Turn 10 is back this week with the Xbox 360′s premier simulation racing series. This time around Forza Motorsport utilizes the Kinect for head tracking and vehicle inspection. With rival Gran Turismo 5 promising a huge content patch at the end of the month on the PS3, does Forza bring enough to the table to draw racing sim fans back to the 360?
Kinect support probably isn’t going to blow anybody’s mind. Head tracking will make for a more visceral experience, but also has the potential to drive you a little crazy. In the Autovista mode you will be able to walk around and inspect a few select cars, including the Halo Warthog. The power of Kinect will allow you to open doors, inspect the engine or sit in the driver’s seat. While this sound neat, a quick button press is all most people would really want. The best use of the Kinect will most likely be menu navigation with voice commands, especially when driving with a wheel.
Other then Kinect support, there isn’t a lot of brand new content. There are only 5 new circuits and there aren’t variable weather conditions or night races. The biggest improvements are online where the number of racers has been increased from 8 to 15. More players means new race types such as multi-class races are possible. A multi class race is essentially up to 4 races happening at once. You must hold off your opponents while avoiding the faster or slower cars. There is also a new Rivals mode which allows you to race ghosts of people in your friends list. Once you beat their time, a notice is sent to them in a similar fashion as Need For Speed’s Autolog functionality.
Offline the updates are more subtle. The World Tour mode has been restructured to allow a little more freedom when choosing where to go and what to drive. You will chose what cars you unlock as you gain levels as well as earn or purchase credits to unlock cars. AI has been improved and as more aggressive this time around. Driving aids and a rewind feature return to help the game still be accessible to new player.
Just like a car that gets a refresh every couple of years, Forza Motorsport 4 won’t be revolutionary. Still, it will be a welcome improvement to the much beloved Forza 3. Fans of Forza will surely enjoy this entry in the franchise and will appreciate that their series gets a refresh more often then the PlayStation alternative.
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