Forza Horizon 2 is an open-worldracingvideo game developed for Microsoft's Xbox One and Xbox 360 consoles. It is the sequel to 2012's Forza Horizon and the seventh instalment in the Forza series. The Xbox One version of the game was developed by Playground Games, the team behind the original Forza Horizon, while Sumo Digital developed the version for Xbox 360, with Forza series developer Turn 10 Studios supporting both builds. The Xbox 360 version is also the final Forza game released for the platform. The game received positive reviews from critics and a sequel, Forza Horizon 3, was released on 27 September 2016.

• 2Development and release

Gameplay[edit]

Forza Horizon 2 is a racing video game, featuring an open world environment.^[2] The player participates in the Horizon Festival, a fictional racing competition set within Southern France and Northern Italy.^[3] The game world has approximately three times more drivable area than that for the original Forza Horizon, with events set in Provence, Liguria and Côte d'Azur, among other regions.^{[citation needed]} Players will explore the region, taking part in races and special events in order to advance through the game. Events can take place at day or night, and a dynamic weather system is being added for the first time in a Forza-series game.^[4]

Best torrent sites 2018 for books. Among new features in the game is the 'Bucket List', which is a group of challenges for the player to complete, similar to the 1000 Club in Forza Horizon. There will be two separate lists; one for France and another for Italy. 'Co-Op Bucket Lists' are available when a player goes to the online version of the map, and can complete the bucket lists with a random person or invite a friend. It has also been confirmed that these challenges will be continuously updated to provide new challenges throughout the map. Car Meets are an online mode where players can meet up online and compare their cars, similar to 'Forzavista' mode in Forza Motorsport 5. Players will also be able to interact with each other in Car Meets, including sharing tuning setups and liveries. In the online version of the game, races such as circuits, sprints, and cross country are playable against other players, along with other game types such as Infected and King.^[5]

The standalone expansion of the game based on The Fast and the Furious franchise, Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious, adds nitrous oxide boosts to the Forza series. Unlike other racing games however, nitrous can only be used during most of the game's events, and only replenishes at the very start of said events.

Development and release[edit]

Forza Horizon 2 is the second game to be developed principally by a studio other than Forza Motorsport developer Turn 10 Studios. Playground Games, the lead developer for Forza Horizon, focused on the Xbox One version, using the graphics engine from Forza Motorsport 5 as their starting point.^[5] While the engine is capable of displaying content 1080p and 60 frames-per-second, the game was locked at 1080p and 30 frames-per-second, which was deemed necessary because of the game's open-world nature.^[5][6] According to creative director Ralph Fulton, 'one of the big technical challenges that we had to face was making sure that we could stream in a world that is next-gen beautiful, but fast enough to keep up with the fastest car.'^[6]

Sumo Digital took the lead for the Xbox 360 version, starting from the original Forza Horizon graphics engine.^[4] As with the original game, Turn 10 Studios provided support to the primary developers.^[4] The Xbox 360 version does not include the weather system such as rain or 'drivatar' A.I. found in the more-powerful Xbox One version, and also omits tuning and the free-roam open-world (as very few barriers can be broken through and crossed), with Playground Games calling the two versions 'different games'.^[7]

On 22 July 2014, Turn 10 Studios revealed the first 100 of over 200 cars to be featured in the open world game, from exotics, rally cars, trucks, hot hatches, among others. Many cars from the Forza series return, including many cars from the original Horizon game. The list includes the 2014 Lamborghini Huracán LP610-4 and Veneno, the McLaren P1, the LaFerrari, the Agera, and the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport.^[8] Another new car that they had released was the Ford Capri RS3100 which is a barn find. All ten barn finds can be found off-road, usually in hidden places.

When choosing the locale for Forza Horizon 2, the developers investigated over 30 locations around the world, including California and Australia, ultimately choosing Southern Europe.^[5] Creative director Ralph Fulton cited Europe's 'fantastic driving roads, amazing environmental diversity, and just stunning vistas that you really want to explore' as some of the major points in selecting it for Horizon 2.^[5] Fulton also noted that most of the recent open-world driving games were set in North America and that Southern Europe 'just felt fresh, it felt different, it felt new, and it was a gimme for us'.^[5]

On 27 August 2014, Microsoft announced that a demo version of the game would be made available on Xbox One on 16 September 2014.^[9] On the day of the demo release, Microsoft confirmed that the game had been declared gold, indicating it was being prepared for duplication and release.^[10] The standard '10th Anniversary Edition' of the Xbox One version (consisting of the base game and the 10th Anniversary Car Pack) was given to Xbox Live Gold members for free throughout August 2018 as part of Microsoft's Games with Gold program.^[11]Forza Horizon 2 and its downloadable content were digitally delisted on October 1st 2018. Those who already own it can still download and play the game and its DLC.^[12]

Expansions[edit]

