One of the plus sides of almost never finishing computer games is that when I’m stuck between releases I can go back and play a game I’ve left behind. Normally I just get sidetracked before I can finish out the game. Sometimes, as is the case with Forza 2, there’s just too much to do to “complete” the game in a reasonable amount of time. At least for someone of my skill level.
I had forgotten how amazing Forza 2 is. It really holds up well against anything I’ve bought recently, and I was dragged back into the leveling system almost immediately. There are so many cars, so many tracks... there is just so much STUFF. This game is a real gem. Despite my limited ability, I really got into this game when it came out, and I even got into painting cars for a while. Not long enough to get any good at it, mind you.
The beauty of Forza 2 lies in the way it embraces people who know nothing about cars and perhaps not a lot more about racing games, but like playing video games in general. A lot of people talk about the racing line, a guideline alternating in colour between green, red and orange to indicate good braking technique. That’s just part of it though; Forza 2 feels welcoming to people who aren’t sure where to start when it comes to tuning up a car’s suspension without alienating people who are really, really into that kind of thing.
It’s gotten me really excited for Forza 3, a game I had somehow forgot about until recently. Forza 2 is one of the few games I really got into playing online, and it’s the main draw for the sequel. The first two Forza games did a fantastic job of integrating a single player career with online play. If Forza 3 can bring this to another level, I will be hopelessly addicted.
There is one drawback, though, one that reminds me why I stopped playing the game: it gets tense. In most racing games I cheat the system disgracefully by amassing enough in-game finances to buy cars that blow the opposition away, at least on straightaways, and grind my way home. This is possible in Forza 2, but I find myself in situations where one small mistake effectively ends my involvement in the race. This, allied with my own fragile psyche, results in lots of spinning off the track on final laps. Most of my “replaying” of the game has involved learning and relearning how to take each corner of a particular track. This hasn’t stopped my enjoyment of the game. I am in video game fail heaven and I love it.
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