FORZA MOTORSPORT 5 (XONE)
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Publisher: Microsoft Studios.
Developer: Turn 10 Studios. Released: November 2013. Genre: Racing. Posted 20th April 2015. By Shane Battams © 2015 |
Being one of Microsoft’s biggest exclusives, it was no surprise that Turn 10’s seminal racing series Forza would make an appearance at Xbox One’s launch line-up. Returning back to simulation after a brief detour into open-world, Forza 5 takes full advantage of the new-found power within the One. With the immensely solid foundations there too, F5 is a winner despite some lesser design choices which can turn the game into a chore. But those who can stick with a bit of a grind will still find a smooth, gorgeous racing experience.
While Forza 5 may seem similar to its predecessors upon first glance, you’ll also notice that even with Forza’s previous technical excellence, this game is stunning. Running at a crisp 60 frames per second, details come packed in spades. Tracks look great, with stunning lighting that reflects off every surface with ease. Cars are beautifully crafted, and aspects like damage modelling and weight are absolutely nailed. It’s difficult to see how racing games can get any more beautiful than Forza 5 after this point. And if you aren’t convinced in your first race, the stunning ForzaVista allows you to view each car inside and out.
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The ed. has been struggling with drafts ever since moving house...
And while perhaps not as forward in its core racing, there’s really no need to fix what isn’t broken. Aspects such as customizable difficulty remain, allowing you to switch assists for damage, steering and braking. What does shake up the game is the new AI system powered by Cloud gaming, known as Drivatar. Every racer playing F5 has one, essentially tracking how you drive. Whether you speed with corners through ease or knock other opponents into next week, your Drivatar tracks it all. From here, a profile is built and then sent into other player’s games. What this essentially means is that AI no longer is scripted, and built from how other players race. All my friends who played Forza 5 became opponents on a frequent basis, often being more difficult to outwit than harder AI. It massively spices up the game, bringing a new level of challenge.
It’s a shame that, while the racing has seen improvements, the career mode feels like a step back. While upon initial glance it seems like a standard series of events, Turn 10 seems to have taken a few, unsavoury ideas from the free-to-play arena. You see, while completing events at first is straightforward enough, you’ll notice CR is often given in paltry amounts. Combined with the sometimes extremely high costs of cars, and suddenly you’ll find yourself in a position where you can’t afford a car to proceed. As a result, you are forced to either grind out bonus events to earn credits, or actually buy tokens to either buy cars or level up faster. It’s a shame, because the career mode is massive, taking dozens of hours to fully complete, but it becomes a grind.
Forza 5 can also feel trimmed in comparison to its predecessors, perhaps due to launch-title woes. The selection of cars has been reduced significantly, in the hundreds even, and while there’s still a decent range available, you’re continually noted that more require purchases from the Xbox store. The track selection is worse though, as iconic courses from the previous games have been removed. And while freebies have been added to the game, it still becomes repetitive considering how many events are available in the career. It’s a shame that Forza 5 can feel so thin, despite showing excellence on the track itself.
It’s a shame that, while the racing has seen improvements, the career mode feels like a step back. While upon initial glance it seems like a standard series of events, Turn 10 seems to have taken a few, unsavoury ideas from the free-to-play arena. You see, while completing events at first is straightforward enough, you’ll notice CR is often given in paltry amounts. Combined with the sometimes extremely high costs of cars, and suddenly you’ll find yourself in a position where you can’t afford a car to proceed. As a result, you are forced to either grind out bonus events to earn credits, or actually buy tokens to either buy cars or level up faster. It’s a shame, because the career mode is massive, taking dozens of hours to fully complete, but it becomes a grind.
Forza 5 can also feel trimmed in comparison to its predecessors, perhaps due to launch-title woes. The selection of cars has been reduced significantly, in the hundreds even, and while there’s still a decent range available, you’re continually noted that more require purchases from the Xbox store. The track selection is worse though, as iconic courses from the previous games have been removed. And while freebies have been added to the game, it still becomes repetitive considering how many events are available in the career. It’s a shame that Forza 5 can feel so thin, despite showing excellence on the track itself.
No way of losing when you're the only one racing
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Waiting for competitors to take each other out is a legitimate tactic
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Aside from career, there are a few other modes of play too. Rivals put an emphasis on competition, tasking you with achieving lap times against players all around the world for CR rewards. Forza even begins to send rivalry recommendations based on your performance during career mode, and presents a large list of events to partake in. Multiplayer also returns, allowing you to compete in 16-player races, with Smart Match keeping you playing with those who race like you. So let’s hope you don’t drive too aggressively, otherwise it may not be much fun. It worked pretty well, bar some lag in a couple of spots and spotty matchmaking.
Though there are some inconsistencies at times, you can still tell Forza 5 is made by car lovers, for car lovers. The aforementioned ForzaVista allows you to explore cars inside and out, but the real kick for driving fans will come from the deep implementation of Top Gear. Every career series is preceded by a video introduction from one of the three hosts, a small selection of events take place on the Top Gear track and some even task you with beating a digital version of Stig. The audio work from the crew is enjoyable enough, and the sounds of the cars are strong as well. The only weird part is the music, which replaces licensed music for bombastic string collections, which would feel more at home in a Hollywood chase than a realistic racer.
While Forza Motorsport 5 isn’t up there with the best in the series, marking a more tepid debut for the series on next-gen, the racing remains stellar. While the career sadly devolves into grinding, and the reduced car and track list is a shame, the beautiful visuals, tight racing mechanics and sheer amount of races to do ensure that those craving an eighth gen racer should still grab Forza 5. Just don’t expect a racer on the level of Forza 3.
Though there are some inconsistencies at times, you can still tell Forza 5 is made by car lovers, for car lovers. The aforementioned ForzaVista allows you to explore cars inside and out, but the real kick for driving fans will come from the deep implementation of Top Gear. Every career series is preceded by a video introduction from one of the three hosts, a small selection of events take place on the Top Gear track and some even task you with beating a digital version of Stig. The audio work from the crew is enjoyable enough, and the sounds of the cars are strong as well. The only weird part is the music, which replaces licensed music for bombastic string collections, which would feel more at home in a Hollywood chase than a realistic racer.
While Forza Motorsport 5 isn’t up there with the best in the series, marking a more tepid debut for the series on next-gen, the racing remains stellar. While the career sadly devolves into grinding, and the reduced car and track list is a shame, the beautiful visuals, tight racing mechanics and sheer amount of races to do ensure that those craving an eighth gen racer should still grab Forza 5. Just don’t expect a racer on the level of Forza 3.
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VERDICT
Visual: 10/10
Audio: 7/10 Gameplay: 7/10 Longevity: 7/10 OVERALL: 7/10 |