On 16 December 2014, Microsoft launched 'Storm Island', an expansion pack for the Xbox One edition of the game.^[13] Storm Island adds, along with the new setting and associated tracks, five new event types, an expansion of the game engine's weather system, five new vehicles and an additional barn-find car.^[13] On 25 February 2015, Microsoft announced Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious, a standalone expansion to promote the release of Furious 7. The expansion was released on 27 March 2015.^[14] In June 2015, Microsoft announced a new Porsche expansion pack for the game that was released on 9 June 2015.^[15] The expansion, which was authorized by Electronic Arts, the then license-holder for Porsche vehicles in video games, adds ten vehicles, such as the 944, 911 GT3 RS, the Macan Turbo and the Cayman GT4.^[15] The expansion also adds new Bucket List items, new Rivals events and 15 new achievements based around the Porsche models.^[15]

Reception[edit]

The Xbox One version of Forza Horizon 2Anne of green gables sequel online free. received highly positive reviews. It received an aggregated score of 86.25% on GameRankings based on 53 reviews^[16] and 86/100 on Metacritic based on 82 reviews.^[17] Writing for IGN, Luke Reilly said that the game had 'comprehensively updated' the standards for open-world racing games and that it was 'Test Drive Unlimited, PGR, Smuggler’s Run, and Forza Motorsport all crammed into a T-shirt cannon and fired into your face'.^[21] Conversely, Polygon's Arthur Gies, while giving the game a positive review, said that the track design in Forza Horizon 2 'can't compete' with the licensed tracks used in Forza Motorsport 5.^[24] Jonathan Leack of CraveOnline called the game 'racing paradise' and 'a highly enjoyable destination for anyone willing to buckle up behind a wheel'.^[27] Leack also compared the two separate versions of the game and discovered a number of differences.^[28] As an example, when players are given the option to choose their first car at the start of the game, the Xbox 360 version uses a graphic interface, while the Xbox One version lets the players choose the cars in-world.^[28] Calling the Xbox One version a 'system-seller' and 'a good time to invest in next-gen', Leack said that Sumo Digital 'has done a fantastic job' with the Xbox 360 version and that it was 'one of the best-looking racing games on the platform'.^[28]

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Forza Horizon 2 Opens Up a Whole New World for Racers'. news.xbox.com. Microsoft Corporation. 9 June 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
2. ^ ^abRoberts, David (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Review'. GamesRadar. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
3. ^Gitlin, Jonathan M. (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2: massive multiplayer online, massive fun'. Ars Technica. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
4. ^ ^abcRyan McCaffrey (2 June 2014). 'IGN First: Forza Horizon 2 Announced'. ign.com. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
5. ^ ^abcdefLuke Reilly (4 June 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2: Resolution, Framerate, Music, & More Detailed -- IGN First'. ign.com. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 10 June 2014.
6. ^ ^abTom Phillips (5 June 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 runs at 1080p 30fps on Xbox One'. eurogamer.net. Gamer Network. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
7. ^'Forza Horizon 2 On Xbox One And Xbox 360 Are 'Different Games''. egmr.net. Blotch Network. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
8. ^Staff (22 July 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Cars Revealed!'. forzamotorsport.net. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
9. ^'Forza Horizon 2 Xbox One demo arrives September 16'. CVG. 27 August 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
10. ^'Forza Horizon 2 Gone Gold'. CVG. 15 September 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
11. ^Reed, Chris (31 July 2018). 'Xbox One's Free Games With Gold For August 2018 Revealed'. GameSpot. Retrieved 21 August 2018.
12. ^Fingas, Jon (19 August 2018). ''Forza Horizon 2' leaves the Xbox Store on September 30th'. Engadget.
13. ^ ^abLauren Puga (16 December 2014). 'What's New in Forza Horizon 2: Storm Island DLC'. ign.com. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
14. ^Wesley Yin-Poole (25 February 2015). 'Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious is a standalone expansion'. Eurogamer. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
15. ^ ^abcSeyth Miersma (8 June 2015). 'Porsche returns to Forza with Horizon 2 expansion [w/video]'. autoblog.com. AOL, Inc. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
16. ^ ^ab'Forza Horizon 2 for Xbox One'. GameRankings. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
17. ^ ^ab'Forza Horizon 2 for Xbox One Reviews'. Metacritic. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
18. ^Brett Zeidler (25 September 2014). 'Review: Forza Horizon 2'. Destructoid. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
19. ^Ben Griffin (25 September 2014). 'CVG Review: Forza Horizon 2'. computerandvideogames. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
20. ^Oli Welsh (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 review: Festival of Speed'. Eurogamer.net. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
21. ^ ^abLuke Relly (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 review: Fence Splitter'. IGN. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
22. ^Ludwig Kietzmann (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 review: Fetch the Bentley, we're going for a drive'. Joystiq. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
23. ^Paul Taylor (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Xbox One'. Official Xbox Magazine. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
24. ^ ^abArthur Gies (25 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 review: Road not Taken'. Polygon. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
25. ^Ken Barnes (6 October 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Review'. Pure Xbox. Pure Xbox. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
26. ^Beck, Adam (25 September 2014). 'Review: Forza Horizon 2'. Hardcore Gamer. Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 29 September 2014.
27. ^Jonathan Leack (24 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Review - Racing Paradise'. craveonline.com. Evolve Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
28. ^ ^abcJonathan Leack (27 September 2014). 'Forza Horizon 2 Xbox One vs Xbox 360 Comparison Shows Two Great Versions'. craveonline.com. Evolve Media, LLC. Retrieved 30 September 2014.

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