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'Forza 6: Apex' adds racing wheel support and exits beta
Steering wheel support is essential for any racing simulation that wants to be taken seriously. And now, some four months after launch, the free-to-play Forza Motorsport 6: Apex is finally ready for the pricey -- and extremely precise! -- accessories. The PC game will play nicely with a number of wheels from Logitech and Thrustmaster (including the latter's very nice T300RS). A post on Xbox Wire notes that more wheels will be supported later this month.
Beat the world at 'Forza' and drive away with a Ford Focus RS
Your skills at driving supercars around on Forza's meticulously detailed racetracks could net you a real ride. The top prize in the first-ever Forza Racing Championship is a 2017 Ford Focus RS -- an almost $40,000 and 350 HP hatchback built with pure performance in mind. Sign-ups are open right now for the ESL-ran event, with the first Elite Cup races starting August 8th.
'Forza' NASCAR expansion puts stock cars on the world stage
In an effort to bring even more racing action to Xbox One, Forza Motorsport 6 is adding NASCAR to its lineup of on-track offerings. With an expansion pack, the title gains 24 cars from the 2016 NASCAR season which you can now use to race on the newly added Homestead-Miami Speedway. There's also a new 10-hour NASCAR World Tour Career mode that lets you put the stock cars on the track in the different series around the globe. The game also gets new multiplayer events and improved drafting and spotting functionality to help you maneuver through the field. If you're looking to take it for a spin, the add-on is available today for $20.
Test drive the PC-optimized 'Forza 6: Apex' on May 5th
Last September, Microsoft released Forza Motorsport 6 and Xbox One to feed the ultra-realist gamer's need for meticulously-detailed racing. But back in March, Microsoft announced a re-release of Forza 6 specially crafted to run on Windows 10. On May 5th, Microsoft will unleash Forza Motorsport 6: Apex's open beta for players to enjoy all summer, with a full release at an undisclosed later date.
Playdate: We're going the distance in 'Forza Motorsport 6'
We're going for speed. We're (not) all alone in a time of need. All '90s song references aside, today we're going to race through two hours of the latest entry in Microsoft's racing simulation, Forza Motorsport 6. What's that mean for you? Well, you'll be able to watch me careen around race tracks, cause massive amounts of vehicular carnage and generally turn my Drivatar into everyone's worst nightmare. If that sounds like your type of party, come back here at 6 pm ET / 3 pm PT to witness the glory (Tim's feeble racing skills) and the hilarity (Sean Buckley's amazement at said driving skills).
'Forza 6' arrives September 15th, hails the return of the Ford GT
If fast cars are what you're after when it comes to gaming, Forza Motorsport 6 will pack in plenty of that. The next installment in the series arrives September 15th on Xbox One. When the garage door opens, the game will offer the new Ford GT as a vehicle option before it makes its return to Le Mans in 2016. Heck, Microsoft and Ford even lowered one from the ceiling at the Xbox press event to celebrate. Turn 10, the studio behind Forza, says this release is "the most beautiful, technically advanced" game it's ever built. You can bet we'll be looking to put that claim and the game's 24-car multiplayer option to the test at the end of the summer. Check here for everything happening at E3 2015!
Fanatec has a solution for using its pricey Xbox 360 racing wheels on the One
One of the biggest hassles of upgrading to a new gaming console is that by and large almost all of the accessories and peripherals you bought for the previous one are incompatible. High-end racing-wheel outfit Fanatec isn't going to leave Xbox gamers high and dry, though. The outfit's recently announced that it'll soon release a "Fanatec wheel base" that allows you to plug in its existing lines of pricey Xbox 360 racing wheels, shifters and pedal sets into it and use them with Microsoft's newest gaming system. The outfit's also apparently closed a licensing deal with Redmond to bring new racing gear to the Xbox One as well. Considering the newly released Forza Horizon 2 and the upcoming The Crew and Project Cars, this should all be good news to virtual gearheads. Here's to hoping a company steps up and does something similar for PlayStation 4 owners soon, too.
