Forza 2 goes GOLD

[bapenguin]

The demo hit early this morning, and now news comes in that that Forza 2 has Gone Gold.
Speeding onto store shelves across the nation on May 29, “Forza Motorsport 2” is set to raise the bar for next-generation racing simulator games.http://farm1.static.flickr.com/207/492465921_83a51047b5_m.jpg

Until then, eager racing fans can download the playable demo starting today, giving them the opportunity to test-drive 24 of the game’s 300-plus cars and take an advance look at the single-player experience.

With the game running at an astounding 60 frames per second, supporting true force feedback with the Xbox 360™ Wireless Racing Wheel and incorporating rumble functionality with the Xbox 360 Wireless Controller, “Forza Motorsport 2” will offer amazing realism and depth, showcasing more than 300 car models from the world’s leading manufacturers on 12 of the most renowned tracks on the globe.

From the creative minds at Turn 10 Studios, “Forza Motorsport 2” is the game that offers something for every type of racing and car enthusiast, such as optional driving assists for the novice and gameplay options for the serious car aficionado, which include the ability to tune, trade, paint and collect players’ favorite cars. Thanks to Xbox LIVE, players can share and sell their custom creations on the “Forza Motorsport 2” online Auction House and experience an impressively accurate simulation, putting their performance-tuned rides to the test against the best the online world has to offer. “Forza Motorsport 2” will be widely available at retailers nationwide on May 29 for an estimated retail price of $59.99.

Our hands on preview can be found Here (http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26539&highlight=forza).

Screenshots can be found Here (http://www.evilavatar.com/images/previews/image.php?image=www.evilavatar.com/images/previews/forza2/MultiCar_05.jpg) and Here (http://www.thegamersgallery.com/image.php?sid=1031).

[Serapth]

19 days... :(


Too long, too long.

[KingGorilla]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?

[agentgray]

Holy cow. XBLA games, Forza, Crackdown content, and the spring update makes me a very happy 360 player.

Anyone grab the demo yet?

[Syrinx]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?

I finally broke down and bought one just for this game.

[51|RandoM]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?

I'm not going to buy a wheel just for the 360. Hopefully the ongoing talks with Logitech bear some fruit so that I can buy one wheel for all of my platforms instead of paying the microsoft tariff on peripherals.

Those USB ports could be a hell of a lot more useful, Microsoft...

[crashedout]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?

If there is a new package with Forza-2 I will buy it.

[phantomhitman]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?
no

not to easy to compete with wheels, but I will buy one in a few months.

[KingGorilla]

If there is a new package with Forza-2 I will buy it.
I believe that there will be a package with the wheel and the game, I heard 1-up and the Gamers With Jobs guys talking about that.

And to Ramdom, dirty little secret is that the Logitech G25 Wheel is a lot better than the Microsoft one. Which is really a shame, the Sidewinder sticks were some of the better flight sticks out there, and Logitech played catch up on those 10 years ago. Whether or not Microsoft will allow for third party wheels is another matter, but the G25 has a USB interface.

[Serapth]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?



Me! <Shows Hand>

Bought it as an impulse buy, as a not smoking incentive. Its a good wheel.

[Serapth]

I believe that there will be a package with the wheel and the game, I heard 1-up and the Gamers With Jobs guys talking about that.

And to Ramdom, dirty little secret is that the Logitech G25 Wheel is a lot better than the Microsoft one. Which is really a shame, the Sidewinder sticks were some of the better flight sticks out there, and Logitech played catch up on those 10 years ago. Whether or not Microsoft will allow for third party wheels is another matter, but the G25 has a USB interface.


The G25 costs twice as much though, doesnt it?

[Telefrog]

I'm (hopefully) grabbing the demo now. I started the download and then turned my 360 off to test the "low-power download mode" that was added in the update. The fan kept running and the power light just blinks slowly, so I'm assuming it's working.

I'm curious to see what happened when I get home from work today. Will my 360 have turned off after the download like a good girl, or will I find a super-heated puddle of white plastic on my bookcase?

If I get the 3RL error again, I'm going to be really pissed.

[phantomhitman]

The G25 costs twice as much though, doesnt it?
yes, its $300 retail. You can find it for cheaper, sometimes as low as $260. It is really superior though, from material to feedback to the shifter.

