The Trial, Festival Playlist’s most difficult event in Forza Horizon, got reintroduced in Series 2 during the Horizon Decades as a 6v6 co-op racing event where you team up with other players and have to beat a team of Unbeatable-level Drivatars in a best-of-three championship.
Looks like The Trial is here to stay for the rest of Forza Horizon 6‘s lifespan, so you should memorize the basics: you need to rely on teamwork because the event requires your whole team to win together, as you will still lose if your teammates finish behind the Drivatars.
How to unlock The Trial in Forza Horizon 6
The Trial is back for Week 3, and the requirements remain unchanged: Gold Wristband and reaching Legend Island. Curiously, this time around, the event starts on the Legend Island proper, with the first race being held on the circuit there.
Previously, Playground Games did not bring The Trial back in Series 1 to avoid adding additional pressure to progress through the story quickly, but then added it back to the Festival Playlist starting with Series 2.
The easiest way to get the Gold Wristband is to follow the Festival events and then do the Showcases as soon as you can, while not ignoring the world events and activities. Wristbands unlock new event access as you progress, and the Gold Wristband also opens Legend Island and other late-game content.
How The Trial works
As always, The Trial consists of three races against the Drivatars of Unbeatable difficulty. Players need to band together and hinder the progress of the AI drivers, as they’re quite difficult to overtake for the newer players, while also forgiving zero mistakes.
In Series 2 Week 3, The Trial is called Forward Thinking and is worth 10 Festival Playlist points. It’s restricted to the B-Class 600 PI 2000s Total FWD cars and rewards the gorgeous 2007 Ferrari 430 Scuderia.
Best car for The Trial in Forza Horizon 6 Series 2 Week 3
For Series 2 Week 2, the Trial presents tight and technical courses to race, so you should aim for a car that has great handling and acceleration first and foremost. Getting in front of the Drivatars right from the start should be your top priority because it’s relatively easy to hold them back in the slow- and medium-speed corners. You can also go for top speed if you’re a relatively experienced driver.
Our recommendation for this week is the 2001 Acura Integra Type R. It has a naturally high top speed, so if you focus your upgrades on handling and acceleration, you’ll be set for the Trial event. You can get the car as a reward this week, or purchase it at the Autoshow for 65,000 Credits. If you don’t know how to properly upgrade your car, use this code instead: 990 829 588.
How to win The Trial
This Trial begins at the Legend Island Circuit. It’s a fast and flowing circuit with several very technical bits, so you need to make sure you’re not overshooting your apexes and are able to overtake the Drivatars.
The second track is much slower and is full of 90-degree turns, and this is the prime opportunity to divebomb the AI to secure overtakes for yourself and your teammates. If you’re starting as the first or second human driver, try your best to block the Drivatars.
We usually suggest not to divebomb the first corner, but this particular track makes this a good idea, just make sure you’re not ramming a teammate, as that could lose you the race then and there.
As always, act according to the situation. If your team is good, you’re free to race and win by just relying on your skill alone. But if you see that your team needs help, forget the glory, you need some dirty work to do.
As always, try not to miss any checkpoints. Rewinds are costly time-wise, and Drivatars punish these mistakes harshly.
The Trial completion checklist
Before starting The Trial, make sure you have:
- The Gold Wristband
- An eligible car. Our recommended 2001 Acura Integra Type R is a great option.
- The car is tuned to 600 PI.
- Patience to likely have to run the event several times.
The Trial can sometimes be a marathon, not a sprint, especially when the courses are tight and unforgiving. Be patient and play the teamwork game.
