Forza 3 details leaked

Gangrel · Post by **Gangrel** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 4:52 pm

I've basically settled on Hard difficulty, and then mostly doing quick upgrades which I think match your PI to the highest in the series. That combined with my gernal lack of skill, keeps me in the middle of the pack, but I'm having fun.

I'm sure I'm missing out on super cool cars by not finishing first all the time, but it's more fun racing then winning to me.......

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 5:05 pm

My GF finally came so I'll be able to check it out tonight!

mixdj1 · Post by **mixdj1** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 5:12 pm

ScoopBrady wrote:My GF finally came so I'll be able to check it out tonight!

That statement reads completely differently depending on what you think GF stands for.

sportdan30 · Post by **sportdan30** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 5:13 pm

ScoopBrady wrote:My GF finally came so I'll be able to check it out tonight!

Dude.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 5:15 pm

Awesome!

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 5:33 pm

The word copy probably would have added a lot to that sentence, huh?

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Fri Oct 30, 2009 6:05 pm

So far I am liking the game. I am approaching level 30 and still find myself wanting to play each day. I think tcrouch was the one who said this game is massive, and man was he ever right. I have put in quite a few hours with the game, yet I am still not even 10% of the way through according to the stats.

Offline is where I play, and I have to say the AI is a bit of a disappointment. The AI patterns are very predictable and you really do not get the feeling that you are racing anything other than pre-programmed cars. Compare that to Shift, Dirt, and even Indy Evolution, and the feeling is even more pronounced. All three of those games have an AI that makes things feel less pre-determined and more like you are racing against other drivers as opposed to just the track. Forza offline is still very much a human player versus the track kind of thing. That is fine with me, though, because everything else about the game is stunning.

The new courses are breathtaking at times, both graphically and in layout. The old courses are great too. This may be the best Suzuka has ever been modeled in a videogame. I finally hit my Forza zen around level 15, in which it was pure joy getting into a groove and tearing up the track, trying to shave tenths of a second off each progressive lap. I saw where one of the developers said it takes about 150 hours to get 100% completion. That will not be hard at all for me since I like the game so much I will put in more than 150 hours on merely single player.

The variety in the way cars feel and handle is the best I have seen in a console game. When you are driving a heavy car it truly gives you the feeling of handling a heavy car. Everything from the side-to-side shift in weight to the braking is superbly done. It's exciting to try out new cars simply to see how they handle in relationship to the other cars. My favorite car thus far has to be the Lambo Reventon. Streaking down the backstretch at Le Mans using the cockpit view in the Reventon is incredible.

Overall, Forza 3 is an excellent game. This is one of those games where I had lofty expectations and those expectations were met and then exceeded. There is so much greatness in the overall package that a person could prattle on page after page, so I will stop prattling and go play more Forza. This has been a super past couple months in terms of games that I have really enjoyed, with more on the horizon. When Assassin's Creed II and Formula One (Wii and PSP) come out in November I do not know what I will do with myself.

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:02 am

The game really is pretty awesome. The cockpit view is perfect for me. Some have complained around the webs that it's too far forward, that you can't see enough of the dash, etc. etc. To me, it's perfectly placed. I can see the road plenty well enough without feeling like I am looking through a paper towel tube, so I've yet to feel the need to switch to bumper cam to help me drive better. Every other cockpit view has been harder for me than bumper cam, but not here.

It still sucks, in the end, that they can't get the end of race situation right. But hey, who's surprised by that? I know I expected nothing more from them. I mean, forget about any kind of practice or qualifying setup, too. That's just not this game. I suppose we could run longer races with a lap+ length end-of-race timer to compensate, but the idiocy and stupidity of it is just mind boggling.

I've said it before; the game is designed from the start for 3-, 4-, 5-lap sprints. That's what it is, that's all it is. Any 'endurance' race is meant to be run by a 'hired' driver as you use your leveled-up car. And it's a shame, too, because the damage model and the tire/grip model is really amazing over a long run. But what's the point of a longer run when you only have 8 cars on track and the end of the race is all screwed up? Are there even pits that work at all? I haven't bothered to find out.

