Xbox One first 4+hours with forza5.

[sc_shark]

a semi review thus far... take it with a grain of salt as i am still early i the game..

controller:
feels good.. the rumble in the triggers can be suprise but after about 5 times you tend to not realize it. the percentage of throttle/break is decent. you can follow it on screen.. i think rumbles in the turn stick would prove more usefull than one could think. it would give a better indication of starting to slide..

graphics:
look good. colors are crisp cars look good. a few of the old 90's jdm cars still have the horrendious brick color tail lights where the newer cars have much crisper tail setup.. the garage screen vs gameplay looks about the same.. obviously the light and such play a party in the game.

in game speed:
take this with a grain of salt. slow speed turning tends to feel uncontrolled.. say your doing 45mph and exiting a turn.. the car tends to want to step out where it should feel more planted. general power vs speed seem to be on par.. under powered cars tend to not be able to push a higher mph. the cars tend to want to push or 4wheel slide when entering a corner at a medium speed.

in game cornering:
again with a grain of salt. higher speed tornering even on entery level cars tends to be very twitchy.. i started with a subaru brz/ toyota ae86.. its a low power car and is known for handing. even at 50mph the car seems twitchy but at 70 it seems to feel decent.. the line between a clean corner and a poor corner is very grey area. i will explane below
you can follow the suggested line and be on point follow it and get a perfect turn.. all great.. you can be 3-5feet off and still get the perfect trurn great... you can enter on point and leave off point faster and get no good or perfect turn... you can be off point on entery but leave on point faster and again 0 good or perfect.. you can come in super fast and slide thru the corner on the brink of copletely loosing it and still get a perfect... this is where things are grey.
the suggested line in racing is not always the fastest. which i feel if you used your split times entering and exiting said corner could be better than the program in place. it works but if you want a good driviatar your going to have to setup corners how the game has suggested

passing:
again a grey area. in the lower levels the ideal passing line is not always the inside line.. actually i tend to stay off the inside or fast line because the cars tend to stack up in turns.. once you get in the top 1/4 the cars tend to slow down in the corner and force you to make un necessary break check... the driviatar's tend to be very bumpy and also tend to fight a good bit..
you can usually pass on the outise much cleaner and exit faster in the lower levels.. a few o he guys have said once you get around driver level 10 things change

driviatar:
wow they are agressive... most tend to bump and turn into you on the back of the pack. they also tend to be slow and take odd lines dip and dive in corners. once you get in the top 6 they seem to be much more racer oriented... some of the driviatars make some really odd mistakes which can be fun when battling and following hard... it can and has set me up to make the same mistake. this will take some gettin use to whne in a decent battle. i have followed a few into the kitty litter wide open tryng to beat them to a turn and just not paying attention lol... i have also seen afew try and take a faster route and just blow it.. so they do make mistakes and dont follow in progression like other racing games.

placing:
this is something i like.. its in grouping.. top 3 places are gold it dosnt matter if you place 1st or 3rd its the same money.. so your not racing for 1st place but you are racing to fit in that group. the first place guy seems to be in the top 25% of the guy's who have run that track in that car group/class.. this leave 2ns,3rd and your fighting positions. i have gotten 1st at a few tracks and it placed me like 635 in the world on that track and car group generally i am 3rd or 2nd at this point.


so far i have 2 cars... the subaru brz and a toyota mr2 i have completed 1 whole class if 16 races and am a good 6 in my second series.
you dont win cars upon completing a series and i have yet to really get anyting for being a vip member.
overall its a god game. i enjoy it... it is a fresh change from cars lined up but cantwait till i ge to level 10 or so where they say it goes into driviatar mode and not pre programed lower racers. i tend to not like how i play now as much as i would like.. i dont like bumping people and it happens at this point.

if i really wanted to push the game and see how it races i should get into hot laping and try and get in the top 10% on a few tracks in a class that i enjoy. it would really let me see how the suggest lines are and when i set a car up to grip if it really does. this is what i ended up doing on forza4 more than class racing. i my try it tonight but would rather not get deep into that aspect of the game yet.

 

[sc_shark]

so i got way from circute/career mode and did a few rivals/hot lapping... in my c class setup i am in the top 1% and placed 14th with my car. this was after 45 minutes of tinkering with the parts.. not touching any settings at this point.
this time was posted with all assists and auto trans on minus brake assist.. so i could potentially drop a few assists and push it harder. but im not sure it will pay off as much as tinkering with settings. then ext closest guy with the same assists on is about 7 places above me.
i could proably get another half a second out of the car with tire pressure and sway bar adjustments.. not sure i could get much out of dampning/rebound... that half a second would put me somewhere around 5-8th place depending on my time split. its just half a second is allot of time to make up..


i started off with all suspension modds and seen where the car got me.
i than went back to stock
than went full on tiregrip.
i seen which make the car faster overall. and that left me with going after power. with the leftover class skills.


what will be interesting is how the hot lapping will translate over to the driviatar.