[51|RandoM]

And to Ramdom, dirty little secret is that the Logitech G25 Wheel is a lot better than the Microsoft one. Whether or not Microsoft will allow for third party wheels is another matter, but the G25 has a USB interface.

That was sorta what I was hinting at. The G25 is USB and can be used on ps2, ps3, and pc. If I could use it on 360 too I wouldn't bother looking any further/waiting.

Last thing I read was that it would probably require some circuitry changes in the wheel even if Microsoft and Logitech came to an agreement.

[Ajguy]

Fear not, I tested low power downloading and it works like a charm.

I too have the wheel and was really waiting for this game to show me what it can do (it's implementation in other games left something to be desired). I must say it is fantastic. The feedback from the wheel makes in incredible difference in the driving experience. I found myself instinctively following the force of the wheel to get out of tricky situations. An absolute blast!

[Bingley Joe]

I'm (hopefully) grabbing the demo now. I started the download and then turned my 360 off to test the "low-power download mode" that was added in the update. The fan kept running and the power light just blinks slowly, so I'm assuming it's working.

I did a similar test this morning while getting ready for work. I think you'll be pleased; it worked like a charm (or, as advertised, at least).

After the Forza 2 demo, background downloads is my second favourite feature of the spring update. :)

[Mr.Green]

Just as a show of hands, who has the racing wheel too?
http://www.doctordivotmd.com/img/frames/hand_1.jpg

Lamest use of an image, ever.

That aside, can't wait to try Forza with the Wheel. The game was designed with it in mind as opposed to a patch like with PGR3 (serviceable) and TDU (atrocious).

[Telefrog]

I did a similar test this morning while getting ready for work. I think you'll be pleased; it worked like a charm (or, as advertised, at least).

After the Forza 2 demo, background downloads is my second favourite feature of the spring update. :)

Well, if it works as advertised then I will be a happy man.

I'm just going to be ramped to play Forza 2 tonight!

[Jack B]

And to Ramdom, dirty little secret is that the Logitech G25 Wheel is a lot better than the Microsoft one.

Umm, it's not a secret... It's $300 and worth it from what I hear. If it worked on the 360, I'd pick one up and probably sell my MS Wheel.

Although, I have the MS Wheel and it's the best wheel I've ever owned and my first one was in the late 80's, so I've owned a few.

[Serapth]

Umm, it's not a secret... It's $300 and worth it from what I hear. If it worked on the 360, I'd pick one up and probably sell my MS Wheel.

Although, I have the MS Wheel and it's the best wheel I've ever owned and my first one was in the late 80's, so I've owned a few.



... well, you could have bought a wheel in the 80s, and never bought one since. ;)


Myself, I have owned about 5 or 6 wheels. Some were pure ass ( MadCatz Nascar, im looking at you!!! ), a couple kicked serious as ( a MOMO styled Logitech Force Feedback PC wheel I spent wayyy too much money on ).

That said, given form + function, the 360 wheel is about as good as I have had. My old logitech was probrably a bit better for feel, but it was a tank and required a table to work. The 360 can work quite well in your lap.

[KingGorilla]

yes, its $300 retail. You can find it for cheaper, sometimes as low as $260. It is really superior though, from material to feedback to the shifter.
Also, the g25s that I have seen come with pedals and a stick shift. I have not seen any info on the Logitech wheel for the 360, however. It seems to be the g25 sans stick shift. But based on the reaction in the Forza 2 community, the Microsoft Wheel is better,

http://forums.forzamotorsport.net/forums/125066/ShowPost.aspx

If you are looking for just a wheel for Forza, it seems the MS one is the way to go, a lot of other sites are saying that if you want a Wheel for PGR, Test Drive, and Forza, basically every game the Logitech is a better bet. And it only makes sense that the Microsoft Wheel works the best in Forza 2, the game and peripheral were made for eachother. But 130 bucks is a tidy sum for a controller that works well in only one game.

But if you are thinking of taking the Forza wheel onto the PC, I am seeing issues galore, from drivers to feedback, the G25 is just being better on the PC. Which is a shame, at 130, the Microsoft Wheel was supposed to be a total solution for racing(PC and Console). But if you are into driving or flight sims, you have resigned yourself to spending 250-300 bucks on peripherals anyway.

Also, have you guys heard that you can run this game on 8 screens, provided you have 8 consoles?

