As a huge Forza supporter since its inception, purchaser of most of the premium versions, I have to say that this is the biggest disappointment I have ever encountered in the franchise. When this terrible version was released in 2023, I thought to myself “It’s buggy, but wow is it pretty, and there are stupid rules all over the place, but I have faith in these Turn10 guys and it’ll be a good game for years to come”. I have been sadly mistaken. I get ready to play a couple of career mode races only to be disappointed by how the nicest stock cars are total pieces of crap to drive and you cannot do anything without maxing the customizations out (basically more and more HPs). I max a car, run through career mode fine, then try out multiplayer with undermatched competition. They can ram me at max speed and I get a penalty for it? Spin out of the race into last place. Cool, that makes a lot of sense… I’ll take a break from the game for a little bit and see what they update next time.
I come back to the game to give it another whirl, read the 2-3 update notes filled with useless features that no one in the community cares about, and load up another car/track/race. Same crap, different day. Ok, let’s see multiplayer at the lowest possible option. I get BLASTED by a A-class car that I have maxed out by a horde of freaking F1 cars that are ineligible? Smart guys there at Turn10 seem to just let whatever they want to happen. It’s like the wild west. Ok, maybe they’ll get something right in the next update or two.
I wait 2 updates this time, and come into the current iteration. I read through another verbose jumble of updates and patches, claim my neat cars to add the bloated garage I already have, and sure enough, it’s worse than it was at launch. Pressing through the crappiness of the car, I gain places, get upgrades, then tap a car for a 2.25 second penalty. Ok, maybe that’s a fluke - let’s rewind and try that corner again… 2.25 sec pen. Baby love-taps are doing crit damage now. Cool. What a joke…
If the Forza franchise plans to continue, you have to part ways with this studio. They are idiots and try to make a “racing simulation” but take actual simulations out of the game because “it’s not pretty”. Hire a company who takes gameplay into consideration over pretty looks. Graphically, this game is impressive, but it’s beyond terrible to consider playing. It’s the first time I have ever removed Forza data from my console or PC, and I must say, the time and effort put into this game makes me laugh hysterically at the content developers and project managers who thought that this was “IT”, the end-all-be-all game for the future. Forza Motorsport may very well die after this game runs its course, and I would be thankful that it happens while mildly sad that it died this way. Invest in your community and not the 50 twelve-year olds that you cater to, because many of us want to play a game that has some resemblance of a replay value, not some pretty game with neat graphics that otherwise is a dog underneath. Thanks for putting lipstick on this pig, Turn10, and may you and your staff find other things to do when your studio shuts down. Spend years trying new things and going away from what made the franchise remarkable while laughing to the bank after ripping off your previously-faithful customer base.
