First Place Finish- Forza Motorsport 3 Review

A top-tier racing game has much in common with an exotic sports car- both are blazing fast, elegantly sleek, and each offers its user a adrenaline-fueled experience.   A majority of racing titles have at least one debilitating deficiency- some lack an exhilarating sense of speed, while others suffer from brain-dead AI. The recently released Forza Motorsport 3 is the rare racing title with few flaws; it’s an amazing simulation that will appeal to virtual drivers of all skill levels.

The single-player component of Forza Motorsport 3 is modeled after the day-to-day career of a professional driver. As the on-screen calendar counts the passing days, players may participate in a variety of events, from short weekday races, to extended multi-part competitions on the weekends. Forza 3 wisely avoids a strict racing regimen; as long as players have a suitable car and enough racing experience, they may enter an event.

Success in competitions rewards the players with credits, driver experience, and car experience. Players can use the games liberal distribution of credit to purchase new cars, or upgrade existing vehicles. While gearheads will revel in Forza 3’s exhaustive modding depth, those be bewildered by torque ratios and downforce quotients may select the auto-tune option. The game’s clever car experience mechanic motivates players to stick with a particular model.  Although the temptation to collect the game’s 400 cars is strong, it is tempered by the generous distribution of manufacturer discounts.

Beyond the game’s exhaustive single player campaign, the title also boosts a robust online multiplayer mode. Up to seven other gamers can participate in highly customizable competitions, from straight-ahead races, to score-based drift events. Events with players in the same continent proved to be consistently lag-free; only when the competition went global was slowdown evident.

Much of Forza 3’s enjoyment emanates from the title’s extraordinary physics model. Whether players select an introductory level of difficulty coupled with a host of driving assists, or a rigorous, unflinching simulation, a startling amount of information is conveyed to the player. From the grip of the tires, to the weight of the vehicle, Forza 3 astoundingly conveys the relationship of car to track. Players are able to navigate serpentine sections and snug corners with remarkable precision.  Much like Codemaster’s GRiD, players that lose control during a race, may rewind time with a button press. It’s a handy feature that eliminates much of the frustration incurred when an AI driver induces a spin-out on the final lap.

Turn 10 clearly listened to the critics, who chided Forza 2’s bland visual palette. From the austere simplicity of the game’s menu system, to the title’s nearly photorealistic cars and gorgeous environments, the third iteration of the series shows a significant graphical improvement. The title’s smooth sixty frame per second framerate typically allows for a blissful sensation of speed, although very infrequently the game will inexplicably pause midrace for a microsecond. One of the components that added to Forza 2’s extended popularity was the game’s powerful livery system, which gave players an unprecedented amount of vehicular customization options. Now, players can create, apply, purchase and sell custom-made set-ups and decals. Each artistic creation can be applied to any car, improving the title’s already impressive flexibility.

The title’s faults are wonderfully diminutive. Being accustomed to racing games where opponents drive like mindless drones, it is grateful to see the sporadic rival fail to slow down and lose control in a sharp corner. However, seeing the driver make an identical mistake on the next lap is an ugly reminder that the error wasn’t spontaneous, but illusionary. Forza’s load times may irk impatient gamers; typically will have to wait about thirty seconds from event explanation to tarmac. The game’s auction house already contains a myriad of must-have cars, which players can submit offers on. Unfortunately, gamers cannot set bid prices, only increase an offer on an existing price. This means players will likely spend the last minutes of an auction manually submitting a rapid succession of bids.