I've been a Forza fan since the original Horizon, and when I heard the next one was set in Japan, I was ready to drift through Tokyo's neon-lit streets with a anime girl on my hood. You know, the classic itasha life. But apparently, Playground Games decided that celebrating Japanese car culture means banning the very people who keep it alive. Buckle up, buttercup, because this is a bumpy ride.
For the uninitiated, itasha (痛車) is the glorious Japanese art of slapping anime, manga, or game characters onto your car. It's been a staple of the Forza livery editor since day one—harmless, creative, and a huge part of why people spend hours in the paint booth. But in Forza Horizon 6, the automated moderation system has apparently decided that anime = naughty. Cue the mass hardware bans. 🚫
Japanese players are reporting a wave of bans so aggressive it makes a Dark Souls boss look like a cuddly teddy bear. The kicker? Most of the banned designs are standard itasha—no nudity, no explicit content, just cute waifus and husbandos riding in style. But the system's vague "inappropriate content" guidelines have essentially weaponized themselves against anime art. And the reports? They're being filed by the same group of trolls using macros to mass-report, forcing hardware bans left, right, and center. It's like a digital witch hunt, but the witches are just people who like drawing anime girls on Supras.
Here's a taste of what Japanese players are saying (translated from Japanese):
"Itasha painters are being hit with mass hardware bans; while some actually violated the terms of service, the vast majority were just standard Itasha designs. The people filing the reports appear to be the same group as last time, seemingly using macros to mass-report and force hardware bans. What's more, it's not just the painters getting banned—there are cases where players were banned simply for taking photos of these Itasha designs and sharing them in-game." — Maguro Maznaga
"Permanent device bans with no warning. All for simply putting an anime character on a car. It's hitting everyone: the creators, the people just driving the cars, and even those who hadn't even made their designs public. That's right—they're even looking at unpublished data while you're still editing it." — Hosea
Wait, what? They're banning people for having a work-in-progress file? That's like getting a parking ticket for a car you haven't even built yet. And let's not forget the cherry on top: players who share photos of itasha designs in-game are also getting banned. So much for community engagement. 🤦♂️
Let me put this in perspective with a handy table:
| What gets you banned in FH6 | What doesn't get you banned |
|---|---|
| Drawing an anime character on a car | Cheating with impossible lap times (still "under investigation") |
| Taking a photo of an itasha | Using macros to mass-report innocent players |
| Having a rough sketch in your unpublished files | ... |
Seriously, the priorities here are more twisted than a drift course. And the hypocrisy? The game is set in Japan—the birthplace of itasha—yet it punishes the very culture it's trying to sell. Playground Games has been radio silent on the controversy, probably hoping it blows over. Spoiler alert: it won't.
I've been gaming for over 15 years, and I've never written a review for a game until now. But this ban wave made me do something I never thought I'd do: leave a negative review on Steam. And I'm not alone. Japanese players are flooding the store page with low ratings, hoping to tank sales and force a change. One player, Hosea, wrote: "If you love Japanese car culture, do not buy this game. You will regret it." That's a brutal but fair warning.
The game itself? It's fine. But since the livery creator purge, I only log in when the playlist updates—about two hours a week. And those two hours feel like a mandatory office meeting. The fun is gone. The soul is gone. What's left is a hollow shell of a racing game that forgot its own community.
So here's my advice: if you're a fan of itasha, if you appreciate Japanese car culture, or if you just don't want to get banned for drawing a cartoon character on a virtual car, steer clear of Forza Horizon 6. At least until Playground Games pulls their head out of the exhaust pipe and fixes this mess. Until then, I'll be over here playing Forza Horizon 4, where my anime-covered Nissan is still safe and sound. 😤