Video game review: Forza Motorsport 3
Cal O'Malley
Issue date: 11/18/09 Section: Spotlight
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The racing simulation genre always seems to find itself with one game that blends its interpretation of vehicle physics, tuning, and course design above all the others. The genre has seen great games such as Gran Turismo, GTR FIA racing, and to a lesser extent, the Need for Speed series.
Since its introduction in 2005, Microsoft's philosophy with its Forza Motorsports series has been to give enthusiasts a racing game with real-world driving physics but not the playability issues of hardcore simulators. A few quirks aside, this latest iteration is analogous to BMW's M3, which continues to improve upon a solid fundamental base.
Upon starting the game, the player is greeted with an ambiance of slick professionalism. Unfortunately, this switch to a more Gran Turismo-esqe menu and music comes at the expense of practicality and ease of use.
The load times are also significantly longer. While this is to be expected with a new game running on older hardware, there are more problems.
For example, the game will randomly freeze and sound will not start working for the second player in head-to-head matches until after the start of the race, making launches more difficult and not to mention less fair, since the first player's sound works.
These bugs give Forza 3 the feel of a game rushed to the shelves, most likely in an effort to beat the much-delayed Gran Turismo 5. Expect them to be fixed in patches.
Where it really counts, however, the game simply amazes, making a few bugs seem like a small price to pay.
The driving experience is top notch. The effects of body roll, suspension loading and under/oversteer seem channeled to the player through the controller, and vehicles react just as one would expect in the real world.
Those familiar with the Forza series or real-world high-speed driving should immediately opt for expert mode and disable all driving aids for the most sublime, connected experience possible. Newbies might opt for the multitude of driving aids that can turn the most ham-fisted into apex-clipping, trail-braking veterans.
The career starts out in a mildly sophomoric way, asking the player to prove their worth in a faster car than they might be capable of driving. It then reverts to the standard slow car, short race to fast car, long race career progression.
For those interested in building a massive garage and racing online amongst fellow die hards, the gameplay in this newest Forza release is as good, if not better, than expected. There are tons of tracks, and the newest cars on the market are ready to be slung around the circuit.
Aside from a few glitches in the game, (my initial copy had to be returned for disk read errors), the stunning visuals and spot on physics will leave any enthusiast scrambling to find time in their schedule for hours of play.
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