Tear around real world tracks in your favourite muscle car; or feel the pure speed and power of a V8 Supercar. The sequel to the best racing game of the year in 2007 (IGN.com) comes Forza 3; with a myriad of real world cars and photo realistic tracks from around the world this game is set to drive motorheads crazy!

For those who are unfamiliar with the Forza series it is basically a realistic driving simulator with over 400 fully customisable cars from 50 manufacturers and over 100 tracks from around the world.

Gameplay

The gameplay is nothing new for a driving game; effectively you race against other drivers and depending on your placing you gain credits which are used to level your cars up and to spend on upgrades. However this is no arcade racer where you add a Level 2 Nitro pack; the game is heavily customisable. You can add a huge array of parts and upgrades to all the cars and it is important to get a balance between elements such as handling and power for your car to really perform on the track.

A welcome addition from Forza Motorsport 2 is the Auto Upgrade tool. In Forza 2 the upgrades and tuning were left solely for the player to decide; for those of us who are not professional mechanics and race drivers it was difficult to know without quite a lot of research how to have our cars setup. In this game the Auto Upgrade tool allows players who just want to get the best out of their car with the credits they have that very opportunity. Players can select this in between races and the tool will automatically suggest upgrades and parts based on the current setup and the player’s bank balance. This is great if you don’t want to put the time into customisation and just want to get out there and race. However I have always found tuning my own General Lee so it’s not so much of a dog to get round corners very satisfying; but the option to do it automatically is a good move from the developers who will likely get a bigger crowd interested in the game without such a steep learning curve.

The races are organised into Tournaments and are placed onto your calendar so you need to be sure you have a car which can compete before beginning. Over the course of the game you will get certain Manufacturers taking notice of you and offering you new vehicles and discounts on upgrades; so it’s always useful to make an impression by placing well. Unfortunately my “ram people from all sides” driving style doesn’t add any sort of bonus to this...

To go along with the customisation options available there are the great array of paints, vinyl and decals which can help you add some personal flair to your collection of exotic cars. I remember this element was one of my favourite from Forza 2 where I spend hours creating a realistic replica of the General Lee. The added bonus of being a vehicular Picasso is the opportunity to sell your designs and the vehicles to real players in the Marketplace to earn some much deserved credit to spend on more cars and customisations. This can be one of the best ways to earn credits in the game as I used to make around 500,000 credits per General Lee I sold which was much more than the 6000 or so from winning a Tournament. So for those of you who have a creative streak this can be an easy way to earn some coin in game.

The driving itself is as always very good; depending on the car. As you would expect from a simulator all the cars handle differently and have their own quirks. Whether you are driving a racing spec Ferrari or a rear end heavy Saleen Mustang your driving style is going to change as you swap between cars to win different classes of Tournaments. The usual driving assists such as Assisted Braking Systems and Traction Control; however they have added some extra assists for those just getting into the world of racing simulators. Such as an Auto Braking assist which automatically applies the brakes if you enter a corner too fast; definitely a useful assist for those of us who think we are invincible when it comes to corners.

Another addition which is being seen in many new racers is the Rewind function. No longer will you need to start over an entire race when you come into a hairpin too fast trying to overtake on the inside and fly off into a sand trap. The Rewind feature is available at any time during a race and there is no limit to the amount of times it can be used or how far back you rewind. To me this will save some frustration which has been present in most racers.

Graphics and Sound

Forza Motorsport 3 is nothing short of stunning when it comes to graphics; the tracks are set in photorealistic and alive landscapes that have real depth. The cars look gorgeous and have been improved since Forza 2 with 10 times as many polygons per car since the second instalment. The welcome addition of an in car view makes the realism factor that much greater. I also liked the subtle things such as if you are driving an automatic car the driver will not just automatically change gears in the car, the car will actually be auto. Likewise with a manual the driver will change gears as you do. It all just adds to the realism and overall simulation feel.

The sounds are also top notch; hearing the tyres screech as you push the vehicle to the limits on a corner or hearing the whine of a supercharger are very satisfying, especially on a good 5.1 setup. Sounds on the in car view are also quite amazing. I did a few races in the Supercheap Commodore and the bumps and knocks as you hit slight abnormalities on the track can be heard and the level of sound detail is great.

Verdict

For those out there who live to race and love a good racing or driving game then this is no doubt a must have for your collection. For those out there who have stayed away from the simulation racers because you just couldn’t get your head around tuning and customising; Forza Motorsport 3 has added some neat assists and help with upgrades and tuning so you can jump right in a race without being hit with the reality that there is a bit to learn.

The game is amazingly detailed graphics wise and the feeling of driving your dream car at break neck speeds without fear of consequences with your Insurance Company is all round great. The level of customisation, online content and of course multiplayer make this game one that will be played for a long time. If you plan on finishing the career mode alone this is going to take a while.

The only negative I have against the game is that the load times between races are still pretty long and I did become a little impatient when waiting for a few minutes for the next race to load. However if you can stand to wait a little while then the game is more than worth the pricetag.