Forza Horizon 2 rewards series loyalty with sweet rides
Experienced Forza players will hit the ground running in Forza Horizon 2 this month, as Turn 10 Studios will carry on with the series' loyalty program introduced last year. Announced just over a year ago, Forza Rewards hands the keys to some sweet digital vehicles to players that raced in past entries in the series, and the upcoming game will offer up to five cars to returning drivers. Forza Rewards gives players points based on their in-game actions, starting with Forza 2 on. Earning points for owning a large number of cars in Forza 5, for example, will add to players' point totals and increase their reward level tier. Upon starting Forza Horizon 2 for the first time, tier two and above loyalty program participants will receive one car right away, depending on their reward tier. The five in-game cars include the 2011 BMW 1 Series M Coupe (Tier 2), the 2013 Viper GTS (Tier 3), the 2015 Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 (Tier 4), the 2014 Local Motors Rally Fighter (Tier 5) and the 2013 McLaren P1 (Tier 6). Forza Horizon 2 will launch on September 30 for Xbox One and Xbox 360. Microsoft also issued a launch trailer for the game today, found after the break. [Image: Microsoft]
Hot Wheels Forza 5 DLC brings cars, lacks bendy orange roads
Sometimes it's hard to find an excuse to play with the toys and properties you enjoyed as a kid. However, Forza 5 is about to reunite you with your long-lost Hot Wheels collection. Well, sort of. A new car pack, brought to you by Hot Wheels, is now available to download for $9.99. While this Forza 5 DLC doesn't feature 1:64 scale die-cast vehicles or sweet volcano jumps, it does feature Lamborghini's 50th anniversary car - the 2013 Lamborghini Veneno - along with nine other sweet rides. Seven of the 10 roadsters are new to the Forza franchise, and you can check out the full list after the break:
Turn 10 pops the hood on Forza 5, bolts on Bondurant DLC
The latest passel of fancy cars to join Forza Motorosport 5 have arrived, in the form of the "Bondurant" car pack DLC. Available from Xbox Live at a price of $10 (or, at no additional charge for those who've purchased the Forza 5 Season Pass), the pack includes ten different vehicles. Highlights include a 2013 Bentley Continental GT Speed, a 1970 Dodge Coronet Super Bee, and the 2013 Mazda MX-5 Cup, a car that is far more entertaining than its modest price would suggest. The crown jewel of this DLC pack is the above-pictured 2014 Corvette Stingray wrapped in exclusive Bondurant racing livery. Like most American muscle cars, the Stingray may not cling to corners, but it does go very, very fast, and you'll look supremely cool when sliding off the side of the track. Named for the famous Bondurant racing school in Arizona, this DLC's debut also offers Turn 10 a great excuse to plug that 60-acre facility. According to Turn 10, the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving will soon introduce a course titled the "Forza Motorsport Grand Prix Road Racing Class" for those gamers who want to transfer their virtual skills to real-world asphalt. [Image: Microsoft]
Forza Horizon 2 is the next exclusive racer on Xbox One and 360
Now that Forza Motorsport 5 is dishing out realistic driving, it's time for the Xbox-exclusive series to swing back to open-world arcade racing: meet Forza Horizon 2. While the announcement at IGN doesn't show much (unless you really like box shots), it promises a few big upgrades for both Xbox 360 and Xbox One gamers, including a weather system that hasn't been in previous Forza titles. You'll also get an adaptation of Forza 5's Drivatar technology that should deliver slightly more authentic (read: mistake-prone) AI opponents based on your friends. Naturally, Xbox One players will get a visual upgrade at the same time. You'll have to wait until the fall to give Horizon 2 a spin, but we suspect that Microsoft and developer Playground Games will have more to say about it at E3 next week.
