Tame mechanical beasts in Forza Motorsport 7 - My review

There is so much to do in the new Turn 10 game that dozens of hours are needed. But more than quantity, it's the quality that drives players to stay for another race.

When driving at 250 km / h at Spa-Francorchamps on a closed night it is impossible for the heart not to beat slightly faster. The pitch and the memories of the track that we have been creating predominate. Each curve is almost a leap of faith - not the fear of failure, but the anxiety that is accumulating to the point of the fingers that hold the command. And on top of the Eau Rouge, the temporary relief of yet another passageway with the entire car. Long hours before he had started playing Forza Motorsport 7 on Xbox One.

Developed by Turn 10 Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios, the driving simulator is one of the biggest bets of the Redmond house for 2017. When we begin our career as a driver, after choosing whether we want to be represented digitally by a female or male figure , starts the journey that will take our career by racing around the globe (26 locations), by collecting new cars, by letting the car passion flow through countless memorable moments.

The career is divided into six different divisions, each with several competitions. Continue playing and unlock SP to move to the next. As each encompasses several tests, it is a competition with remarkable longevity. And when they finally reach the end of the last category, the game has one last surprise in the sleeve: they are unlocked even more competitions scattered by the several divisions. There are dozens of hours until they get here, over forty in my case.

An effort is clearly made so that these long hours do not reach saturation prematurely. To do this, there are several types of evidence ranging from traditional races, one-on-one tests, to overcoming a number of cars before the checkered flag, passing through porticos scattered along the track and even reaching a determined score by knocking down bowling pins.

Many of these special events are designated as Showcase and help diversify the gameplay, but above all the mood of the player. This fight against stagnation is also achieved because most tests impose restrictions on cars that can be used. They are utilities, trucks, ATVs, touring cars, Hot Rods, NASCAR and rally cars, Formula E cars, classic F1 (McLaren or Ferrari) and current (Nico Hülkenberg Renault in the most advanced division). In addition, there are proofs for prototypes, for P2 and P1, the unmistakable cars that participate in the endurance events, such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Of course many of these most appealing classes appear in the second half of the career, but do not think that at the beginning the competition is only with cars that are used to seeing everyday. There is a variety and motivation to continue the investment of time in the long term. The game tastes good. Once finished, some of the unlocked races are clearly a reward: a test with the Lamborghini Veneno and another with the eternally beloved Ferrari F40, 250 miles on Le Mans with a Porsche 919, 125 miles on the Nürburgring with a Honda Civic equal to what it is piloted by Tiago Monteiro in the WTCC, among others.

As you probably guessed, there are plenty of cars to add to your garage - more than 700 seconds from the garage. In Forza Motorsport 7 there are five levels of cars and in the beginning can only buy cars from the lowest. Participating in races entitles you - in addition to SP - CP, the game currency. However, each vehicle you buy increases your CR until they level up, thereby unblocking access to restricted vehicles at higher levels.

In practice, in addition to having to upgrade SP to access new divisions of the championship, they also have to join CP to buy the cars that are not awarded with victories in certain events, and also CR, which unlocks the "privilege" of being able to buy the vehicles. This makes them, for example, unable to play thirty minutes and buy a McLaren F1 or an Audi R18.

Another new feature of Forza Motorsport 7 is the Prize Crates. Instead of just investing cash in cars, the game features these mystery boxes that start at 20,000CR and can reach 300,000CR at the time this text is written. Its content is a surprise composed of several elements given to luck and not to expertise. New Cars, Racing Equipment, Badges and Mods.

The main issue with this system is related to the last type of awards, the Mods. They are cards that can be used in the races that allow it and that increase the percentage of experience or money received. Most Mods ask the player for something on the track, such as making the best course curves, making clean passes. Other Mods change the conditions of the race itself: play with the ABS off, drive only with the inner chamber or without the line indicating the trajectory and the braking points on the track, etc.

