Showcases have been Forza Horizon’s way of showing off its capabilities since its inception. Showcases are these big races that are usually partially scripted, prioritizing the spectacle rather than difficulty, and they do a wonderful job of it.
Forza Horizon 5 is no different from the previous iterations. It still has its showcases, but this one showcase in the game takes an unexpected turn. It actually lets you drive the vehicle that you were just up against in the showcase race.
In this guide, we will be showing you how to get all the accolades in the Forza Horizon 5 Buggy and the Beast showcase, preparing you for a very neat showcase, but also quite a challenging one to fully complete.
The Buggy and the Beast Showcase
The Buggy and the Beast in Forza Horizon 5 is an event that needs to be unlocked by getting accolades and unlocking them via the Horizon Adventure tickets. It can be found in the Horizon Baja ticket and can be unlocked upon completing the Horizon Baja expedition.
The showcase is located near the top of the La Gran Caldera.
The race part of it is pretty straightforward: you drive the Ford #25 ‘Brocky’ Ultra4 Bronco RTR, an absolute beast of an offroad machine, against not one, but two Hot Wheels Bone Shaker Monster Trucks.
The race itself is not too hard, the AI of the monster trucks can be a bit troublesome since they can collide with you and just run you over, but you can always rewind to avoid these annoyances. It is a bit lengthy though, clocking in at about 3 and a half minutes from point A to point B.
It is a great showcase though as it brings you from high up the mountains of Mexico to way down into the city center where the stadium is while doing some insane jumps.
Just remember that you need to win the showcase itself to also earn the full accolades for the race part, but also for the chance to drive the Forza Horizon 5 monster truck.
Completing the Optional Accolades
As stated in the intro of this article, this showcase separates itself from all previous showcases by having you drive the vehicle that you were up against during the race.
In this case, you will have 3 minutes to drive the Hot Wheels Bone Shaker Monster Truck around the stadium, complete with ramps and obstacles that you can smash through.
Within those 3 minutes, you must also do some optional accolades that the game has thrown at you, to really have you test the monster truck’s capabilities.
1. Smash 50 bowling pins
Some of the obstacles that the stadium will be littered with are some gigantic bowling pins that you can knock down at your leisure. You will need to knock down a total of 50 of them. It might seem like a lot, but there are a lot of them in the stadium.
While doing the other accolades, just go out a bit of your way and try hitting down these pins as you please. There is a cluster of them in the middle of the stadium, so if you are short, you might want to look there, but overall, this accolade will come to you as you drive around for the other accolades.
2. Earn 5 Ultimate Air skills
While the name may suggest that you launch the monster truck into the atmosphere, Forza Horizon’s definition of Ultimate Air is a bit tamer than you would think. To get this accolade easily, just jump over the small ramps with the pinatas in the middle of them. Your air time here will count as an Ultimate Air skill.
Just make sure that you are hitting those ramps at speed though as you still need to be airborne for a couple of seconds for it to count. Also, make sure that your skill meter is ongoing as jumps may not register if your skill chain is done counting.
If you want to show off, you can also hit the flip ramps which basically let you do a backflip. You can also use these flip ramps to smash more bowling pins as most (if not all) of the flip ramps have a stack of bowling pins on them.
Just make sure to hit the ramps straight ahead and maintain a speed of around 70 MPH (113 KPH) and you should be able to do a somersault (and get the Ultimate Air skill) with ease.
3. Achieve a speed of 90 MPH (145 KPH)
Although monster trucks usually pack engines that produce well over a thousand horsepower, all that power is basically used to drive the massive tires. Achieving 90 MPH in the monster truck can be a bit tricky though.
Make sure to start from one end of the stadium and try to avoid all obstacles and jumps as you build momentum and speed. If you are driving manual, make sure that you are in 3rd gear.
The monster truck has a top speed of 93 MPH (150 KPH) and it can reach that quite handily so this is one of the easier accolades to get on this time trial.
4. Find and Smash the Hidden Bad Cactus
The Bad Cactus pertains to a red and orange pinata in the shape of a cactus. It can be a bit tough to spot as pinatas, compared to the size of the Horizon 5 monster truck, are tiny. Luckily though, we are here to tell you where it is (and what it generally looks like).
The Bad Cactus can be found at the shipping containers leading up to the bridge-like structure when you start your victory lap. Simply go under the bridge, then take a left. From here, you will already see the Bad Cactus.
All you have to do now is make your way up the ramp and carefully drive onto the ledge where the Bad Cactus is. The width of the ledge where the Bad Cactus is a bit narrow for the Forza 5 monster truck, so be sure to drive carefully to avoid falling off the ledge.
Once you have the truck aligned, just floor it and smash that Bad Cactus to bits to claim this accolade!
5. Earn a Total of 30,000 Skill Score
Earning skill points in a monster truck surrounded by breakable objects is pretty much the easiest thing you can think of. The only problem is that some of the objects can actually break your combo for no apparent reason.
That and monster trucks are prone to flipping. A general rule in achieving this accolade is to just do the previous accolades while trying to stay on all 4 wheels.
If you have already 30,000 points when the points and multiplier are added up, just stop for a bit for the score to be recorded and carry on with the other accolades. In other words: do not be greedy and play it safe.
Rewards for Completing the Optional Accolades
The rewards for completing these optional accolades are quite small: each accolade rewards you with 50 Accolade points, resulting in a total of 250 Accolade points for completing them.
What you really want out of this though is how these accolades count towards the completion of the Horizon Baja Outpost accolade list.
Final Thoughts
These optional accolades are not exactly the hardest to get, but getting them all in under 3 minutes, especially if it is your first time doing the showcase is a bit of a tough ask.
The showcase itself is redoable, it is just that you need to complete the race again in order to have a shot at the optional accolades. And if you mess up and retry the event, you will be retrying from the race event instead of the victory lap with the monster truck.
Overall, this is one of my favorite showcases to play through as not only is the race great, the surprise at the end where you can drive the monster truck is a great way to reward the player after such an exhilarating race.
The dirt-racing festival is an equally fun event in the game, and we’ve got a guide on how to unlock it as well. Check that out and give it a go!
