From America to Australia - with a stop off in France and Italy in between - Playground Games’ Forza Horizon games have certainly earned their Air Miles, and now the next instalment of the hit Xbox-exclusive racing franchise is taking in another part of the world: dear old Britain.
Forza Horizon 4 sees the series heading to our shores with a condensed recreation of the mainland’s North West, centred around Derwent Water. Along with the new setting comes outstanding features in terms of gameplay and visuals, making it one of the most accomplished and downright fun racing titles out there.
As a spin-off from the mainline Forza Motorsport series, Horizon games have always lent themselves to being more accessible and laidback, and this edition is no different.
While there’s an almost exhausting plethora of options for hardcore car fanatics to tweak, those of us who prefer to just put pedal to the metal will also find plenty to enjoy. This even carries over to the granular way in which difficulty is applied.
There are individual settings for things like braking, steer assist, the effect of damage, the on-screen racing line and even the skill level of rival drivers, meaning you can fully customise your own level of challenge and adjust it at any point.
The only penalty is a reduction in bonus cash earned from events. Cash is used to buy new cars and upgrades, while actual progression through the game is gated with Influence, gained from success in races as well side activities like finding and smashing special signs, setting off speed cameras and performing death-defying jumps.
You’ll also compete in Showcase events, one-off set-pieces with some sort of over-the-top conceit, like racing a huge hovercraft.
Much of this is all returning from the previous Horizon games, but where 4 really pushes the series forward is in the variety it brings to the table. The sheer amount of ways to play alongside the main campaign is staggering, with the open world populated - should you want it - with other online drivers.
This give you the opportunity to team up or compete as you see fit, create your own events, take part in challenges or simply just explore the beautiful environment.
‘Beautiful’ only hints at how impressively this corner of the UK has been realised. Seasons in the game now shift, with the landscape looking and handling remarkably differently depending on the time of year.
Autumn's mud and rain make for messy runs along dirt tracks amidst the subdued colour palette and overcast atmosphere, while the sunlight beating down from Summer’s gorgeously blue sky has made the same tracks more solid.
In between, Spring is the variable middle ground, with the odd smattering of light drizzle. Winter is the most dramatic of all with some bodies of water now frozen over, allowing you to reach previously inaccessible areas, take some canny shortcuts or just do some doughnuts on an iced-up lake.
You're spoilt for choice on the vehicle side of things, with an array of sports cars, rally-style set-ups, off-road ones and the odd wildcard like a transit van.
Verdict
Managing to up the ante once again, Playground Games have delivered a feast for racing fans that continues the series’ trend of balancing real-world driving and flat out fun. If you’re after something slightly less arcadey than Burnout Paradise but not as slavishly simulated as Forza Motorsport, Forza Horizon 4 has got you covered ten times over.
Platform: Xbox One, PC (cross-buy)
Price: £49.99
