Forza Motorsport

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Forza Motorsport
Developer(s)	Turn 10 Studios
Publisher(s)	Microsoft Game Studios
Series	Forza Motorsport
Engine	Proprietary
Platform(s)	Xbox
Release date(s)	NA May 3, 2005 PAL May 13, 2005
Genre(s)	Racing
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer
Rating(s)	ESRB: E

Forza Motorsport (pronounced Fortsa Motorsport)is a video game developed by Turn 10 for the Xbox gaming system. It was shipped to stores on May 3, 2005. The word Forza means power in Italian. It's the first installment of the Forza Motorsport series, followed by the Xbox 360 games Forza Motorsport 2 and Forza Motorsport 3.

The cover art features a tuned Acura NSX racing against a tuned Nissan 350Z.

Gameplay

Cars

There are 231 cars in Forza Motorsport ranging from a Honda Civic to supercars such as the Enzo Ferrari and Le Mans race prototypes such as the Audi R8. The cars are separated into 6 classes named D, C, B, A, S and R.

• Class D: Standard production vehicles such as the Ford Focus and Chrysler PT Cruiser GT
• Class C: Sports cars such as the Impreza WRX STi and Lancer Evo VIII
• Class B: Performance cars such as the Porsche Boxster and Ford Mustang
• Class A: High performance cars such as the TVR Tuscan S and Dodge Viper
• Class S: Supercars such as the Enzo Ferrari, Koenigsegg CC8S and Porsche Carrera GT
• Class R: Purpose-built race cars (non-production vehicles) such as the Bentley Speed 8 (These are cars that cannot be customized in any way.)

Each class, except class R, has 4 subclasses with 1 being higher and 4 being lower rated. Upgrading by tuning or buying new parts can move cars between classes except class R (no car can enter or leave class R). There are 3 subcategories of class R:

• R-GT: Racing cars (Grand Touring) such as the Dodge Viper Competition Coupe
• R-GTS: Higher performance race cars such as the Saleen S7R (a racing variant of the S7)
• R-P1: Racing prototypes, mostly LMP's these cars weigh around 900 kg (~2000 lbs) with roughly 450 kW (~600 hp) examples include the Bentley Speed 8 and the McLaren F1 GTR

Like Gran Turismo, each car can be upgraded and tuned with a large number of extras and parts. Upgrades are separated into 3 categories; engine/power, appearance/aerodynamics and chassis/drivetrain. There is a wide range of tuning available including tire pressure (which changes during races due to temperature), down force, gear ratios and limited slip differential.

Damage

Forza is also notable for its ability to realistically model damage to cars, from both a cosmetic and a performance standpoint, which was (and still is) a very impressive feat in terms of acquiring the licenses for the 200+ cars. This changes the way the game is played, in contrast to the Gran Turismo series, as collisions with barriers and other cars will alter the car's handling, top speed and acceleration. More noticeably, spoilers can be knocked off cars, paint can be scraped off and windows can be smashed completely (the front window however can only be shattered). Bumpers can't be knocked off. However, Microsoft did not get permission from car manufacturers to depict cars rolling completely over. They can only be rolled onto their sides.

Customization

One feature is the ability to change the look of your car, from changing the color to applying decals. The tool set is somewhat difficult to use for novices, but when used properly it is possible to create some very striking designs.

Though Microsoft may not have intended it, the community surrounding the game has allowed the decal feature to take on another level of complexity. Through the use of various open-source tools written and made available on the Internet, a user can edit the "decals.bin" file that ships with the game, and insert their own custom decal and vinyls, allowing almost infinite customization. However, this requires the user to own an Xbox that has either been mod-chipped or soft-modded, along with the game being copied onto another media, preferably the Xbox's own internal hard drive. Some people are artistic enough to make their own artistic decals with the customization features in the Apply Decals section.

Circuits

Forza contains a mix of licensed, street, point to point and original circuits. The licensed tracks include Road Atlanta, Silverstone, Laguna Seca, Tsukuba, Road America, and Nürburgring Nordschleife. Furthermore, the game's Blue Mountains Raceway circuit is heavily influenced in track layout, characteristics and backgrounds by Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst. In addition to these, Forza also contains a wide variety of autocross, oval, and drag strip courses.

The longest track included in Forza Motorsport is Nürburgring Nordschleife at 13.04 miles (20.99 km). The longest multiplayer race allowed is 75 laps which would total 978 miles or 1,574 km on the Nordschleife. Eight minutes per lap (with roughly an average speed of 100 mph) would result in a 10 hour race. The distance is equivalent to traveling almost entirely from the Canadian border to the Mexican border via the western coast, and is over 200 miles longer than traveling the entire vertical length of Great Britain (Land's End to John o' Groats).

A similar real annual event took place on the real track until 1983, but has since been held on the shorter Grand-Prix-Strecke course.

Physics engine

One of Forza Motorsport's most-lauded features is its physics engine. Like any racing simulator, Forza Motorsport calculates a car's performance in real time using physical data (for example, the weight of a car's engine, its drag coefficient, etc.). The result is a driving game that many believe matches closely with real life. In 2005, Popular Science magazine tested this effect by inviting a professional race-car driver and an amateur car enthusiast to drive identical cars on an identical track in both Forza Motorsport and the real world. Each driver's track times matched closely from his performance on the real track and in virtual reality.

One can analyze data of the car's telemetry real time while racing. The telemetry option shows various technical and mechanical viewpoints in which a driver can correct his driving skills in the highest professional manner. Drivers/Players can get intricate technical know how in how a super car behaves while in a race.

However, the game's physics engine tends to understate the oversteer effect of some vehicles in stock form.

Reception

Forza Motorsport's debut was both a commercial and critical success. It sold over 1 million copies worldwide^{[citation needed]} and received rave reviews from such media outlets as 1UP.com, IGN, Eurogamer and more.

The game was also featured in the June 2004 issue of Popular Science.

External links

• Official Xbox.com game page
• Official website