Preview Update: 5 Tidbits We Picked Up on ‘Forza Horizon’

The arrival of Turn 10 Studios’ “Forza Horizon” looms nearer, and as promised in our first download of the Xbox 360 game some three months ago, more details are trickling out as we get closer to launch. Now having sampled a more polished build of the game, here are five tidbits we’ve collected after playing more of the impending time sink:

1. It’s public knowledge the free-roaming environment is a digital remastering of Colorado. But apparently, the game area dubbed Beaumont represents the real-world Vail. The extra-urban parts of the map are the Boulder city of “Forza Horizon.” This probably means something to players who have a deeper connection to Colorado (which, unfortunately, I do not).
2. The game has barn finds. If you’re driving around and wander into a barn, there may be a vehicle in need of your restoration. Supposedly, no boring barn finds are being written into the game code.
3. “Forza Horizon” will search for your “Forza Motorsport” (3 or 4) profile on your Xbox and reward leveled-up gamers with extra vehicles – like a loyalty program, only there’s no card swiping or keying in phone numbers.
4. To promote “stylish driving,” drifting and doing donuts acts as the game’s open-world nets points (think of it as in-game currency). Speed traps placed by the virtual Horizon Festival’s staff on certain roads urge you to go for land speed records from the comfort of your controller/gaming wheel.
5. There’s a Conan O’Brien-lookalike (must have been the hair) non-player character that appears in a cut-scene, acting obnoxiously (of course). Hopefully, there’s more of this mystery fellow later in the game.

A sampling of the “Forza Horizon” car list can be previewed in the photo gallery below. Expect a deeper focus on open-air rides compared to “Forza Motorsport,” given that this game is geared toward exploration.

For more background on “Forza Horizon,” check out our introductory post on WOT. The game drops in the U.S. on October 23.

Source : wot[dot]motortrend[dot]com