It is understood that this wants to try to diversify the gameplay, however, the act of the rewards being attributed by luck and not skill clashed a little with the spirit of the series. At the moment, the Prize Crates are bought with money from the game itself, but the question remains whether the producer will not open the door to microtransactions paid for with real money, which certainly would not do well with the fan community.

In what really matters, that is, when we have the front wheel and miles ahead, Forza Motorsport 7 is excellent. The gameplay varies depending on the machine we are driving, it responds to the skill we have and we are improving with passing the tests. Throughout this stay countless times I had to adjust my playing style, relearning the braking distances and the way a particular vehicle reacts to the curved insertion.

Moreover, this refining of the behavior of the car and, consequently, my own disposition, was a catalyst for moments, not only of total concentration, but of fun on the track. This is also associated with the tracks where he competed without leaving the couch - the Silverstone, Suzuka or Circuit of the Americas chains are like a ballet with rubber sneakers.

Those who excel in one class may not be excellent at all, leading to challenge and learning. Brakes in which we stay on the brakes until the last second while the discs go incandescent, long curves in which the back of the car begins to lose the battle against the physics, in fact, it feels that Forza Motorsport 7 was thought and tuned to the smallest detail.

And none of this is synonymous with a simulator just for those who know how to play, such as Assetto Corsa or even Project Cars 2. There are several parameters of the difficulty that can be adjusted, including the Drivatars Artificial Intelligence, which assists you want connected, and the already mentioned virtual line that indicates when they should lock and what is the best trajectory. Also, if you want, there is the option of pressing a button and rewinding what went wrong, retrying that curve or that collision until the snub is avoided. Are they veterans? Turn it all off and the game adapts.

I have already mentioned a few tracks among the three dozen tracks that the game includes, but there are two that deserve a few more lines: Dubai and Rio de Janeiro. They are the perfect case for challenging strokes, which contain points where the minimal lack of timing spoils the section, but which when run well are extremely rewarding. Of course, when the vehicle is transformed into a temporary pinball, passion is scarce, but, as with almost everything in this Forza, dedication improves performance; dedication enhances players as pilots.

The quality of the time I spent on the tracks is inseparable from the technical department of the work. The engines are well represented sonorously, but it is the graphics that stands out. The digital representations of the tracks, many of which are part of several world championships, are faithful to what we usually see on television, but the pinnacles of this department are car modeling and weather effects.

The modeling because it puts copies of dream cars, yes, but because piloting them using the pilot's perspective, that is, with one of the two inner chambers, is an accentuate of immersion. Odometers work, watches show real time, brushes and mirrors blow with the wind, the materials used in each model are represented: they are exact replicas ranging from the cheapest model to Formula 1, to Lamborghini, to the Lamborghini. Ferrari and Porsche.

The weather changes the way the races are played, but above all they provide stunning moments for the iris. The rain that appears in the middle of a race leaves the raindrops sliding through the windscreen, the wet and mirrored asphalt adds a layer of challenge. This together with the excellent light system, makes it an environment that transports us momentarily to those places.

If all this does not come, there are still complementary and secondary modes. Split screen to measure talents with friends and family on the same television, Free to Play mode where you can try out tracks and cars by defining your own rules. And of course, a multiplayer component that serves to compete against other flesh and blood players scattered around the world. The tests I participated in did not have any problem of latency, and mention also that the Online Leagues will be added "briefly". And speaking of features that are not yet available, the Auction House has not yet opened and the Forzathon events did not start with the launch of the game.

Forza Motorsport 7 is a digital driving compendium. However written, there will always be more lines about another feature, such as the system of approval, which does not now allow a certain car to exceed the limits of the class. That is, they can improve the cars with parts, but without exceeding what determines the logic that the car should compete against their peers.

Even after all these hours, there is the will to return, to master another and another track, to continue to invest time, because there is this motivation, even if it is to drive again in the pitch or to see the amber of the sun reflected after a rain had left the tar to shine. It remains to be seen how Turn 10 will deal with the issue of microtransactions when the dust of the launch settles; remains to know if you have the wisdom to not ruin what is at this time an excellent racing game.

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