Forza 4

[Shifty Geezer]

You race the ghost of your nearest faster competitor on the global leaderboard.

If any friends are faster than you, they are selected as your oponent. I've been going back and forth with my brother since the 9th in the Zonda C in the demo. - Very addictive.

Also instructive, because you get to see the racing line of someone who's a little better than you.

Cheers

A little OT, but this to me represents how online competitive play should be handled. Players should be pitted against similar opponents, so they always have a chance to win and are always being pushed. In a racing game this is an easy-peasy thing to measure as you just use lap times. Racing against ghosts also elliminates unsporting play such as deliberately impacts. These racing challenges are very pure tests of one's ability versus a rival.

 

[poopypoo]

The great thing about "clubbing" (first time I've used that word this way! ^^) is that you can learn the sweet science of tuning by having your 'mates send you setup files. At least, you can see hoe the other half lives...

 

[RobertR1]

A little OT, but this to me represents how online competitive play should be handled. Players should be pitted against similar opponents, so they always have a chance to win and are always being pushed. In a racing game this is an easy-peasy thing to measure as you just use lap times. Racing against ghosts also elliminates unsporting play such as deliberately impacts. These racing challenges are very pure tests of one's ability versus a rival.

Yep. For racing games, I think rivals is in many ways better than traditional multiplayer. The notification that your rival just beat your time just makes you want to stop what you're doing and try to one up them. I think you'll see rivals mode quickly adopted and because a feature on every racing game in the future.

Overall the social and competitive features in Forza 4 will give it more longevity than just having a set number of cars and track.

 

[Arwin]

Rivals isn't much different from the way leaderboards with friends list integration typically works in most games, I feel. Also you learn much faster from studying the nr 1.

I also disagree that this is better than racing together. Matter of taste perhaps, but overtaking, chasing with the added difficulty of slipstreaming and a more limited view of the track and the danger of one or both crashing x 16 is something else.

However, it's definitely one of the best ways to do offline competition, no question about it. And as I rarely have the uninterrupted time for online racing, I enjoy this a good deal.

I took out the wheel and still found some oddities in the car behavior. Don't know that I need this game to be honest, but I may get it anyway. Wheel helped me to a clean lap, but there are still 20.000 people faster.

 

[Acert93]

Rivals isn't much different from the way leaderboards with friends list integration typically works in most games, I feel. Also you learn much faster from studying the nr 1.

Of course there are differences that make it different:

1. Your Rival is notified when you best them.
2. There is a limited number of Rival challenges (not all 100+ tracks are available).
3. There is a variety of challenge types, not just hot lapping.
4. When you best a rival you can quickly load up another rival/ghost from your friends' list, those near you, or top racers.

In most games I have you have leaderboards but they aren't usually tied closely to a mode (instant in/out of the challenge), often lack ghosts for *every* competitor, and the leaderboards/challenges aren't focused.

No one is claiming it is a totally revolutionary concept top to bottom, but it takes a bog boring standard set of disconnected features and makes them a valid, even addicting (for many of us), gamemode.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Yes, leaderboards are often too generic to aid competition. None of my friends have ever cared about leaderboards. However, in FIFA 11 there was a rivalry of quickest goal in the start arena, and that did evoke some competition. I think that's the difference between being shown it and having to go looking. Establishing a competition mode between folk helps with encouraging the challenge, and as you can play offline it solves the difficulty of head to heads. You can 'sneak on' to best their lap. I like the idea.

 

[AntShaw]

I need a wheel, bottom line. I've reached my peak with a silly controller.

 

[Acert93]

I need a wheel, bottom line. I've reached my peak with a silly controller.

I love my wheel, and thought the same about the pad, but after a lot of play time it grows on you. Some things are easier with a controller imo but I prefer a wheel.

I really like my MS FF Wireless Wheel. I know someone who found one on Craig's List for $60 and someone got a used one at GS for $80. Worth a look?

 

[Rotmm]

Slightly OT, but has anyone with Kinect tried out the kinect rivals menu in this game? Just had a very quick go (driving with hands held in air is as stupid as I expected) and found myself being very impressed with the left/right swiping to choose a car.

It also made me wonder if it''s a precursor to how switching from one 'window' to the next will be handled in the next Xbox GUI. I really hope so as it felt really natural.

 

[Acert93]

Anyone else going to get on tonight?

I should be on about 8pm PST.

 

[Rotmm]

....even addicting (for many of us), gamemode.

