An analogy for Horizon

  • Thread starter Aftrbrnr
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HiTork
I think if there was a good way to describe the game, it would be like going to a restaurant where the food is good but the portions are too small. It's an amazing game, but I think there were issues with execution that has affected the game's longevity and staying power. I've said this in another thread, but I've seen way too many Horizon players say something along the lines, "I'm going back to Forza for because of (insert reason)". Examples of problematic feature implementation I feel are:

- A single player career that is too short when relative to some other contemporary racing games (Definitely longer then some NFS titles though for example).

- Multiplayer that is strong but nothing special. In part, I feel they didn't do enough to show off the best part of this game which is the area of Colorado featured. I understand this is probably because of technical limitations, but free roam is rather dull without an option of traffic and capped at only 8 players. IMO, what would have worked better if they had a similar system like what was used in TDU where rather then having free roam as player created roams to treat them like a large MMO server. Free roam also felt like it had more purpose as you could jump into events from there, single or multiplayer plus organize clubs and more.

- A car list and DLC cars that are mostly carry overs from previous Forza games, some of them which date back to Forza 2 (although with more detail and interiors added). I can see how if you have never played a Forza game before this wouldn't be an issue as from that perspective every car would be "new" to you, but seeing as how many who picked up Horizon are Forza veterans it kind of comes off as a bit stale, especially the DLC cars where it feels like money is being paid for cars we are used to. Conversely, previous Forza titles for DLC cars have mostly been ones that are new to the franchise, so there was probably an expectation this would be the same for Horizon.

- Problems with expansion implementation, Rally's career mode is roughly 2 hours long (15 minutes per rally approx. with 7 stages) which is yet another example of things being too short, and how the recent 1000 Club add-on feels more tedious than fun.

In closing, I don't think the issue is that Horizon is a bad game, but it seems for a lot of people there isn't enough to keep people playing for the long term. At this rate, I don't think Horizon will be one of those games that will have a size-able population playing for a few years to come, given the anecdotes I see about people who have either traded in the game or have gone back to Forza 4.
 
- Multiplayer that is strong but nothing special. In part, I feel they didn't do enough to show off the best part of this game which is the area of Colorado featured. I understand this is probably because of technical limitations, but free roam is rather dull without an option of traffic and capped at only 8 players. IMO, what would have worked better if they had a similar system like what was used in TDU where rather then having free roam as player created roams to treat them like a large MMO server. Free roam also felt like it had more purpose as you could jump into events from there, single or multiplayer plus organize clubs and more.

I like Horizon. A lot. However......

For me, this is the game's biggest issue. The loss of AI traffic makes multiplayer free roam dull; especially in comparison to a game like TDU. 16-player lobbies might have made the lack of AI traffic tolerable, but they're not here.

For me the second biggest issue is lack of mechanical damage. Would have really toned down the out of control driving that goes on. I do realize that is the type of game PG/T10 is aiming for, but an option would have been nice.

I do see your other points, and hear a lot of others say similar things. For me, if Horizon had included the above, I'm not sure I'd play anything else until Horizon 2.

Still, probably my favorite driving game right now. Until somebody bests the physics/FFB in an open world game, I'll still continue to play it.
 
If Horizon is a restaurant, I've been at the all-you-can-eat buffet for the hourly equivalent of a solid week. You'll need a forklift to get me out of the table. :lol:

I seriously don't understand the popular consensus on this game. It didn't take me terribly long to complete singleplayer, but games with longer careers tend to recycle the same tracks or event ideas over and over again. Horizon doesn't lean very heavily on that strategy; I found it satisfying and fresh throughout. Nonetheless, I've gone back and re-entered events with different cars, because that's where the racing is. What else are you supposed to do in a racing game but race different cars on the tracks available? Do people really need to be explicitly handed a "to-do list," as in FM4, or now the 1000 Club? :rolleyes:

On the topic of DLC cars, as I've stated before; after the decision was made to publish on one DVD and cut back the car list, we were left with two possibilities: getting some of the cars back via DLC, or never seeing any of them again. I guarantee you that every FM4 repeat has some fans who missed the car and demanded to have it back. It was a "doomed if you do, doomed if you don't" situation for PG. Apparently Microsoft thought it was prudent to skip a second disc for an untested spinoff, but they kinda ended up shooting themselves in the foot.
 
If Horizon was a restaurant it would be Hell's Kitchen. Sometimes they do an excellent job. Other times they mess up and have Gordon Ramsey yell at them. But Horizon is still an excellent game. Only reason I haven't played today was I just finished a 2 Hour game on the new BO2 zombie map Mob of the Dead
 
Whilst the set features of the game might seem short, the fun from free roam seems near endless. Finally reached the top of #1 popularity to earn my 500k this evening. Having always used the Raptor at the golf course, it took my girlfriend to ask to see the Murcielago SV on the golf course to learn it can link together 15,000 x5 runs at will and I was at the milestone in no time.
 
When I had my Xbox I loved Horizon... If seems like a lot of people treat it like the restaurant where they had one bad meal and came to the conclusion that the rest of the menu is awful... but I stayed around to try the rest of the menu and it turned out to be delightful. Oh and they occasionally add new items to the menu, most of the additions aren't original, but still pretty good.
 
I seriously don't understand the popular consensus on this game. It didn't take me terribly long to complete singleplayer, but games with longer careers tend to recycle the same tracks or event ideas over and over again. Horizon doesn't lean very heavily on that strategy; I found it satisfying and fresh throughout. Nonetheless, I've gone back and re-entered events with different cars, because that's where the racing is. What else are you supposed to do in a racing game but race different cars on the tracks available? Do people really need to be explicitly handed a "to-do list," as in FM4, or now the 1000 Club? :rolleyes:

I do the same thing. I spend most of my time upgrading cars and using them in street races to earn money to buy more cars. I personally think the AI is a big reason why repeating events is fun. I race on Hard or Insane difficulty, so I always feel challenged. Although, I do appreciate the 1000 Club. I do each of the challenges in the car's stock form, so it's a refreshing thing to do after racing 99% of the time in upgraded cars.

To this day, I still have not beaten this game. I've been having too much fun doing the things I mentioned above to worry about it. I moved on to the gold wristband now but only so I can unlock the street races for R3 and R2. I honestly want the showdown with Darius Flynt to literally be the last thing I do in the game. I feel I won't truly be done with Horizon until I tried everything it has to offer.

But to be fair, I think I understand people who play using controllers being bored of this game after a while. IMO, you need a good wheel like a Fanatec to get the most out of Horizon. Then again, the same can be said about GT and FM.
 
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^ I've been chugging away at races and wanderer challenges ever since they gagged Alice in a title update. I'm back up to 7 million now; I would probably have 20+ million if I hadn't kept burning money to keep her quiet. I have a lot of work to do to be able to afford all of those exotics for 1000 Club. That's what I get for not being a fan of R-class cars. :ouch:

I agree, Hard or Insane offer a decent challenge, depending on the event. Insane really pushes you to the limit in some of the 1000 Club festival event medals, when your car is a less-than-ideal entry. Rally on Insane is legitimately insane.
 
The problem with the 1000 Club Achievements is that if you want them, you will have to buy DLC. :indiff:
 
True. I compiled the list of offenders back in the 1000 Club thread, for reference:
  • BMW (8/10 cars available)
  • Ford (9/13 cars available)
  • Lamborghini (7/8 cars available)
  • Nissan (5/7 cars available)
  • Shelby (1/3 cars available)
 
I love this game enough to get every DLC pack, but my biggest problem with the 1000 Club is the unicorns. I doubt I'll get every gold medal because of those cars.
 
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