I have spent much more time than I am comfortable with complaining about the shortcomings of Forza Motorsports 7. I try not to allow my race reports to turn into a bitch session, but that has happened a few times. Rather than allow that to happen again in the future, I’ve decided to devote an entire post to what I feel is wrong with Forza Motorsports 7.
Before I do that, let me concede that not everything is bad about Forza. In fact, there’s a reason that it is one of, if not the, most popular driving games around. One of the reasons is that Forza is available on Xbox, and is relatively inexpensive, making it affordable and easily accessible. It is a great sim racing game to get started with.
Having said that, the game leaves a lot to be desired. Here are some of Forza’s shortcomings (in no particular order):
No Qualifying – One of the things that makes games like Asseto Corsa Competizione or iRacing popular is that they are more realistic that Forza. And one of the things that makes them more realistic is that you have to earn your spot on the starting grid. With Forza, that doesn’t happen. The most realistic option to set the starting grid is to have the game set the grid randomly, but that really isn’t very realistic. Having an option for a 10 or 15-minute qualifying session would improve the game tremendously.
No Real Pit Stops – In Forza Motorsports 7, when you enter pit lane, the game takes control of the car, and the player is relegated to simply watching the pit stop take place. If I’m playing a driving game, I want to drive. I don’t want to watch the game. Every other racing sim has figured out how to have real pit stops. Why can’t Forza?
No Race Car Skins – I don’t understand this one at all. Forza Motorsports 7 is a racing game. The only place you can drive the cars is on a race track. This isn’t Forza Horizon where you can drive on regular roads. So, why are the vast majority of the cars not race cars? Every race I run, I’m running primarily against regular street cars. They do not have special paint jobs, no sponsor decals, no roll cages. They’re just street cars. Why?
Horrible Tire Model – This might be my biggest complaint about the game. In a ten lap race, it’s not unusual for the tire to take three or four laps to come up to temperature and pressure, and then they start going off by lap six or seven. Not only is that not realistic, it’s not fun driving a car that feels like it’s sliding around on ice. The tire model really needs to be improved.
Inconsistent Drivatars – I’ve read other Forza players complain about how horrible AI is on Forza Motorsports 7. I don’t know much about AI, but I do know that it is very inconsistent in the way it makes the drivatars behave. They brake on the straight for no reason, they can’t seem to get through the first turn at most tracks, They drive like Mario Andretti when you’re behind them, but as soon as you get by them, they drive like Mario Bateli (He’s a chef).
Crashes on First Lap – In real racing, there is a saying that goes, “You can’t win the race on the first lap, but you can lose it.” The drivatars in Forza Motorsports 7 apparently never heard this saying. They go flat out into the first couple of turns, sending it into spaces that are guaranteed to cause contact (which ALWAYS results in me spinning or going off track). While some drivatars are going balls out into turn one, others are stopping for no reason, piling up cars behind them. It is not unusual at all for me to have to re-start a race a half dozen times or more to get through the first lap of a race without crashing.
Flawed Timed Races – Running races based on a number of laps is easy. It works well. So, if you want to run a 20-lap race, no problem. But if you want to run a 60-minute race, the game doesn’t handle it well. One problem is the race ends at 60-minutes. It doesn’t matter where the leader is. It doesn’t wait for him to finish his lap to determine a winner (the way real life works). The race simply ends at 60-minutes. Another problem is in timed races, the game doesn’t display your lap times the way it does in a number-of-laps race. Instead, it tracks your distance on a per lap and per race basis. This isn’t helpful at all. There should be an option to always show lap times.
Emphasis on Collecting Cars – Although Forza Motorsports 7 is nominally a racing game, there is a strong emphasis on collecting cars. I don’t know how many cars I own currently, but there are a bunch. In fact, many more than I will ever drive. I don’t have any desire to collect cars, but the game is built around it.
Unrealistic Physics – I understand that Forza is a video game, not an exercise in physics, but it gets infuriating to barely tap another car only to go flying off track, often in ways and directions that defy the laws of physics. It also is not unusual for a spin to result in the car facing a direction and/or wedged up against a wall that makes it very difficult to get back on track. Sure, that will happen occasionally in real life, but it won’t be the rule rather than exception.
Not Enough Tracks – Forza Motorsports 7 has lots of tracks, but there were three tracks that are mainstays in America that aren’t part of the game. For instance, Charlotte Motor Speedway, including the Charlotte Roval, is not part of the game. For some reason, I love that track. I was fortunate enough to be one of the first people to ever run the Roval when it was first opened, and it has always held a special place in my racing heart. In addition, neither Mid-Ohio Sportscar Course or Barber Motorsports Park are part of the game. Both of these tracks are considered among the best road courses in the U.S. They should be part of the game.
I’m sure if I gave it some more thought, I could come up with more complaints, but I think this will do for now. As you can see, Forza Motorsports 7 has a lot of shortcomings. That’s why I’ll be moving on to another game after this season.