Having bought the latest NFS game a few months back I had some reservations about Horizon. The frustration levels I reached as I worked my way through NFS turned the game into a drawn out slog as I battled through the artificially difficult game. The randomness of the crashes and the elastic band AI meant that a single mistake late into the race would spell the end of my run and with a 20 second (possibly less but long enough) delay between reaching for the restart button I was reduced to rage quitting on more than one occasion. Pride was the only thing keeping me going and the sense of relief far outweighed the elation of completion. Even the journey to events was fraught with danger as being caught speeding meters before an event marker meant more time wasted while the pursuing police were shaken off or even worse when they busted me and I was forced to repeat the long journey again. The developers clearly employed Buddhist monks as their QA team otherwise I’m sure someone would have pointed out that the game had lost a great deal of the sense of fun people are paying money for.
As I say I had reservations. I need not have worried however as Horizon is a far more relaxing affair. I was playing all day and did not feel cheated on a single occasion. The overarching structure is exactly the same however by not featuring police or the gratuitous crashes of NFS the game concentrates on the sublime feeling of driving wonderfully weighted cars along a gorgeously realised landscape.
Pick a car, pick an event and drive to it. Perhaps stop along the way to enjoy some of the highly detailed backgrounds or even have a quick explore for some of the hidden goodies. Simple driving bliss handled at a pace which the game engine happily renders ensuring a constant smoothness and player enjoyment on the journey.
The races themselves are often very tight affairs. Rather than being the result of cheap AI tactics this is down to the skill of the other racers. The opponents have a real feel of fallibility about them with the exception of the lead cars which are a step above the rest of the field. This ensures that the game rewards skilful driving on behalf of the player and continuity throughout the game. It is down to the player to improve and work the racing lines rather than hope that an opponent crashes on the last corner.
The selection of cars on offer is impressive with the added bonus of any cars from Forza 3 (possibly Forza 4 too however I don’t own that) being unlocked as soon as the game sees your save file. Each one handles differently with a huge amount of enjoyment to be had with cars of every class (though no one will ever convince me that a muscle car is worth owning).
Similarly impressive are the race tracks made up of the open world. These contain some fantastic stretches of road combing twists and turns with decent lengths of near straights ensuring a huge amount of variety even on single tracks. Add to this the races that can be started at any time with the other AI drivers making their way around Horizon’s space which pits you against their car in a race lasting around two miles on whichever stretch of road you find yourselves and you have an almost endless selection of tracks. One thing I would have loved to have seen would be the option to get onto a couple closed circuits however I guess I have Forza 3 for this exact purpose.
Overall this is my favourite racing game at the moment. The variety on offer as well as the near perfect handling model they have crafted combines to give something which will take some beating. I found 3 to be too clinical despite the superb handling so for those of you looking for a rare balance of warmth, excitement and balance look no further. This is truly a worthy Funger Game.
Enjoy
Pigeon Corp 