I spend close to 30 minutes last night (UK time) trying to beat your Top Gear in a Ford Ka time. I failed miserably and still have no idea how you can have completed it around 2 seconds faster than my best! The speed you get out of the last corner to set up your flying lap just baffles me.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Has Forza 4 got the Kia Cee'd? The biggest disappointment of GT5 has to be that inclusion of the TG test track didn't come with the same cars as used on it, so players couldn't compete with the Top Gear leaderboard.

 

[Arwin]

Of course there are differences that make it different:

1. Your Rival is notified when you best them.
2. There is a limited number of Rival challenges (not all 100+ tracks are available).
3. There is a variety of challenge types, not just hot lapping.
4. When you best a rival you can quickly load up another rival/ghost from your friends' list, those near you, or top racers.

In most games I have you have leaderboards but they aren't usually tied closely to a mode (instant in/out of the challenge), often lack ghosts for *every* competitor, and the leaderboards/challenges aren't focused.

No one is claiming it is a totally revolutionary concept top to bottom, but it takes a bog boring standard set of disconnected features and makes them a valid, even addicting (for many of us), gamemode.

Notice I said isn't 'much' different. And crucially, note that I followed it up with "However, it's definitely one of the best ways to do offline competition, no question about it. And as I rarely have the uninterrupted time for online racing, I enjoy this a good deal. "

And yes, Forza 4 does have the Kia Cee'd!

 

[Onkl Bjorni]

Has Forza 4 got the Kia Cee'd? The biggest disappointment of GT5 has to be that inclusion of the TG test track didn't come with the same cars as used on it, so players couldn't compete with the Top Gear leaderboard.

Yes, it has the Kia Cee'd and the Suzuki Lian and the Top Gear America Suzuki SX4 sportback.

 

[Graham]

Just a quick paint up

 

[Onkl Bjorni]

Just a quick paint up

Very nice
Any chance you would share/sell the Beyond3D logo decals? Being a BMW man myself there is no way I'm going to drive around in a Audi ;-)

Ps. Maybe we should get an official Beyond3D car club design to use when we race online (in the capacity as a Beyond3D club member)?

 

[NavNucST3]

Of course there are differences that make it different:

1. Your Rival is notified when you best them.
2. There is a limited number of Rival challenges (not all 100+ tracks are available).
3. There is a variety of challenge types, not just hot lapping.
4. When you best a rival you can quickly load up another rival/ghost from your friends' list, those near you, or top racers.

In most games I have you have leaderboards but they aren't usually tied closely to a mode (instant in/out of the challenge), often lack ghosts for *every* competitor, and the leaderboards/challenges aren't focused.

No one is claiming it is a totally revolutionary concept top to bottom, but it takes a bog boring standard set of disconnected features and makes them a valid, even addicting (for many of us), gamemode.

I have to concur, if all anyone is going by is the demo then that will shape some misinformed ideas because let me tell you...there is nothing like an "inbox" full of Rival Challenges to A) Make me hate every.last.one of you. and B) Motivate the hell out of someone to keep pushing to beat the time that everything is so integrated is beyond excellent as well. This is no simple leaderboard not in the least. This is coming from someone who though having bought many a racing game had NEVER finished The Ring because it was "too hard"/frustrating for me but it being in rivals mode was all it took for me to want to beat Roberts time. A time with no ghost offers no challenge for me since I'm no good at racing anyway but when the ghost is there and it is well ahead of me and then I see the person spin out on a turn, oh man, it is exciting to hope that I won't make the same mistake and can actually beat them. This is quite frankly the most fun I have ever had in a sim racer but again I'm skill less on the pad so take that for what it is worth.

 

[NavNucST3]

Very nice
Any chance you would share/sell the Beyond3D logo decals? Being a BMW man myself there is no way I'm going to drive around in a Audi ;-)

Ps. Maybe we should get an official Beyond3D car club design to use when we race online (in the capacity as a Beyond3D club member)?

But I drive an Audi I don't even know if my vehicle is in the game need to check but probably not.

Orange and black? That's like the original B3D colors at least as far back as I can remember.

 

[Rotmm]

Just a quick paint up

That is all kinds of awesome!

 

[Rotmm]

Btw, who's who in the B3D Car Club? I know a few (eg: NavNucST3 uses the same name here as his gamertag) but I probably don't know over 1/2.

I'm pretty siimple, Forum Name: Rotmm vs Gamertag: Rotmm