Forza Motorsport 3 Review
Forza 3 offers not only a true simulation racer but under the bonnet there is something which will please creators and casual racing fans while looking amazing throughout.
Forza Motorsport 3 is one of the best racing simulation games out there; fact. This is because Turn 10 have thought of even aspect of driving and combined it into a compelling package that anyone who has the slightest interest in cars will enjoy. The hardcore simulation driving is still at the heart of Forza but around the outside of the races is something which would interest the artists and creators.
Turn 10 have made the level of accessibility to their third game much broader offering many assists which can be switch on or off to create it hard or easier. The most helpful is probably the auto braking. This does what it says on the tin and brakes for you, so all you have to do is ease on and off the accelerator and follow the racing line. Most other assists are what you would expect in any racing simulation like anti-lock brakes and traction control. With all the setting on the game is so easy that you can just sit back and enjoy the stunning scenery but turning them off will cause you to ruin the scenery, if you catch my drift. However, a huge change has been added in the style of a rewind feature. This is similar to the one you can find in the GRID series and essentially if you mess up your corner you can hit the back button and rewind to take the corner again. The game does not penal ize you using this and you can use it as many times as you like but at the end of the day if you are racing in one of the longer endurance races in the game and you mess up on the last corner and come in forth because of it the chances are you will be throwing your controller through your T.V. The game also does not make you use this and so it is down to your will power but also remember that you can’t use this online so perfecting your offline driving will improve your online skills.
Content wise there are over 400 cars in the game. These are from 53 manufacturers and range from the box car the Audi R8 to the Aston Martin DB9, Bugatti Veryon and the Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano, also 4x4s like the 2008 Range Rover Supercharged. All of these can be modified by spending credits you earn in races or you can adjust things like the suspension and tyres to gain that advantage but this is only if you know about the ins and outs of cars. For the people who don’t there is a quick upgrade feature. This will ask which class you would like your car to get to and them recommend the parts to purchase and will tell you how much it will cost you.
You can also spend your time customizing your car in the cosmetic front. This feature was added in Forza 2 but has been greatly expanded in Forza 3 after the unbelievable things people made. For regular folks you can put some awesome lightning bolts down your cars but some people can take all of these shapes and create some amazing designs. These can all be purchased and sold in the online store. Here you can sell vinyl groups, tuning settings or car designs. You can even upload videos and pictures you have taken in the game for people to view.
The single player career is very similar to the one in Forza 2. It presents you with many groups of races to choose from with their own sets of rules and so you may not be able to race in one as you do not have the correct cars, but there are always a few different races to choose from so progressing is never a problem. You can also bring up the events list which presents you with the entire 220 series that you can choose from and granted you have the right cars and enough experience you can race in which ever race you like.
The online side of Forza has been made into a matchmaking system where up to eight people can race together. Before entering matchmaking you can specify the race type such as circuit, drag or drift just to name a few. Once in a lobby you choose your car and vote to skip the race. There is also a private match feature so you can tweak all the options you like and save the settings if you choose to come back to a created race type. There are over 100 tracks to choose from in roughly 19 locations. These range from all over the world like the racing through New York, around Silverstone or around the Road America course. Each location looks fantastic and caters for different races such as drift or drag.
The presentation of Forza 3 screams professional standards all the way through. It is like going to a car showroom everything is so pristine and white. The frontend menus are easy to navigate whilst the look and feel of the cars are fantastic. The thought that they have modelled 400 cars to this standard on the interior and exterior is phenomenal. The level of realism they have accomplished with the sound of screeching brakes to the acceleration is also quite amazing as each car sounds distinctively different.
If you are a hardcore racing simulation fan there is enough here to keep you going for years, but at the same time Turn 10 have carefully balanced the experience as the a different level of fun can be had for someone who just likes cars and does not live and breathe them. Forza Motorsport 3 is a truly amazing; you could say it is Va Va Voom.
