October Magazine

REVIEW
FORZA 6
10 years ago, Gran Turismo was the
king of console racers. Many strived
to be like it, but no one could imitate
the grand daddy of consoles. Then,
10 years ago, a young upstart racing
series launched on Xbox with
the legend of console racers firmly
in its sights; a fresh face challenging
the old guard, much like Pagani
did with Ferrari and alike. And from
the beginning, it was clear that this
was something special; as Gran Turismo
wore out the laurels of success
that GT4 brought it, this new
title grew and grew. So much so,
that by the time GT5 came along in
2010, the Xbox title had brought out
3 new games. Each one better than
the last one. And in the last 10 years,
that same franchise has churned
out 8 titles. And this year, Forza Motorsport
has saved its best for the
double figure milestone. Welcome
to Forza Motorsport 6: a celebration
of all things motoring, and one hell
of a 10th birthday party.
FM6 features over 450 cars, each
one painstakingly recreated in the
virtual world to the most minute of
details; from old JDM favourites
to the newest and deadliest machines,
the entire timespan of vehicles
in FM6 ranges from 1939 F1
to the yet to be released 2017 Ford
GT…almost 80 years of motoring to
sample! Each vehicle can be customized
to particular classes, with
both performance and visual modifications
from simple air intakes
to entire engine swaps, drive train
conversions and more.
Wheels and body parts can be
changed, and there’s a giant pallet
of standard and custom paint colours
and finishes to choose from.
And of course, there’s one of Forza
Motorsports trademarks-a fully customizable
vinyl and decal system,
enabling you to build and design
the cars of your dreams. Players
can create and share their own
tunes, designs and liveries for others
to download, and you are able
to transfer any designs you made in
Forza 5 or Horizon 2, meaning you
can almost pick up where you left
off. The cars are simply gorgeous;
the auto vista feature is available
for every car in the game, meaning
you can admire, explore and sit in
any vehicle you want. From humble
super minis to international open
wheelers and multimillion dollar endurance
prototypes, Forza 6 has
put in a huge effort to make sure
all aspects of motoring-and motorsport
are included. It is quite literally
on for young and old!
The cars are the real stars of this
show, but the settings and tracks do
a fantastic job of being the supporting
cast. Old favourites return, with
some new locations added. The
street course in Rio, for example.
Real world location additions include
Brands Hatch, Daytona, Lime
Rock Park and Watkins Glen. Some
tracks also benefit from the newest
and most obvious addition to the series;
changing weather and time of
day settings. Whilst it only applies
to certain tracks, it is quite incredible
to experience. In the wet, you
need to be on your toes; painted
lines and ripple strips become icy
trips off the track. Puddles not only
slow you down, but can also pull
your car to one side, and in some
cases even cause you to aquaplane
off if you aren’t playing attention.
Night racing is also a fantastic and
atmospheric addition. Flying around
the brightly lit Daytona oval makes
you think that nothing has changed,
until you abruptly plunge into darkness
through the infield, squinting
as your eyes adjust as you rely on
your headlights to guide you to the
next corner. Le Mans and Nurburgring
at night are also a daunting
battle; with nothing but black behind
and in front, with only your opponents
headlights darting in and out
of view, you really get the feeling
you’re on your own.
Career mode has been simplified;
you progress through 5 tiers,
ranging from street tuners up to
the pinnacle of international motor
racing. Each tier or ‘volume’ covers
3 championships, which you
must progress through to proceed
to the next volume. With each Vol-