- Forza Horizon 6's unencrypted build has leaked, but the developer confirms it's not due to a pre-load issue
- Playground Games has warned it will hand out 'franchise-wide and hardware bans' to anyone accessing the build
- SteamDB claims the leak likely came from a reviewer or someone with early access
Forza Horizon 6's launch on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC is imminent, set for May 19, however, an early build has been leaked on PC. Pirates, though, may want to rethink downloading it.
As reported by GamesRadar, Playground Games confirmed that an unencrypted build of Forza Horizon 6 was leaked, but it wasn't the result of a Steam pre-load issue, and notably, the developer has also warned PC users to avoid downloading and playing the build, or face major consequences.
It's the second triple-A game in 2026 to suffer a full game leak before the scheduled release date, as Death Stranding 2: On the Beach was available to PC players to pirate two days before its March 20 launch.
Playground Games' case is significantly worse, as Forza Horizon 6's build has been made available a week before launch, and unsurprisingly, it has ruffled the feathers of the developer.
"We are aware of reports that a build of Forza Horizon 6 has been obtained prior to its release and can confirm this is not the result of a pre-load issue," Playground Games stated, squashing rumors and suggestions that the issue was indeed due to a Steam error.
"We are taking strict enforcement action against any individuals found accessing this build, including franchise-wide and hardware bans. We encourage fans to sit tight for the game's release on May 19."
SteamDB also weighed in on the matter, insinuating the leak likely stemmed from a reviewer with early access, adding credence to the dev's statement that the leak didn't come from a Steam error.
Playground Games' frustrations shouldn't come as a surprise, since downloading and playing the early build of Forza Horizon 6 would be considered piracy, and it's effectively an entire week of early access that isn't permitted.
Consumers who have pre-ordered the game have called for the developer to push the game's release forward, but the statements made suggest it's going to bide its time and believes players should be patient for the scheduled launch.
The chaos arrives at a time when piracy is gradually gaining momentum again, as Denuvo, the controversial DRM, has been bypassed in several games (some via Hypervisor bypasses).
Fans can only hope that a major hiccup like this doesn't push developers and publishers to introduce more CPU-intensive DRMs in the future to prevent piracy, ones that may impact game performance, because that will only hurt consumers.
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