[Serapth]

I thought it was 4. Front left right and back. Not sure what 8 would do?

If I was uber rich, I would be all over that. 4 LCD tvs + 4 Xbox 360s + a racing chair + wheen. Damned right baby.

That said, im not uber rich.

[KingGorilla]

But if you have some buddies, I hear that 3 looks fucking great(John Davidson tried it that way). But the 8 screens, you sort of have a Darth Vader pod of racing greatness.

[Jack B]

But if you have some buddies, I hear that 3 looks fucking great(John Davidson tried it that way). But the 8 screens, you sort of have a Darth Vader pod of racing greatness.

Yeah, 3 is probably all you need. I'm thinking about it...

As for the Logitech on the 360. I've heard it's OK, but the MS Wheel gives you 2 motors for force feedback and 2 for rumble. I believe the cheaper logitech model for the 360 uses the spring approach instead of motors to replicate the torque alignment, which is cheap, but not really ideal.

The G25 is the way to go if you want to spend the $250-$300, but it's a no go on the 360. Still, the MS Wheel is very good and I've heard of people picking them up for $100 or so. I think mine was $150.

Hopefully, MS will work something out with Logitech. My guess is they will.

[Mr.Green]

Hopefully, MS will work something out with Logitech. My guess is they will.
My guess is they won't.

IT'S ON!

[Mdot23]

Can't wait to DL this when I get home and finally break out the wheel...along with Akeldama's ironing board setup method haha.

[YoungAlCapone]

I have the the logitech DriveFX and have really liked it with PGR3 and Test Drive, the demo for Forza is sitting on my 360 at home, and I will be testing it out with that tonight.

[TheDancinMan]

I'm probably/definently going to pick this one up, post H3-beta. But no racing wheel. Too poor/too little space. It wouldn't be a smart purchase on any account.

[jpublic]

Sorry to derail the wheel discussion, but back to the *game*....

Is the Forza series on the SIM side or the Arcade side? Considering that PGR3 is about as sim as I want to get, would I like this?

[Mr.Green]

Sorry to derail the wheel discussion, but back to the *game*....

Is the Forza series on the SIM side or the Arcade side? Considering that PGR3 is about as sim as I want to get, would I like this?
Sim. PGR3 is very arcadey. Chances are you will despise Forza.

[Bingley Joe]

Considering that PGR3 is about as sim as I want to get, would I like this?

Hmmmm... while I can't possibly imagine living in a world where one did not like Forza (the first was an absolutely stunning mix of sim and fun), I'd say that if PGR3 is your upper limit for a racing sim, then it might be possible that you won't like F2.. PGR3 really has very little to do with realism/sim'ing

Notice I refuse to allow outright that you just won't like it at all -- you'd really be doing yourself a disservice if you didn't at least grab the demo and give it a whirl :)

[phantomhitman]

PGR does not get enough credit for its sim qualities, the only thing unrealistic about it is the grip factor. Other than that its pretty damn "simy".

[jpublic]

I want to pick up my controller, start the game, and dominate computer players. I don't want to sit there and screw around with various parts of my car, with effects I can barely understand, let along NOTICE, to get the most out of each vehicle in the race.

[ferrarimanf355]

This May 29th, the pool's closed due to ferrarimanf355 pwning everyone in Forza 2. :)

[Bingley Joe]

PGR does not get enough credit for its sim qualities, the only thing unrealistic about it is the grip factor. Other than that its pretty damn "simy".

I'd say even without taking just the grip factor into account there's quite a huge divide between the 'realism' of PGR and something more devoutly 'simmy' like say the GTR games, something like Richard Burns Rally, or even Forza.

PGR2 did feel a good deal better to drive than the first - which was most certainly an arcade racer at heart - but I'd still slot it over on the casual side of the spectrum without hesitating..

But then again, I've never driven any of those cars in any conditions even remotely resembling what's depicted in the games, so I suppose I could be wrong.

[Jack B]

This May 29th, the pool's closed due to ferrarimanf355 pwning everyone in Forza 2. :)

With a gamertag like that, you need to be fast! :D Maybe we can challenge other websites. Based on name alone, you're first team, starting row!

[Pumped'Up]

the art/cover on the case looks like ass! They chose an ok car, but that angle/layout is horrible...in terms of imagination, it's on par with the Spider-man 3 game cover