‘Why do we race’? This was the opening monologue of Forza Motorsport 4 and for over ten years since, Microsofts hit franchise has been answering that question through its realistic simulator. Let’s be clear about something, in an over-saturated market, Forza Motorsport resembles nothing like its rivals. Rather than allow me to boost wildly through lawless streets and crash with reckless abandon, Forza Motorsport offers a more sophisticated experience. Focusing on putting players behind the wheel of the worlds greatest cars and drive across the globe in famous tracks. From Daytona to the Nurburgring, everything is open.
“Forza Motorsport” is the eighth release since the original. This is a big deal given that “Motorsport 7” came out back in 2017. It’s well past time for an upgrade. After all these years how can Forza continue to push the boundaries?
The changes to the series became obvious from the first few minutes of playing. Immediately I realized how much better “Forza Motorsport” looks from its predecessors. Tracks are rendered in stunning detail, everything from the asphalt to the stars above me as I drift through corners. The steering also feels nothing like its older siblings. I’ve always been petty good at playing the “Motorsport” games, but here I was constantly spinning out and missing corners excuse I had pushed too hard. “Forza Motorsport” has the smoothest steering I’ve ever seen in a racing game. Which is also to say the steering is extraordinarily sensitive. Getting podium finishes in this game required me to play with strategy and finesse. Make no mistake, this is not a game that rewards lazy driving, you will earn every single win.
Another change that I feel is worth mentioning is how aggressive the penalties have become. The system is constantly monitoring your driving, should you stray the slightest bit from the track or clip another player, immediately a little wheel appears above screen as your digital judge/jury decides whether to dock you a few seconds. In the past I never had a problem with race penalties, but I found the revamped system to be aggravating. It’s baffling to me how I can cut corners frequently and get away with it, but when I’m racing flawlessly and then a computer player rams me from behind, I am the one who is docked several seconds. (Just to clarify, seconds in racing time is long enough to grow a beard) Seriously, the penalty system is overbearing.
The changes don’t extend to merely smoother controls and better graphics. The entire layout of “Forza Motorsport” has been completely overhauled and refreshed. In the past players were always able to play through themed cups such as a muscle car cup or Italian exotic cup, etc. Here the career mode has been revamped with a new mode called, ‘the builders cup’. No longer do you buy a stock car and then proceed to duke it out amongst similarly closed cars. In order to achieve victory you will have to upgrade your vehicle from each race. For those who may be intimidated by having to earn the ins and outs of engineering, Microsoft has provided you with a concession, there is a convenient ‘upgrade manager’ that will apply any necessary upgrades automatically.
To my surprise, when comparing this release from “Motorsport 7”, this new game actually feels stripped down. Gone is the Forzathan playlist, no more perks, even the player customizations are pitifully few. Here the racing experience has been stripped down to the bare essentials. Honestly, it’s hard to ignore the fact that “Forza Motorsport” feels like a clone of “Project Cars”. Whether this is a good thing or not will depend on the player, some will love this, others will hate it. Whereas “Motorsport 7” had some cool modes that would allow me to race against Ken Blocks (RIP) digital avatar or listen to sound clips from pro racers giving advice, all of that is gone. Even the beloved Top Gear test track has been removed. Like I said, this is stripped to the barest of essentials.
The final change I’ll mention is that despite having to download over 100gb of data, you can’t play “Forza Motorsport” offline. This is absolutely maddening, given that Forza’s servers are notoriously unreliable. Having to pay 69.99$ and having to download over 100gb, this is unacceptable. Especially if, like me, internet is hit or miss. I make special mention of this, because nowhere on the Microsoft store is this fact made clear. Usually games will have a tag that warns players “online functionality required for post features’. Well, I wasn’t able to find it and I think this is a disservice to players. For a lot of people this will be a major dealbreaker.
“Forza Motorsport” is without question the best “Motorsport” video game in terms of graphics and mechanics. But it’s stripped down approach will undoubtedly be polarizing to players. I’ve been playing the series since “Motorsport 4” and I can honestly say that no other game in the series has challenged me as much as this one. About 75% of the races had me sweating to get a podium finish. I’ve enjoyed playing “Forza Motorsport” even if I do miss some of the extras the others had.
