The Forza Motorsport release date has now been and gone, with the hotly-anticipated reboot for the long-running racing sim series releasing on October 10, 2023.
We had a brief insight into the gameplay through announcement trailers before release, and we knew about a handful of tracks and cars, but now it's out in the wild, everyone on Xbox Series X|S and PC can get stuck in, and see if it's one of their picks for best racing games.
Forza Motorsport is a technical showcase of what the latest Xbox hardware can really do and it'll likely give Gran Turismo 7 on PS5 a run for its money. If you're after our full take, check out our Forza Motorsport review but otherwise read on for all the best information about the game and what we knew before it released.
Forza Motorsport: cut to the chase
- What is it? The eighth entry in the Forza Motorsport racing series
- When did it come out? October 10, 2023
- What can I play it on? Xbox Series X|S and PC
- Who made it? Turn 10 Studios
Forza Motorsport release date and platforms
Forza Motorsport was released on October 10, 2023, and is available on Xbox Series X|S and PC. It's also available on Xbox Game Pass (and was from day one). As Forza Motorsport is being built to take advantage of the latest Xbox hardware, the racing sim skipped the Xbox One console.
Forza Motorsport trailers
Latest trailer
The trailer before the game was released was one shown as part of the Xbox Games Showcase on June 11, 2023. Alongside showing a significant amount of in-game footage separate from what we had already seen in previous trailers, the trailer finally offered a release date for the anticipated title.
We've included some key Forza Motorsport trailers throughout this article but you can find all the Forza Motorsport trailers on the official Forza YouTube channel.
Forza Motorsport gameplay
Forza Motorsport is a racing sim as pure as they come, providing a big update on what Forza Motorsport 7 offered. For starters, it's a "huge generational leap" over previous games. Chris Esaki, the game's creative director, shared details on how Forza Motorsport’s physics have evolved from Forza Motorsport 7 during a Forza Monthly stream in May 2021.
“To put the physics work into perspective… the changes we made from Forza Motorsport 7 till now, is more than the changes we made from [Forza Motorsport] 4 through [Forza Motorsport] 7," Esaki said during the stream. "It’s basically a huge generational leap coming to the game.”
According to Esaki, the tire collision model has also been overhauled. From the first game to Forza Motorsport 7, tires have always had a single point of contact with the track surface, and have refreshed at 60 cycles per second (60Hz).
In Forza Motorsport, there are now eight points of contact with the track surface, and the engine will refresh at 360 cycles per second (360Hz). That’s a 48x fidelity jump for a single-tire collision. Multiple tire compounds have been confirmed too, a series first. Tire compounds such as hard, medium, and soft will deepen the gameplay and racing strategy, and Esaki said it will lead to “exciting new gameplay decisions during a race".
In addition, Forza Motorsport is set to feature the most realistic and immersive sound of any series entry to date as the game's audio has been mixed natively for Dolby Atmos and Windows Sonic. There will also be new features, such as regional track announcers and installed upgrades creating different sound profiles for your car, reflecting the parts you’ve fitted.
For more details on improvements to Forza Motorsport's cars and environments, read below.
Forza Motorsport car details
Forza Motorsport features 500 real-world cars alongside over 800 upgrades (and that was just what was confirmed for launch). Turn 10 said this roster features the most modern cars the series has seen to date.
What's more, these cars look and sound more realistic than ever. Turn 10 has used a spectrophotometer, which "captures multiple data points of light behavior on a surface", to make the paint on Forza Motorsport's cars look more realistic. Cars will also accumulate dirt more realistically and damage will be more authentic – with both affecting each vehicle uniquely.
In addition, the advances made to Forza Motorsport's physics simulation are "greater than Forza Motorsport 5, 6, and 7 combined", according to Turn 10.
Forza Motorsport tracks
Forza Motorsport launched with 20 environments, each featuring multiple track layouts. In addition to returning fan favorites, the next entry in the series features five new locations, including one in South Africa for the first time.
These environments have 10 times more detail than previous Forza Motorsport games, according to Turn 10, and feature fully animated 3D spectators and detailed vegetation. Moreover, Forza Motorsport features ray-traced environments, which aim to make environments look even more realistic.
These environments also boast dynamic time of day, weather, and track temperature mechanics, which will affect your racing experience.
Forza Motorsport news
These are the two main bits of news we received on the game in the run up to its release.
Forza Motorsport release date confirmed at Xbox Games Showcase
Forza Motorsport received an additional trailer at the Xbox Games Showcase on June 11. A release date was finally announced, stating the game will arrive on October 10.
Forza Motorsport shown off at Xbox conference
New footage was shown off for Forza Motorsport during the Xbox Developer Direct event that aired January 25. A release date was still not announced.
If you're after more game inspiration on the same platform then check out our best Xbox Series X games list and best PC games list.
