Our favourite open world game of the year was Forza Horizon 5. For more PC Gamer awards, head to the GOTY 2021 hub.Phil Savage, UK Editor-in-Chief Once again, Playground Games has stitched together a massive patchwork representation of a place, and filled it full of theme park delights. There's  the Baja Desert, where you can smash into cacti to build up a massive skill combo. There's La Gran Caldera, an active volcano with twisting dirt roads and a mountainside that's just begging to be used for offroad stunts. There's jungle and farmland and a big airstrip for drag races.In short, Forza Horizon 5's Mexico makes for a varied car playground. In terms of construction, it's much the same as Australia and the UK before it: different biomes that prioritise fun over realism, with enough races, challenges and collectibles to keep you exploring for hundreds of hours.Yes, we could have given Forza Horizon 5 a "Best Racing" award and been done with it, but to do so would have been to miss the point. Racing is a part of the Forza Horizon series, sure, but it's more than that—it's an enthusiastic celebration of videogame driving. Cars are handed out like RPG loot, and you use them for more than just a vast series of checkpoint races. There are "PR stunts" that each celebrate a different discipline, such as drifting or inadvisably massive jumps. Sidestories set specific goals as you're transformed into, for instance, the stunt driver of some ridiculous action blockbuster. There's even a surprisingly decent battle royale mode.In most games, a giant open world full of icons would exhaust me. But in Forza Horizon 5, each is a guarantee of something fun to do in a car. If you love racing games, this series remains the pinnacle of the form.