 

[thedoodseven]

I've never ever played Forza in my life. I've mostly played Burnout, Gran Turismo and Need for Speed. So, if I ever decide to go start my journey into the world of Forza, is playing Forza 5 a good way to start? Or do I play the others first before this one?

 

[sc_shark]

if you have an xb1 get forza5... its a good game.

 

[Anomaly0302]

Same here, Never tried Forza. I always had a thing for Need for Speed and Gran Turismo. Are there other racing games available? Is Forza a good game to start with? I'm looking forward to seeing more games and I'll check online about Forza. I'll get my own Xbox One by next month so I'm really excited.

 

[Kerosene31]

I've noticed simulation steering seems way too touchy. I switched to normal and am doing much better. I want to play around with some tuning too, I wonder if the default tunes are terrible. I know in default Forza 4 tunes the suspension was way too stiff, causing the cars to feel skittish like they do now.

-I love the feel of the triggers. You can really feel when the brakes are locking up.

-I'm not sure I'm sold on the drivitar AI. They seem tough to race side by side with at times and still will slam on the brakes for no reason.

Overall I'm loving it. The visuals are amazing.

 

[TheMartinG]

sc_shark have you ever played a forza game before?

the suggested racing line, as you said isnt going to be the fastest, or the best for every player. However it is the best average line. If you have a group of players with average skill sets, whoever sticks to the line will usually win. If you have one highly skilled player vs average players, the line will mean nothing to the skilled player. If you have a group of highly skilled players, whoever sticks to the line will usually come out ahead.

say your doing 45mph and exiting a turn.. the car tends to want to step out where it should feel more planted

have you upgraded your tires yet?

 

[BlackSolaris]

I've never ever played Forza in my life. I've mostly played Burnout, Gran Turismo and Need for Speed. So, if I ever decide to go start my journey into the world of Forza, is playing Forza 5 a good way to start? Or do I play the others first before this one?

Just like those, i guess that it is pretty much the same thing. Just play the last one (even though that Need for Speed had some good games in the past). Some features appear, others disappear, but if you ain't a fan of the series, it won't bother you that much.

 

[TheMartinG]

Just like those, i guess that it is pretty much the same thing. Just play the last one (even though that Need for Speed had some good games in the past). Some features appear, others disappear, but if you ain't a fan of the series, it won't bother you that much.

theres not really a story line in forza so you can always pick up the latest and just play it.

I wouldnt call it "JUST like those". Forza has a much heavier emphasis on physics than burnout and need for speed. They also have no storyline and much less dialogue. No people trying to be cool with forced slang etc. Its actually closest to Gran Turismo but with damage and an amazing paint system

 

[Kerosene31]

I did a little testing and softening the suspensions seems to be a good start to getting the cars to handle well in the corners. The cars they give you in career mode are set up way too stiff.

They also set the tire pressures too high for a short 2-3 lap sprint. Take a pound or two out of all the tires and they'll heat up a little faster and give you better traction.

 

[sc_shark]

sc_shark have you ever played a forza game before?

the suggested racing line, as you said isnt going to be the fastest, or the best for every player. However it is the best average line. If you have a group of players with average skill sets, whoever sticks to the line will usually win. If you have one highly skilled player vs average players, the line will mean nothing to the skilled player. If you have a group of highly skilled players, whoever sticks to the line will usually come out ahead.


have you upgraded your tires yet?

i have been playing forza from the start. i am aware of how it plays. i was just giving an all around review.

 

[cherrygarcia13]

I am concerned about how the final version of the game is actually a downscaled version of the demo that was shown at E3. If you do a search online, you will see that there is noticeable difference in the graphics quality.

I'm also put off by the fact that many of the cars are locked in DLC, which isn't fair considering Forza 4 had so much more cars. Seems to me Turn 10 was rushing this game, hence the drop in quality and the lack of tracks, and still wants to rip off gamers by forcing them to buy DLC. Thank goodness the console is not yet launched in my country, so I can wait until a sort of game + DLC bundle is released next year.

Very disappointed in Turn 10, Forza 5 had so much potential at E3 but it looks very watered down now.

 

[thedoodseven]

if you have an xb1 get forza5... its a good game.

All right, I'll give it a shot. Might like it myself.

Just like those, i guess that it is pretty much the same thing. Just play the last one (even though that Need for Speed had some good games in the past). Some features appear, others disappear, but if you ain't a fan of the series, it won't bother you that much.

I see. All right, maybe I'll give this one a shot. there might be something in it I'll like.

 

[sc_shark]

I am concerned about how the final version of the game is actually a downscaled version of the demo that was shown at E3. If you do a search online, you will see that there is noticeable difference in the graphics quality.

I'm also put off by the fact that many of the cars are locked in DLC, which isn't fair considering Forza 4 had so much more cars. Seems to me Turn 10 was rushing this game, hence the drop in quality and the lack of tracks, and still wants to rip off gamers by forcing them to buy DLC. Thank goodness the console is not yet launched in my country, so I can wait until a sort of game + DLC bundle is released next year.

