Forza Motorsport

Introduction:

Before Forza Motorsport, Microsoft’s Xbox was in desperate need of a racing sim. Forza Motorsport fills this void with amazing racing mechanics, tough A.I., and breath-taking graphics. However, since Forza Motorsport is a racing simulator, the question remains: is it enjoyable for hardcore racing fanatics as well as the ''not-so-hardcore?'' You betcha. With various difficulty settings and online competition with people of all different skill levels, Forza Motorsport is literally for everyone. So kick back, relax, and maybe even pop open a beer or two; it's Forza time!

Gameplay:

Forza Motorsport is all about the cars and how many you can obtain. From North America to Asia, from a Corvette to a Ferrari, Forza Motorsport has a wide variety of them all and will have something that fits your exact style.

Forza Motorsport is a tad lacking in the track department. However, while there may not be a massive amount of tracks, Forza wholeheartedly redeems itself with its great amount of depth found in each track. Sure, there are other racers out there that contain more places to race, but none have the same amount of rich detail that Forza Motorsport possesses. Atmosphere is very important in racing simulators. In other words, you don’t just need good mechanics for it to feel like real life, because quite frankly, if it doesn’t look realistic then most likely it’s not going to be believable.

When you set out in career mode, you’ll be asked to select a region to begin in. You are given a choice between North America, Europe, and Asia. The location you decide on will affect your selection of cars and the position where you will first race. You’ll soon climb to the top in the realm of professional racing. Every time you ''level up'' you will strike a deal with a manufacturer. This means you will receive discounts pertaining to their products on future purchases. To level up, you have to win races. Every time you come in first, second, or third you will earn credits, also known as ''video game money.'' When you reach a predetermined number of points, your level will rise You can apply your credits to purchase upgrades of all kinds and, of course, cars.

There are three different types of races in Forza Motorsport: Hot Lap, where you race around a track a set amount of times; Autocross, where you aren’t racing on any type of circuit or racetrack, but instead a parking-lot-esque environment where your track is laid out with cones --- knock too many down and it’s all over; and Point to Point, where you race from start to finish without any kind of laps. Unlike in Hot Lap where you are informed of what lap you are on, in Point to Point, you will be shown a percentage signifying how much of the race you have completed. All of this can be taken online via the greatness that is Xbox Live. That’s right, you can play career mode online. So, when you’re tired of racing against the A.I. and think this game has nothing else left for you, take this puppy for a spin on Live for some real competition. All of the features to be found in the offline career mode are also found online. Did I mention that it’s basically lag free as well? Yep, you heard me correctly --- virtually no lag whatsoever.

Forza Motorsport is certainly home to more than just a career mode. It has an arcade mode, time trials mode, free run mode, and of course off and online multiplayer. Most of these modes are self-explanatory, so allow me to just go over free run mode. In free run mode you can use nearly any car on any track and use any of the three types of racing modes. Notice how I said ‘’nearly’’ any car. In reality, you can use any car you want, but you have to first unlock them in arcade mode to have them available. Even if you don’t unlock any, there is still an assortment to choose from. Sure, you can’t take these beasts home to your garage until you secure them with a purchase in career mode, but it’s still enjoyable to be able to race them whenever you want.

How does all of this play? Simply put, fantastic. Other racers on the Xbox include the highly-touted PGR 2; however, to clear up confusion, Forza Motorsport isn’t an arcade racer akin to PGR 2. Forza Motorsport is a racing simulator. One of the key factors that come into play when racing is an indicator on the road. This indicator will basically tell you how much traction you have. When going around turns the indicator will usually turn red, depending on how sharp the turn is and your speed. When you slam your brakes, it will gradually return to green, or, if you just briefly let off the gas, it will probably turn yellow. Yellow basically means you can almost certainly make the turn, but be careful because you still might spin out or leave the track. This little indicator ''thingy'' truly assists people who otherwise would go blazing way too fast around a turn with no regard that this in indeed a racing simulator.

