I’m going to be completely honest. Motorsports is not really my bag. When it comes to Forza, I much prefer the Horizon variety over the Motorsport kind any day. And that’s because I’m a simple, simple pleb of a man.
I like my racing to have lots of flash and immediate dopamine hits. I don’t really have the patience to sit and drive, learn the best racing line and actually get good enough (without assists) to conquer the track.
However, having spent a considerable amount of time with Forza Motorsport, I’m starting to see the appeal. Race fans won’t need any convincing but those of you like me, who are arcade through and through, let’s talk.
Forza Motorsport Review
Usually what I find to be the greatest barrier to entry in racing sims is the difficulty. Trying to take control of a digital representation of a car seems impossible, you hurtle off the track, crash into the fence and wonder what all the fuss was about. Thankfully, Forza Motorsport gently takes those who are simulator-challenged and guides them into the world of racing. There are a great number of racing assists that can be turned on, off or altered such that controlling your car isn’t immediately impossible.
I kept my assists on for a few races and just as I was feeling as though the assists were taking away too much control, a pop-up appeared in-game and suggested I try turning a few off at a time. I’m not sure if this was a coincidence or the game knowing I was ready for more, but it certainly helped make me feel confident enough to try racing with less help.
Then, on the first turn after switching assists off, I ran straight off the road and into the wall. Luckily, this is where Forza Motorsports‘ famous rewind came into play. The rewind feature has been around for as long as the series and is a great safety net for players to experiment and learn how to drive and handle these cars without frustrating or deadly consequences.
Having rewind available, with the assists dialled down, let me get a feel for the car and the track. That being said, every time I took control of a different car on a different track, I felt like I was starting from zero again. This speaks to just how much work has gone into Forza Motorsport by developers Turn 10. There are over 500 cars available at launch and while I haven’t tried them all, I’ve driven a bunch and it’s truly amazing how differently each of them feels and handles.
As you play Forza Motorsport, you’ll gradually get a handle on each of the different racing classes and vehicle types as you make your way through the career mode’s Builder’s Cup. This is the meat of Forza Motorsport’s launch experience and sees players making their way through a number of races, earning points and car upgrades and gradually improving their cars to go faster and handle better.
As mentioned, I’m not a gear head so the upgrading and tuning of the cars goes right over my head. Again, Turn 10 has my back as with the press of a button you can apply the suggested parts and improvements and your car is good to go. For those who want to get their hands (digitally) dirty, you can spend hours tinkering with parts to find the perfect combination for your preferred ride.
The more you race in Forza Motorsport, the more you earn. While driving any car, you complete Track Segments and are graded from 1-10 on how well you performed in the segment. Push yourself to improve and get better and you’ll level up your car. By levelling up your car you unlock new parts you can use to upgrade your car and improve its performance rating.
Additionally, while completing races, you’ll earn Car Points which can spent to apply your new parts and upgrades. Each part has a Cart Point cost which you’ll need to cover in order to have the new part added to your setup. You’ll also earn credits which are used to buy new cars and add them to your garage.
The customisation game in Forza Motorsport runs deep and even if you’re not hugely into racing, you’ll be able to go down a rabbit hole with your favourite cars for hours. The loop is incredibly simple but rewarding; race, earn, upgrade and race again. While I previously mentioned how Forza Motorsport holds your hand if you want it to, I should also mention that the racing in the game is spectacular.
As you get a feel for your car and the track, learn the racing line, when to break and when to accelerate you can get into an almost trance-like state. It becomes almost meditative as you fly down the straights, whip into corners and overtake your rivals. I’ve had fun with racing games before but I’ve felt this feeling of being one with the car and the track. It’s exciting and a little bit mind-boggling that a video game can create this kind of feeling but Forza Motorsport does just that.
It’s not always a calm experience however and at times, my blood was pumping in my ears and the adrenaline was coursing through my whole body as I fought for a podium finish against drivatars that were far more skilled than I. In these moments, Forza Motorsport gave me the rush that fans of motorsport must feel all the time. It’s worryingly addictive, I’ll tell you that. I did find it odd that there’s no music to speak of while you race, but another reviewer advised me that was so you can experience the pure, unadulterated ‘VROOM’.
Outside of Career Mode, Forza Motorsport has plenty to offer racing fans. There’s Featured Multiplayer which are time-gated races in which players first need to qualify and then race. There’s Private Multiplayer where you and your mates can fight each other for the racing crown. Rivals pits you against the Ghost of the next best player and lets you post your times to the leaderboards. And finally, Free Race lets you take any car on any track and just go. Featured Multiplayer and Rivals are sure to provide countless hours of gameplay and competition for fans who want to prove they’re the best.
In the pre-release phase, there weren’t a huge number of racers online so I was able to enter a Featured Multiplayer, qualify in pole position and race to first place. I’m counting it as a win, don’t come for me.
Really, what more could I say about Forza Motorsport? Racing fans will have already pre-ordered and pre-loaded it and will be all aboard on Day 1 regardless of what I say. And so they should be. As a non-racer, I have been incredibly impressed by what’s on offer. While I still prefer the open-world shenanigans and quirky Burnout-inspired Horizon series, I can see what’s so appealing about these types of games thanks to this latest entry.
I’m not even going to bother mentioning the visuals, I mean, if you have eyes, you’ve seen what it looks like. Except to say, this is probably the first time with any video game ever that I’ve looked at it on-screen and genuinely struggled to tell it apart from reality. That, in and of itself, is mind-blowing.
I’m excited for racing fans getting to play Forza Motorsport next week cause it’s really going to feel like Christmas has come early. If you’re not a racing fan but you do have Game Pass, it’s a no-brainer. Give it a cheeky download and become one with the track like I did. Or don’t and then delete it if you don’t like it. I’m not your dad.
But you will like it. Trust me. Forza Motorsport is superb.
Forza Motorsport was reviewed on Xbox Series X using digital code provided by Xbox ANZ.
