was going to end, it was removed from people's libraries. This made it unavailable for play and even the servers were shut down.
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