After the stumbling release of Forza Motorsport 5, does the team at Turn 10 with Forza Motorsport 6 manage to put the franchise back on track? The answer would be a resounding Yes. Why you ask, then read on to find out.
Career in Forza Motorsport 6
Just like traditional racing games, the career mode of Forza Motorsport 6 is no different, you start with the smaller hatchbacks and after putting in dozens of hours, you get the opportunity to race in the cars you have been waiting for, however Turn 10 brings its own new twists to add a breath of fresh air within the tried and tested formula.
The campaign of Forza Motorsport 6 is presented in a different way. It has been divided into four sections called stories of motorsport. Before you begin a new story you’re a given brief introductory background that is presented in a unique way and voiced by different hosts from the popular Top Gear TV show. Each story has its own importance and makes you realise what those different tiers of cars mean to different people, such as the ‘super street volume’ provides detail on how racing holds its own unique importance on the street level and how it is the origin of many race drivers as well. As you progress, each story has something more to offer.
While racing with a certain tier of cars can get repetitive, Turn 10 manages to break that cycle by the introduction of ‘Showcase Events’. These events try to recreate different historical moments in racing or highlight specific cars and in all honesty, these events are the real meat of the career mode. They not only provide a break from the regular story driven races, but also manage to give one an opportunity to experience certain expensive cars even before one can afford them in the game. Just like the stories of motorsport, showcase events also have their own introduction, further adding to the experience.
Even though Turn 10 has decided to stick with the traditional formula, they have still managed to craft an experience that feels fresh and has much more to offer compared to any other Forza Motorsport game released in the career department.
Night and Wet Racing
The biggest highlight of Forza Motorsport 6 is the inclusion of wet weather and night racing, both of which provide a whole new layer of depth to the gameplay. Besides the usually graphical beauty, their effect on gameplay simply cannot be ignored. Night racing creates much more tension on the circuit since what’s coming next is completely unknown and even the tires start to lose their grip from the road and the only thing the one has rely on is the headlights of the car since they can guide you to the right path.
While night racing may not provide any drastic changes towards the way you handle your cars, racing in wet weather is bound to change the way you approach the circuit. Rain, besides adding to the graphical fidelity also brings puddles. These puddles on tracks have been accurately calculated to simulate the experience as close to reality. Puddles also bring hydroplaning into the picture and in case you were thinking this is all a gimmick or simply marketing terms, do yourself a favour drive through a puddle at a high speed (in the game, not in real life, that would be dumb) and result will manifest itself to you.
Forza Motorsport 6 graphically as well as gameplay-wise makes proper use of the new conditions and rewards the fans for their patience. Driving physics have been calculated accurately to mirror the real life conditions and that detail simply shines throughout the gameplay, however the only major drawback here is lack of a dynamic weather system as you end up racing in the same conditions with no change at all.
The Forza franchise has always been known for its accessible nature of gameplay while still providing challenge and thrill to the hardcore simulation fans and Forza Motorsport 6 is no different. Depending upon your difficulty level, you’re given a number of assists to play with and as you progress and increase your difficulty level or use less number of assists, Forza rewards you with better payouts and more experience, this creates a fine line between two different classes of players and still continues to be appreciated by critics and fans alike.
Forza Motorsport 6 also introduces a new mod system similar to the Halo’s skull system, these modifiers allow you to mix up the things a little bit. They come in three different varieties, The Crew: which add to the performance of your car like giving you more traction etc, Boost: these grant you a temporary boost and the last one Dare: these add a new layer of difficulty by forcing to complete the race with certain conditions such as with no HUD or racing with a specific camera angle or maybe starting from the last position on the grid and many more to choose from, completing these dares provides you with extra cash and provides a sense of accomplishment.
Content
The biggest issue with Forza Motorsport 5 was its content, it was highly criticized for its low number of cars and tracks and it looks like Turn 10 has learnt its lesson and with Forza Motorsport 6 they have not only upped the standards for the Forza franchise, but also set a benchmark for other racing games. With nearly 460 cars and 26 real world locations and many of them having different variants as well, Forza Motorsport 6 flexes its muscles in this category. Each car available in the game can be completed viewed in ForzaVista mode which gives you the ability to relish each and every detail on a car and also get a voice tour of it. Besides this, regular options like the ability to customize your car and upgrade it to your heart’s content also can be found.
Conclusion
After the stumbling release of Forza Motorsport 5, Forza Motorsport 6 not only brings the franchise back on track, but also sets new standards for upcoming games in the genre. The rain and night racing are finally here even though it’s not dynamic. If you’re looking to buy a racing game this gaming season, look nowhere else since this is the most definitive Forza game ever made.
