Forza Motorsport 5 Photomode Improvements

[Kake Bake]

After revisiting pictureghost1's flickr gallery, I got to thinking about the (severe) limitations of photomode in the Forza Motorsport series. When you get to the brass tacks, the photomode (and gross lighting engine) is really the main thing still separating Forza from GT. So, on the eve of a new console generation, replete with clouds and creative plays on the word "avatar," we welcome a new and hopefully improved way to document our antics and exploits. So with that in mind, let's hurl insults at the hard work T10 has heretofore put into their photomode and speculate on what goodies they might have packed into FM5.

Foremost is the invisible tether that keeps curious cameras from straying too far from their cars or the ground. Likely in the interest of hiding low-poly, low-res or plain un-modeled (think beyond tree lines or other purposefully obscurant features) assets from prying eyes. In a perfect Forza 5 world, our photomode cameras would be afforded the same freedom that T10 exercises with their dumb, supernatural flying replay cameras. Think of all the tasty helicopter shots.

Second is the absence of an easy way to photograph car interiors (excepting AutoVista and the first turn of Silverstone). PGR4 lets you toggle between cockpit and exterior view in its photomode. It also has better textures, lighting, night and weather and does it all on a single core of the three available on the 360. Ok, so what if it has a way simpler physics engine and less cars?

The last really obvious issue I can think of is the photomode's suspect depth of field (bokeh, if you will). I'm no photography expert, so I can't really elaborate on this. Although, it does bring me to the overarching problem with Forza's camera: it isn't a camera.

Allow me to clarify, in GT, the characteristics and functions of a real-life camera (probably some Sony-branded SLR) have been recreated in-game. As a result, one familiar with photography could be expected slip into its photomode and be able to produce a great image relatively easily. This is great for fooling the eye, though absolutely terrible for the layperson who just wants to snap photos of their matte lime green Daihatsu Midget.

In Forza, though, you get the sense that you're just using a spectator camera to take screenshots of a game. This means the photomode has great accessibility, but lacks any meaningful depth.

So what are your thoughts about the Forza Motorsport series photomode? What can T10 improve upon? Have I written too much?

 

[Northstar]

I would just like to add that the ability to direct export is a must. The current method is over-complicated, a waste of band width and makes photos less than great due to compression of non-big shots.

Of course knowing Microsoft, this will probably never happen.

 

[Kake Bake]

I would just like to add that the ability to direct export is a must. The current method is over-complicated, a waste of band width and makes photos less than great due to compression of non-big shots.

Of course knowing Microsoft, this will probably never happen.

Ah, forgot about that.

 

[HAL20XX]

All great points, Kake Bake. The lack of vertical height when taking a photo is one of the most frustrating aspects. I'd love to see a more realistic take on camera settings, but given your assumptions on how Sony did theirs (which I believe you to be correct on), I don't think we'll be seeing anything like that.

 

[Kake Bake]

[...]I believe you[...]

Faite attention, that's a dangerous and unpopular sentiment around here.

 

[Wolfe]

Foremost is the invisible tether that keeps curious cameras from straying too far from their cars or the ground. Likely in the interest of hiding low-poly, low-res or plain un-modeled (think beyond tree lines or other purposefully obscurant features) assets from prying eyes.

Have you noticed the hovering trees, cut-off cliff faces, gaping voids, or "underwater" villages you can see on Fujimi Kaido, even from the in-game cameras? Or the low-poly hills and barren spaces all around the Nordschleife? Or how easy it is to peek over the fence at Tsukuba and find nothing? I'm not the biggest fan of the idea of painstakingly rendering things players might never see (the high-res textures on turn signal stalks of non-AutoVista cars, for example), but FM4 has a metric ton of open seams and unfinished things, more noticably so than the typical 3D racing game, I think. The accelerated 2-year development cycle might be a culprit.

Considering all of the embarrassing shots you can already get with the "tether" as it is, I see no justifiable reason for keeping it. I'd love to see the shots our talented members could get with a "free" camera. 👍

 

[ImaRobot]

I've always hated the height and distance restrictions on the camera. I wish we would even be able to go over the walls and shoot through the trees and what not. The only way right now is to glitch through some maps, but if you get it down you can get some pretty cool shots.

I may have the wrong definition goign on in my head, but I've never had a problem with depth of field. Although GT does look much nicer in that aspect, it can still work in FM as well.

I dont understand why neither game lets you photograph interiors, I would guess its because they probably arent rendered as good as they should be, and they wouldn't want people to spot all these flaws if they allowed them to get inside.

Light is a big issue for me, especially in tunnels. How is it that you can be in a lit tunnel like on the Alps track, but your car is so dark that you cant even get a shot of it. If you bump up the exposure to get it more visible, it tends to make all the white and silver parts very odd looking. Reflections also look odd sometimes..The reflections in GT's photo Locations where fantastic.

The settings are simple enough for anyone to jump into, much easier then GT's to be honest. In GT5 It took me a bit to understand what everything does, but it is more "camera like." I honestly think they should stick with the slider.

All in all, I dont know much about real life photography so I can only talk about what I see from the game.

 

[Kake Bake]

Light is a big issue for me, especially in tunnels. How is it that you can be in a lit tunnel like on the Alps track, but your car is so dark that you cant even get a shot of it. If you bump up the exposure to get it more visible, it tends to make all the white and silver parts very odd looking. Reflections also look odd sometimes..The reflections in GT's photo Locations where fantastic.

The settings are simple enough for anyone to jump into, much easier then GT's to be honest. In GT5 It took me a bit to understand what everything does, but it is more "camera like." I honestly think they should stick with the slider.

All in all, I dont know much about real life photography so I can only talk about what I see from the game.

Yeah, tunnels really kill me in FM4. To me, they seem somehow to be a step back from FM3. I mean, there are lights all through most tunnels, but the cars never seem to be affected.