Microsoft has unveiled the new Forza Motorsport and it’s absolutely gorgeous, making full use of new technologies like raytracing to make one of the most impressive racers in the world. But the additions are more than superficial.
As part of its Xbox and Bethesda Showcase, Microsoft has revealed the latest entry in its more sim-focused racing series, Forza Motorsport. He dropped the numbers from his title, reflecting that it’s a new era for the series on Xbox Series X.
In addition to a trailer for the racing game, which you can watch below, developer Turn 10 Studios has detailed some of the key advancements in this entry.
The most obvious changes are the graphical enhancements. Turn 10 is using raytracing in Forza Motorsport to convey details such as cars reflecting the paintwork of other cars, and photogrammetry and 3D rendering to create hyper-realistic environments and vegetation.
However, another big advance is the new dynamic time feature. As you run, you’ll see the time of day change, the sun going down and the shadows getting longer. This has a visual change, with things like racing lights coming on and, on the track we were being shown, which revolves around a carnival, the Ferris wheel lights coming on.
But it’s not just a visual change, as the sun goes down so does the ambient temperature, which means the track surface cools down, and that affects your car’s grip. It’s a subtle but important change in how you’ll tackle, especially when you combine it with dynamic weather and the new ability to change tire composition and fuel mix.
There seem to be a lot more in-race decisions that you can make in previous games, and that’s a significant change.
You can see more about it in the game demo:
Microsoft has confirmed that every game in its showcase will be playable within the next 12 months, so while we don’t have a release date for Forza Motorsport, we won’t have to wait long.