Forza Horizon 2 arrives this fall for Xbox One, Xbox 360 [Update]
Microsoft has announced Forza Horizon 2 for Xbox One and Xbox 360, IGN reported. The racing game follows the 2012 spin-off Forza Horizon, and is primarily being developed by the same studio, Playground Games. Forza Horizon 2 is expected to launch this fall. The next-gen racer will seemingly be set in southern Europe and bases its events around a music festival. It's the second game in the series to launch on Xbox One, the first being Turn 10's Forza 5, which launched with the console in November. Update: To clarify, the Xbox One version of Forza Horizon 2 is being developed by Playground Games, whereas the Xbox 360 version is in development by Sumo Digital, creator of Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed. Playground is collaborating with Turn 10 for the next-gen game, sharing some tech and staff to develop the game. [Image: Microsoft]
Forza Motorsport 5 gets three free Hondas in Legends pack
Though Forza Motorsport 5 is an undeniably brazen example of modern microtransactions, developer Turn 10 does occasionally offer new content to players free of charge. For example, the new Honda Legends Car Pack. Created to celebrate the real-world unveiling of Honda's 2014 Civic Si, the Honda Legends Car Pack includes three cars: the aforementioned Civic, the 1984 Honda Civic CRX Mugen and the 1994 Honda Prelude Si. "All three of these cars represent the excitement and pure driving spirit that embodies Honda cars," says the Pack's description on the official Forza 5 website. Acquiring the Honda Legends Car Pack is as easy as finding and downloading the DLC on the Xbox One marketplace. As is standard for Forza 5 DLC, this will introduce the three cars into the game's dealership, where they can be purchased using your race winnings or by exchanging real-world cash for the requisite number of tokens. Still, it's free to get the pack inside the dealership. [Image: Turn 10 Studios]
Microsoft adds £5 to the price of exclusive digital Xbox One games in the UK
All that turmoil deciding whose next-gen colors you were going to wear might have come down to one thing: which one has the launch titles, or exclusives you want. Imagine, then, that the very thing that won you over, came back to bite you. For early adopting Xbox One fans in the UK, that's exactly what's happening. Dead Rising 3, Forza Motorsport 5 and Ryse are all listed on Xbox Live for a fiver more than they cost at launch (£49.99, up from £44.99). At time of writing, it's not all titles that will see you short of a deep sea diver, but Microsoft has confirmed to VG247 that pricing for "select digital content" has changed since launch, gently reminding us that price and promotions can vary by region. Evidently so.
Director defends Forza 5's slender structure
While the past few Forza Motorsport entries have offered players new packs of additional cars long after each game's debut, Forza 5 takes things to a whole new level. Our largely positive review described the game as enjoyable but anemic, but Forza creative director Dan Greenawalt stands by the team's design choices. In a Shacknews interview, Greenawalt was asked why so much content appears to be missing from Forza 5 while developer Turn 10 Studios continues to promote upcoming DLC additions that should flesh out the racing simulation. "Forza Motorsport 5 is actually the largest racing game ever delivered at the launch of a console, by a long shot," Greenawalt states. "In fact, it would be huge even by second holiday standards. As mentioned above, it is bigger than Forza 2, which was delivered a year and half after the launch of the Xbox 360. It also has more car diversity than any previous Forza Motorsport; by including open wheel race cars and track toys like the KTM X-Bow and the Ariel Atom on top of the diversity that took us years to build up across multiple iterations on the Xbox 360. "Moreover, we've defined an uncompromised quality bar for new generation racing games in both car and track detail and immersion - all while, delivering unprecedented size," Greenawalt says. "Regarding DLC, we have found that 10 cars a month is the fastest we could create "just in time" content. Just like in Forza Motorsport 4, we are planning to add as many as 10 cars a month to Forza Motorsport 5. It takes more than six months to build every car. Delivering cars in monthly packs allows us to keep the game new and fresh for those that are interested." When asked why Forza 5 is missing the iconic Nürburgring track, Greenawalt explains that the new graphics engine in Forza 5 necessitates that all tracks be rebuilt from scratch. While other famed racetracks like Spa were able to make an appearance in Forza 5, there just wasn't time to reproduce the lengthy, complex Nürburgring for the new engine, so instead of porting low-resolution content from Forza 4, the team opted to leave the track absent. "Expect more news on tracks in Forza Motorsport 5 in the near future," Greenawalt added.
