Like previous Forza Horizon games, it features an open world environment where players can freely roam the map.

Forza Horizon 3 is a racing video game set in an open world environment based in a fictional representation of Australia.

[1] The gameplay world is about twice the size of Forza Horizon 2,[2] and the game contains locales and regions based upon their real-life Australian counterparts.

[7] Added in Forza Horizon 2, the player can also participate in Bucket List Challenges, where they are given a task to complete with a specific vehicle.

[8] The newly introduced Horizon Blueprint feature lets the player customise races and Bucket List Challenges.

[23][25] One of these changes was minimizing the amount of loading screen time, as it could damage the game's impression of being persistently high quality.

[25] Creative director Ralph Fulton felt that Forza Horizon 3 was a "generational leap" over its predecessor because of the work the development team put in to better improve the game.

[26] To help create a convincing gameplay world, a team was sent to Australia to take reference photos to aid in the game design.

[26] Minor details were also implemented into the game, like the colours of Australian phone boxes and garbage bins, as well as including native wildlife.

He added, "[Australia's] culture of Ford vs Holden, and V8s and Utes isn't immediately familiar to everybody north of the equator, but we did feel it was really interesting and colourful and would add to the game.

[23] Over the course of development, the team talked about and tested new technology prototypes for several months to help enhance the visuals for the game.

The cameras took thousands of photos with frame interpolation over 24 hour periods, alongside the lenses and light sensors needing to be cleaned regularly.

[27] Because of the sky footage, days were longer in Forza Horizon 3 than its predecessor, and clouds also correlate with weather systems in-game.

[33] The lighting effects in Forza Horizon 3 are calculated with real-time computing, which helps simulate a realistic sun in the game.

Since the Centenario was made of hundreds of different types of materials, Playground Games desired to simulate the car at the "sub-pixel level".

[34] Ralph Fulton explained that "humans form their first impressions incredibly quickly", elaborating that the first few minutes of playing a video game can drastically change how a player thinks of it.

Additionally, the first event after the opening drive had to be pushed back for further improvement, prompting modifications to be made to the opponent vehicle.

The solution was considered more straightforward, which introduced a rental feature that allowed players to borrow the session leader's car during a race.

[6] Forza Horizon 3 was announced on 13 June 2016 during Microsoft's E3 press conference, where Ralph Fulton displayed a gameplay demo during the briefing.

[49] The severe weather conditions added a challenging feature to driving, as aspects like icy roads and whiteout affected the ability of the player to control the vehicle.

[49][50] Additionally, three racing game modes were added to the DLC, and players received a rally/off-road car pack that is able to be customisable with snow tires with the purchase of Blizzard Mountain.

Like Blizzard Mountain, the pack added a new area to the game, portrayed as an archipelago connected by real-world scale Hot Wheels stunt track pieces instead of regular roads.

The game's track acts similarly to an actual Hot Wheels course, illustrated by different kinds of stunt sections, such as vertical loops and half-pipes.

[21] Miguel Concepcion of GameSpot thought that Australia was a good fit for the Forza Horizon series and further remarked that off-road activities were more prominent as a result of the location.

[63] Nicholas Tan of GameRevolution was fond of the details of the landmarks and visuals of the gameplay world, calling it a "sight to behold".

"[4] USgamer's Jaz Rignall praised the game for its variety of races set across different types of terrain, and concluded that they were a "step up" from its predecessor.

[65] Reiner liked the feature for letting play events in the way they want and called the Horizon Blueprint a "smart move" to be added by Playground Games.

[21] Both Tan and Brett Makedonski of Destructoid liked the fact that they had the choice to engage in various activities or drive around the gameplay world without repercussions.

[5] Rignall was impressed by the large array of different types of vehicles the player was able to use, further stating that they offer "an exceptionally broad spectrum of driving experiences".

[64] Rignall was impressed by the graphics of cars and landscapes, stating that Forza Horizon 3 is one of the "best-looking" games on the Xbox One.