Post by **ScoopBrady** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:24 am

This one was a totally mixed bag for me on first impression. The graphics, handling, and presentation are all top-notch. My problem is the fact that I don't think the tracks are wide enough. I don't feel like I have enough space to make a move without trading paint. The initial races in the career mode provide very little opportunity to pass in a 2 or 3 lap race without me feeling like I have to resort to playing bumper cars. Now part of it may be my complete lack of skill in racing games but I don't think it is because I've never had problems like this with other racers including Forza 2. I only did about 5 or 6 races but the entire time it felt like being on a date with an extremely hot chick just to find out she's extremely shallow.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:53 am

ScoopBrady wrote:This one was a totally mixed bag for me on first impression. The graphics, handling, and presentation are all top-notch. My problem is the fact that I don't think the tracks are wide enough. I don't feel like I have enough space to make a move without trading paint. The initial races in the career mode provide very little opportunity to pass in a 2 or 3 lap race without me feeling like I have to resort to playing bumper cars. Now part of it may be my complete lack of skill in racing games but I don't think it is because I've never had problems like this with other racers including Forza 2. I only did about 5 or 6 races but the entire time it felt like being on a date with an extremely hot chick just to find out she's extremely shallow.

That's one of the biggest knocks on console racing games. It's almost as if all these arcade or sim racing games are made for people with A.D.D.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:07 pm

ScoopBrady wrote:My problem is the fact that I don't think the tracks are wide enough. I don't feel like I have enough space to make a move without trading paint. The initial races in the career mode provide very little opportunity to pass in a 2 or 3 lap race without me feeling like I have to resort to playing bumper cars.

I'm writing the early bumper car races as a necessary evil--there's just no other way to take a 120hp car from 8th to 1st in a 3-lap race on a sub-1 mile track.

I did an E-class championship race at Catalunya and was able to patiently work my way through the field without having to force my way through traffic. That was much more fun than the early races.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 12:32 am

So far, my complaints about the game are these:

The early races almost ask for you to be an a*shole driver

The driver's hands barely move

I'm still not sure why some of my laps are considered dirty

All in all, that's a pretty meaningless list. I'm completely impressed with the game and can't stop playing it. There are so many minor tweaks that just work, like the quick upgrade to get a car to the top of the eligible cars in a race.

The track in the demo is my least favorite in the game so far, I really think that made me hyper-critical of the demo. Some of the other made-up tracks are pretty cool, I have to say.

Enough typing, back to the game.

James_E · Post by **James_E** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 9:55 am

Is there a way to practice before a race? Without going all the way back out to free play? Right now I go into an event, check the track and if I don't know it I go all the way back out to free play and find that track to practice on. Did I miss something obvious in the race day menu?

Gangrel · Post by **Gangrel** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 10:18 am

Nope, that I can see. It's why i play with the brake line showing, to at least give me a fighting chance, as there is no way I'm remembering all of those tracks!

Zeppo · Post by **Zeppo** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 10:57 am

James_E wrote:Is there a way to practice before a race? Without going all the way back out to free play? Right now I go into an event, check the track and if I don't know it I go all the way back out to free play and find that track to practice on. Did I miss something obvious in the race day menu?

You can also 'test drive' any of your cars from the upgrade menu. In there you can select any track.

I use the 'braking only' line just for that reason, so I don't practice. Of course I have the map off because I find it distracts me from the road and I actually learn the tracks faster without the crutch of the map.

But the 'braking only' line is critical.

Dave · Post by **Dave** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:43 am

Zeppo wrote:I use the 'braking only' line just for that reason, so I don't practice. Of course I have the map off because I find it distracts me from the road and I actually learn the tracks faster without the crutch of the map.

But the 'braking only' line is critical.

I use the braking only line, too, and can't imagine not using it. I just don't have the time and patience to learn all of the tracks at this point, maybe 10 or so years ago I could have but it just isn't in the cards these days..

The nice thing is that the line is conservative and in some places just flat-out wrong (Maple Valley is one example) so it still pays to learn the tracks.

webdanzer · Post by **webdanzer** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:56 am

James_E wrote:Is there a way to practice before a race? Without going all the way back out to free play? Right now I go into an event, check the track and if I don't know it I go all the way back out to free play and find that track to practice on. Did I miss something obvious in the race day menu?

A ridiculous amount of racing games all across the spectrum from arcade to sim no longer allow practices before events unless you back all the way out into another mode. It's incredibly annoying to me personally, but I guess it is a way of showing off the various 'rewind' modes popping up....