Every car in Forza 5 is half off this weekend, credit payout increasing in December
Turn 10 Studios is discounting every car in Forza Motorsport 5 by 50 percent from Friday, November 29 through Sunday, December 1 following community feedback for the game. The developer is also offering VIP members the 2013 Lotus E21 grand prix car for free and the 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO for those that already purchased the E21. Turn 10 is also changing the game's economy by "dramatically increasing the credit payout available to all Forza players" in the month of December through its Forza Rewards loyalty program. The developer notes that the higher a player's tier level is before Sunday, the better the rewards will be, so those that spend extra time in Forza 5 in the coming days will see a nicer payout next month. Additionally, the developer admitted that the 1,250 in-game credits packed with the limited edition version of the game isn't enough to buy any car in the game as advertised. To make up for it, limited edition owners will soon be able to download an on-disc car of their choice for free. Owners of the LaFerrari launch car pack or the Forza 5 car pass will also receive the 2013 LaFerrari for free.
Microsoft's 12-minute Xbox One demo shows off the dashboard, Kinect and apps
With only two weeks until the Xbox One hits the shelves, Microsoft's marketing blitz continues with a 12-minute video demonstration of its next-gen console in action. Xbox executives Yusuf Mehdi and Marc Whitten highlight some of Kinect's new features, showing how users can switch to their personalized dashboard using just their voice, or use its 1080p camera to engage in a live Skype video call. We're also treated to some real-world examples of the Xbox One's snappy multitasking features, which we first saw in the "Meet Xbox One" video late last month, reinforcing the speed at which the system can switch between the dashboard and a paused game (in this case Forza Motorsport 5). These features, of course, are just a few of the several fascinating abilities we got to witness this week -- you can digest it all right here.
Monthly DLC car packs return in Forza 5
Turn 10 Studios has revealed plans to continue its tradition of releasing bursts of exotic (and ironically mundane) vehicles each month in Forza Motorsport 5. As the studio points out, Forza 4 saw 12 downloadable, monthly car packs. It's unknown how many Forza 5 will receive, but we do know that each pack will include 10 cars, all of which will feature full Forzavista support, allowing players to pop the hood or check the interior in detail. Though pricing information for these DLC packs is currently unknown, Turn 10 has also revealed a "Car Pass" promotion that will allow players to purchase the first six planned additions all at once. There's currently no information on how much this Pass might cost, but that should be appearing soon, alongside more information on "a very special inclusion in the first add-on pack for Forza Motorsport 5."
Forza 5 developer unveils 17 new cars
To kick off its weekly Forza Motorsport 5 Showroom promotional effort, Turn 10 Studios has unveiled a swath of new rides. Some of these have been seen before, but today marks their official announcement as part of the game. The focus of this week's Showroom is on three sports cars that should be familiar to fans of virtual racing: the 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X GSR, the 2009 Zonda Cinque Roadster and the 2002 Nissan Skyline GT-R V-Spec II. Turn 10 offers in-game screenshots and detailed descriptions of each of these rides at its official Forza 5 blog, so if you've somehow never driven these arguably commonplace cars in the virtual world, that would be a good place to hone your gearhead knowledge. The remaining 14 cars in today's reveal don't get the full description treatment, but are instead simply listed by name.
Forza 5 Limited Edition is $80, available for pre-order
Forza Motorsport 5 has a special Limited Edition version that is available for pre-order now for $80, Microsoft announced. The special edition includes a five car pack with the 2011 Audi RS 3 Sportback, 2012 Aston Martin Vanquish, 2013 Ford M Shelby Mustang GT500, 2013 McLaren P1 and the 2013 SRT Viper GTS. Limited Edition owners also gain VIP membership, which grants access to exclusive multiplayer events, "2x player reward acceleration" and yet another five-car pack, which includes the 1965 Shelby Cobra 427 S/C , 1987 RUF CTR Yellowbird, 1991 Mazda #55 787B, 2011 Ford F150 SVT Raptor and the 2011 Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. The Forza 5 Limited Edition pack includes window decals and $10 worth of car tokens for use in the game. Those that opt for the $60 Day One Edition of the game will receive a three-car pack, which includes the 2010 Audi TT RS Coupe, 2013 Ford Focus ST and 2011 Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera cars. Limited Edition owners also receive those three cars when Forza 5 launches this November on Xbox One.
