Microsoft revealed their latest entry into the racing genre with Forza Motorsport 6 at this years E3 conference. The game follows on the critically acclaimed Forza Motorsport 5 and Forza Horizon 2 which broke new ground when it came to in-game graphics and physics.
What is it about?
Forza Motorsport is a game based on Simulation racing, most racing games in the past are arcade based which means it’s main focus is on the action. Whereas Forza Motorsport focuses on the driving experience giving you the most realistic impression of driving that car as much as possible. However it’s not made for every racing game fan out there, games like Forza Horizon might be more suited to the avid action based racer, while the hardcore racing fans who want realism will be jumping in with Motorsport.
More cars than you can imagine
Gone are the days that you’ll have to buy cars to add to the sparse line-up that you get with modern racers this gen(who doesn’t hate that). Forza Motorsport will have the most cars in a game this generation and they’re not copied from previous entries like other games do. Each car received the ForzaVista treatment, ForzaVista is the garage viewing experience where you can open and examine every nook and cranny of your favorite car in this virtual world.
The car detail carries over directly to the game world and you’ll be able to see the scratches, dents and cracks in the bodywork as you battle your way to the front of the line.
Elite Racing
Microsoft showed the new Elite Controller and it’s design is perfect for Forza Motorsport 6. The back paddles will be amazing for avid racing fans like myself that want the best and easiest way to switch gears instead of the clunky button configuration that we currently have to endure. The Elite Controller albeit expensive will give you the edge in the game, which may mean shaving off 2 or 3 seconds off that lap time.
OMG Puddles!
We heard rumblings of 3D puddles from earlier leaks but not like this, in game footage and game play shows water collecting in huge puddles on the road and avoiding them could be the difference between winning & losing. Hitting these insane puddles of death will simulate exactly what happens when you do drive through one in real life. Actual water splashing and the car momentarily losing control depending on the driving conditions means Forza Motorsport 6 will have officially become the single most advanced racing game to date. I can’t wait to splash about in one of these puddles…
Glorious
Microsoft emphasized stating that the game will be running at glorious 1080p 60FPS, a far cry from the norm these days. Forza Motorsport 5 ran at a constant locked 1080p 60FPS when the Xbox One launched. Now Microsoft is taking it to the next level by keeping that required resolution and framerate while having weather and night time driving, definitely hard to beat.
Hope you’re not night blind because Forza will take the Day/Night driving from Forza Horizon and bring it to Forza Motorsport 6. It will also mean that game modes like 24 hour endurance races may become a thing and the simulation will focus on Realism over having a 3 minute day and night cycle.
Weather in the game is phenomenal, I was staring at the effects literally with my face up against the screen trying to see every little detail from videos. Until we have the full game we can’t really say how it will look but from what I’ve seen the weather effects are by far the most realistic on ANY racing game ever. The rain drops flying off the windshield at high speed blows whatever you’ve seen out of the water. I’ve always had an issue with how game makers simulate rain on a windshield with Project Cars barely showing it, and Driveclub having a blob of water sploshing about on the windshield obstructing your view. Now we have the king of racers doing it the right way…
Bumper Cars
Microsoft announced that Forza Motorsport 6 will have 24 Multiplayer races on all tracks including weather and night driving. This isn’t like the massive multiplayer experiences that you get with Project Cars who went out and allowed 45 car pile-ups. However framerate is key here and Microsoft didn’t want to skimp on the Player experience. The Multiplayer will run at a solid 60FPS and 1080p and that is the way it should be.
Maps
When Forza Motorsport 5 launched we received 10 maps that cycled endlessly. If you played the career mode you would have wanted to kill yourself from boredom because of the limited number of maps. This changes in Forza Motorsport 6, they included 27 tracks from all over the world including Daytona and Le Mans right out of the box. With Maps being able to have multiple layouts including inverted, you have nearly 150 different tracks you can try out on day one.
Bonuses
Now we don’t like talking about pre-order incentives because it’s usually a cash grab. Forza Motorsport will come with several bonuses for ordering today including a Deluxe Edition and Ultimate Edition. They include extra in game content and VIP access membership. These are not required to play the game and it will not take anything away from the experience. Which is the way it’s meant to be. If you opt out of getting any of these editions you’ll still get every car and every track available in the game.
Release
The official release date was revealed as September 15th 2015, you can already pre-order the game from the Xbox Store for $59.99. Which is the standard edition and will come with an added bonus of an in game vehicle only available to you. So we will do a review once we get our dirty little hands on the game and will give you extensive gameplay footage if you’re not sure if the game is for you. Or grab Forza Motorsport 5 from the Xbox Store right now at 50% off.
In the meantime enjoy the gameplay trailer.