Forza Motorsport offers many different customization options --- everything from inside upgrades to outside vanity work. The great thing about this is you can craft your car any way you want to. You can give it your own custom logo, draw something on it, give it a slogan, etc. With one hundred layers of possibility, pretty much anything is possible.

By now you must be asking yourself, "what does this game do wrong?" As far as gameplay goes, pretty much nothing. Everything plays exceedingly well and there are hours and hours of playable content here. It’s just a very well-rounded package.

Graphics:

Visually, Forza Motorsport looks absolutely stunning. The landscapes are gorgeous, and like I said before, the game’s graphics really set a great atmosphere to drive in. You can compare some of the courses to their real life counterparts and you would seriously not be able to tell the difference. But what would a racing game be without striking cars? Nothing, and oh does Forza Motorsport deliver! Cars are not overly shiny, but they’re also not too dull; they’re just right. Damage effects also look great. Your car can get fairly beat up. Unlike some racing titles though, this actually matters. If your car is too damaged you will not be able to win, thus forcing you to restart the race.

When playing a racing game, where are you looking ninety-percent of the time? The road. Some racing games don’t focus enough on this portion of the graphics. Not to point the finger, but the Midnight Club series has always had sub-par looking roads in my eyes. They always appeared too dark. Yes, I know the game was set in the nighttime, hence the name ‘’Midnight Club,’’ but they still didn’t looked polished enough. Forza Motorsport, however, has some of the most beautiful roads I have ever seen in a racer. Forza Motorsport is one of the best looking racing games of all time, and I can only imagine what these guys will do next gen.

Audio:

Possibly this game’s only flaw. The in-game music is downright bad. The best word to describe it is ''weak.'' It sounds as if there isn’t any bass or bottom to the music. It’s a soft-rock type soundtrack with some harder stuff thrown in. Of course none of the music is licensed. Heck, there isn’t even any singing. I have good news, though! Thanks to the Xbox’s HD, there are custom soundtracks! Now because this game supports this wonderful feature (as should every Xbox game) I really can’t demean the in-game music. For those who remember PGR 2 and how low the music would sound when you would use the custom soundtracks feature, I have more good news. The music comes out loud and clear here. Another thing I really liked was how the music never stops. For example, let’s say you’re driving to your favorite tune, and all of a sudden the race ends and you were just getting to the good part in the song. Forza Motorsport has got your back once again. During the loading and the menu screens, the music will continue to play. To take advantage of this, make sure you go into options and select a custom soundtrack to play. Even if you have done so while driving you will still need to go into the main options menu and select this. It only takes a few seconds and is well worth it.

The engine sounds are spot-on. Different cars will have different sounds, so it’s not like you’ll be hearing the same old revving sound over and over again. Screeching and all of your other basic racing sound effects are well-done as well. Overall, with custom soundtracks and great sound effects, Forza Motorsport is an above average sounding game.

Controls:

Thanks to the Xbox’s controller that is basically made for this genre, Forza Motorsport controls superbly. The controls are simple enough for anyone to just pick up and play. The Right Trigger is your gas pedal; the Left Trigger is for your brake. The A button is used for your hand brake. Pretty much every racing game on the Xbox has this same control scheme. That‘s in no way a bad thing because this is a great setup. Everything is very accessible making for a near seamless racing simulator experience. Even changing the camera angle while driving is easy. All you have to do is tap the Black button. Prefer using a manual car? To up-shift press the B button and to shift down press X. Sound easy? It is. Overall, Forza Motorsport controls like every racing game should --- great.

Replay:

The offline career mode lasts around 30 hours, or longer depending if you try to acquire a gold medal in every race and pump up your car with the best parts available. Then we’re looking at a 40 hour offline career mode. Now, with the online play that could last longer, you’ve got yourself a game that will definitely last you a long time. With so many different cars to unlock and so many custom designs you can make, Forza Motorsport is really a complete package. Some people will spend more time in their garage tweaking and tweaking until they have the fastest car around than actually racing. Then you know what they do? They sell it online and make a huge profit. It really is amazing how many things you can do.