Very disappointed in Turn 10, Forza 5 had so much potential at E3 but it looks very watered down now.

the dlc thing is well how the industry works. same as cod,bf4,ac4 and most all big title games these days.
with that said. turn 10 has committed heavily in forza5 imo. a working driviatar(was attempted on ps2 with gt) with cloud servers and 1080p 60fps gameplay. it does take some getting use to and this is coming from a car guy.
am i upset about not having 500 cars at launch? ehh not really. i was at first.. i think forza5 is pushing the general gamer to get more into car's (take away the generated leveling) and really the game is quite decent for what it is offering. the game is going to evolve over time and it wont be a rehash next year... i would expect forza5 for me a 2-3yr committed game..... hear is one of the great things... it has the ability to change from its launch game without creating a new game all together.

as for them rushing it.. not so much.. forza5 actually started with forza4 with the autovista(crap) but it was the test bed for the 1080p 60fps.. and the polishing/shading/lighting. things that were not capable with the 360 as gameplay.. they have gone thru and remapped cars,and tracks. i actually think the tracks came out quite bit better.. i have raced on road atlanta and it is a big step up from forza4 on forza5..


my only problem with complaning about next gen launch games and saying well i want a fully finished game+cars+tracks... the developer no longer needs to or has a investment in it.. the suport would not be the same. right now they have monthy events vip events, time trival events.. they are still updating and polishing the game.. tailoring it to how the public is playing.. that is something we have ye to really have in a "racing game" imo. most of the time its need for speed or games like that. they dont need all the tech heavy stuff to take it to the next gen. forza5 does..

 

[thecreed4life]

Nice to hear Forza 5 is good, despite the assumptions I've read about it, like the fact that the DLC is gonna hamper it or the fact that you have to download some portions of it to fully enjoy it. I might get this one. I;ll just wait and see what Forza 5 has in store for all of us. Give us the Porsche!

 

[sc_shark]

well i am still early in the game progression wise but i am a full series down.. i finished the sport compact class tonight. all 88ish races i am going to start the sport gt racing tomorrow next progression.

drivatar sort upsets me now. it took till i got a feel for the game... let me explane a bit and get your feedback if you play.

its still ui based.. so their is no getting around that. it may take what you take into account but the way the packages throws me off. i have not turned difficulty up. and hear is why. i feel the drivitars should negate the hardness of difficulty. they already set racing up where your not racing for 1st place your racing for a grouping.. 1-3rd are same payout. which i am fine with we all make mistakes and no reason to push if your getting payed same amount.

but hear is where drivitar gets to me. they tend to pack up. say 4 general packs of cars. you have generally 2 laps(3 at most right now) to weed your way thru those packs. where most racing games have a progression or general line rivitars follow nothing and tend to stack up on each other. making passing quite hard.. if you race normal or the right way you do have to battle your way up like the game is designed... but if you get tired of playing the game you tend to bump people to get towards the front of the pack. once your in top 4 the racing is nice. they actually tend to race and run decent times.

i cant see difficulty changing this.. its not like easy pairs you with dumb drivers.. its no matching you based on general laps times. it just going to make you fight thru the bs more.. and for only a little pay.. so its not really worth the effort imo.

i will admit my driviatar is not going to do well. one.. i have and keep a small friends list. this keeps me out of races.. i usually only get in 1-3 races per day.. ganing me 3k which is less than wining 1 race. so the pay does nothing for me for my daily log in honestly.

i hate how i play the game now i dont like bumping people and i feel im a bad driver because of it.. i have put 8-10 seconds on the 2nd place cars with a factory tuned car.. this was also something driviatar was suppose to fix. i just hate battling thru the last/mid pack cars to get me in the top5 to enjoy it. now i dont regularly put that much gap but it happens and i am still not in the top 2% of the track times... so that split could be 15++ if really worked towards it.

 

[sc_shark]

the lack of tracks really makes the game feel like a grinding game already.

 

[Shockwave22]

There's just something missing from past forzas in this one

 

[sc_shark]

There's just something missing from past forzas in this one

i dont think its what is missing.. i think its what has been added... mainly the tire sim stuff. once you get into b or a class cars they tend to feel very loose..

but the car count being at 200 ish and them taking some of the memorable non real world tracks away seems to have taken a good bit of content. i do miss maple valley which was a artificial track but was my favorite on the last few forza's..

it just seems that with the track count every race series has the exact same track/count. 15 races same tracks in procession. if its a british car series let keep it in european tracks.

i still play the game and enjoy it but like i said above it feels very grind ish.

 

[Gringo]

I was getting bored with the basic settings also. I've bumped up the driveatar difficulty twice so far and made the braking and accelerating more realistic, and I can assure you it makes a difference. Not necessarily in the back of the pack as far as the bumping. But there are very few times you will put any significant distance between you and the second place car, if you manage to get to first place. It definitely makes things more interesting and gives you bonus credits.

I have to experiment more to see if the driveatars are actually retaliating for me bumping them. It seems if you can manage to get through cleanly they don't tend to hit you as much. Maybe it's just my imagination.

I do agree the lack of tracks is my major gripe. I think I got a new one today. How many are there total? Are they releasing more as DLC?