Forza Horizon 3 PC bans have started rolling out, and players are furious. Abuse of popular glitches, cheating or anything that trips the security system results in a 30-year Xbox Live ban.
For evidence of the dilemma, one need look no further than the official Forza subreddit. It’s flooded with reports from disgruntled gamers still trying to figure out what they’ve done wrong. The investigation is ongoing and the development team at Playground Games has remained mostly silent, but there are a few culprits currently being suggested.
One of the most obvious of those is the “drift tap glitch” popularized a few weeks ago. It allows players to quickly level up with certain perks and cars on specific portions of the open world. If performed correctly, the glitch keeps awarding “ultimate drift” skill points even when the vehicle has basically come to a complete stop. As a result, it’s possible to earn as much as 1 million XP in about 15 minutes. That means quicker leveling up and faster unlocks than intended.
There are also software-based triggers as well, including PC trainers that can be used to unlock and use any content in Forza Horizon 3 on a moment’s notice. Just like a cheat menu for something like Grand Theft Auto Online, these mods can lead to bans if discovered by Internet security measures. Of course, like most ban waves, there are also plenty of victims that claim they’ve done nothing to earn the sanctions. In those cases, processor overclocking software and performance benchmark suites have been suggested as a scapegoat.
Regardless of the reason, Playground Games did actually warn PC players about incoming cheating and glitching penalties last week. In an official forum post, it was said that changes would be coming to “provide the best possible experience to the vast majority of players who wish to enjoy Forza Horizon 3 the way it was meant to be played.” It was confirmed that anyone not playing fair would be subject to a “non-reversible permanent ban from online play in the game.” For this particular multiplayer-focused title, that’s quite the hefty punishment.
These ban reports are just one of many recent complaints leveled against the PC version of Forza Horizon 3. Since launch, the port has suffered from poor optimization that can only be improved with a series of lengthy workarounds. Patches have since been released, but performance remains spotty in many cases.
Forza Horizon 3 is available now on Xbox One and PC.
Have you been banned for glitching and cheating in Forza Horizon 3? Are you an innocent victim? Tell us in the comments section!
