Back in the May of ‘05 the first in the Forza Motorsport franchise was released, and in June ‘07 the second was released, now in 2009 we have the latest in the series, the cleverly named…Forza Motorsport 3! (Shocking I know, didn’t see it coming either.)

Graphics:Wow, is the only word I can use to describe them without the need for censorship, Forza 3 runs at a crisp 60 fps and is very smooth and appealing to look at. The details on the cars are second to none, every little crease is accounted for. You can perfectly see the carbon firbre weave on the Audi R8 (the hero car) in the lil visual you’re given at the start. Forza 3 also features real-time-tyre deformation, meaning when you turn into, lets say a left hand bend, the tyres on the right hand side of the car are going to compress, and you actually see it! The details on the tracks is awesome, these tracks are beautiful, from the small sea-side Itallian villages to the sweeping corners of the Nürburgring in Germany. These graphics are top notch. 9.5/10

Sounds:In Forza 3 there are many different cars and tyre compounds and exhaust manifolds, and so on and so forth, so you’d expect there to be a plethera of different and individual sounds that don’t distort (seeing as this is the 3rd gen of this game, you’d want it to be good) and you won’t be disappionted. Everything from the little buzzy engine in a Fiat 500 Arbath to the roaring V12 of the Audi Q7 sounds just stunning. The tyre noises are nice and clear and don’t distort among the engine noises. 8/10

Gameplay:One of the best I have ever played, my only beef with it is the fact you have to pick a default controller setup and can’t customise it just so, however minor problems aside, this game is one for everyone. Die-hard enthusiasts will love it every bit as much as much as their 9 year old sister, it’s very easy to get used to and wether you just want a quick blast round a circuit or sit for hours on end getting CR and modifying your car and tuning to your own spec, it’s perfect. There are 2 modes you can go into, Event mode, where you see you’re career by events similar to that of Forza 2 or another mode where you see it as a calender. My only major problem with it is the split screen mode was Forza 2’s weak spot, and I’m afraid to say it’s the same in Forza 3 due to same Proprietary engine having to split itself and you lose some of the feel of the game, but when someone does challenge you to a split screen race, as long as it’s less than 5 laps you won’t be throwing your controller at the TV. 9/10

Anything else:I had some minor problems uploading the additional content disc on to my HDD but after some perseverance it did upload, but I was ready to fall asleep and not bother playing the game when I had started the upload. The uploading itself is a quick and painless process, giving you additional tracks and cars.

Turn 10 have announced that the 1st expansion pack available to download over Xbox Live will be out from the start of December to new year.

If you have Xbox Live you will be pleased to know that inside every copy of the game will be a redeemable code that gives you 10 extra cars and 2 tracks.

Overall:Forza 3 is the best game I have played this year and the best racer I have ever played. Really great graphics and awesome sounds make for a very enjoyable gaming experience and the general gameplay and feel of the game makes it that 100% better. I give this game a; 9.8/10

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