F308GTB · Post by **F308GTB** » Sun Nov 01, 2009 1:47 pm

Dave wrote:
Zeppo wrote:I use the 'braking only' line just for that reason, so I don't practice. Of course I have the map off because I find it distracts me from the road and I actually learn the tracks faster without the crutch of the map.

But the 'braking only' line is critical.
I use the braking only line, too, and can't imagine not using it. I just don't have the time and patience to learn all of the tracks at this point, maybe 10 or so years ago I could have but it just isn't in the cards these days..

The nice thing is that the line is conservative and in some places just flat-out wrong (Maple Valley is one example) so it still pays to learn the tracks.

Really it boils down to using the track map on the first few laps. With that you honestly don't need a braking line. I race with all assists off and there are plenty of new tracks in the game. I'm getting consistently good times in all races. Going in "blind" on a new track I just use the first lap, the track map, and past experience, to set my brake points and hit them on subsequent laps/races.

Rodster · Post by **Rodster** » Mon Nov 02, 2009 11:57 pm

Hey fellas I just discovered the missing side interior cams. You have to push up on the right analog stick and hold it, then move the stick left and right and you'll find the left/right interior cams. No such luck for the rear view.

fletcher21 · Post by **fletcher21** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 6:02 pm

Loving the game so far, besides a few small issues with it. One thing that really killed the fun for me at first was the load times. I fixed that by loading the game to the HD, and playing off the HD. It cuts the load times almost in half! I am dominating fools in my 94 Civic hatch.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 6:48 pm

Load times are still a b*tch in this game, even off the hard drive. Its the one thing that's hurting the game for me.

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 8:28 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:Load times are still a b*tch in this game, even off the hard drive. Its the one thing that's hurting the game for me.

I agree about the load times. I have the game on my HDD as well. I actually timed load times off the disc versus off the HDD and they are about the same as far as the loading of tracks. Despite the less than fast load times I am still loving the game. I am approaching level 40 now and am enjoying the game this far in even more than when I started.

fletcher21 · Post by **fletcher21** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 8:49 pm

Level 40? Damn. What does it go up to level wise? I just hit level 8. It's crazy how good the cars are you get for leveling up. I just got an Is-F for hitting level 8. I noticed a potential gamebreaker problem. In the career races, it always turns out to be a 3 or 4 man race. There are 3 good cars (plus yourself) and then there are 4 other cars that are totally outclassed and don't even stand a chance. Does this continue throughout the game? I have been winning most races by at least 6 seconds, which is not really fun since once I pass the guy in 1st I just start to pull away like Michael Schumacher.

GB_Simo · Post by **GB_Simo** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 8:59 pm

fletcher21 wrote:I have been winning most races by at least 6 seconds, which is not really fun since once I pass the guy in 1st I just start to pull away like Michael Schumacher.

You've put the AI on Hard in your difficulty settings, right? I accidentally ran the first few events on Medium, believing they were already set to Hard for some reason. If you're on Hard, winning races by that margin and your car hasn't got a huge PI advantage on the competition, I'd prefer to never race you on Live.

toonarmy · Post by **toonarmy** » Tue Nov 03, 2009 8:59 pm

fletcher21 wrote:Level 40? Damn. What does it go up to level wise? I just hit level 8. It's crazy how good the cars are you get for leveling up. I just got an Is-F for hitting level 8. I noticed a potential gamebreaker problem. In the career races, it always turns out to be a 3 or 4 man race. There are 3 good cars (plus yourself) and then there are 4 other cars that are totally outclassed and don't even stand a chance. Does this continue throughout the game? I have been winning most races by at least 6 seconds, which is not really fun since once I pass the guy in 1st I just start to pull away like Michael Schumacher.

Just wait until you get up to level 25 or so, then you will be getting some sick cars for free after each level. I about s*** bricks when I got a Reventon. I'm not sure where the levels max out, but I noticed after level 50 the achievements cut off for leveling up. As far as the pattern of races you are referring to, yes, it continues to follow that same pattern of only having a couple or few decent cars. It becomes even more apparent in the longer races. I think playing on hard with the assists turned off provides a decent challenge. Medium is way too easy. They should have included a wider variety of CPU difficulty. This is nothing new, though. Forza 2 was the same way. The only way to get realistic racing is going online and hoping you don't get into a race with dickwads thinking it's demolition derby time. I am cool with the AI since I approach this game as more about me versus the track than me versus the other cars.