Q&A: Turn 10 on Forza 2's new DLC track

  • By Staff, GameSpot
  • Posted Oct 23, 2007 11:10 am PT

Lead designer Dan Greenawalt lays out the new Twin Ring Motegi downloadable track, which peels out on October 26.

When Turn 10 rolled out its second wave of downloadable content in September, Forza 2's lead designer Dan Greenawalt told GameSpot that the team was hard at work to bring more than just new cars to the racing circuit. However, as Greenawalt put it, "Tracks take upwards of 3 to 5 months to build, plus testing and iteration time--not to mention the reference collection and coordination trips. That said, DLC tracks are on the way."

Twin Ring Motegi

Take a look at Forza 2's first downloadable track.

Today, Microsoft confirmed to GameSpot that Forza 2's first downloadable track is off the blocks and will be delivered over Xbox Live on October 26. Forza 2's 14th track is Twin Ring Motegi, which is based on a real-world track designed by Honda in 1997 for testing cars. The track is also a premier destination for circuit racing in Japan and accommodates CART, IRL, NASCAR, SuperGT, and Formula Nippon events. The Twin Ring Motegi downloadable track will be available for 600 Microsoft points ($7.50).

Due to its unique "twin ring" layout, the course offers several different racing paths. The full course combines long straights with sharp corners, which should please those who enjoy fiddling with Forza 2's car telemetry options. The course also favors cars that have a good downforce balance and quality chassis.

For some more insight into Motegi and its inclusion in Forza 2, we spoke with Forza 2 game director Dan Greenawalt.

GameSpot: Why Motegi as the first DLC track for Forza 2?

Dan Greenawalt: First, some backstory... It's much faster for our car team to turn around a car pack than for the track team to create a new environment. Environments take upwards of 3 to 5 months to build. Basically, because of the level of detail, building environments in v2 take four times longer than in the original Forza. Meanwhile, the fans were beating down our doors for some DLC tracks...

Who needs a guideline when there are all these skid marks?

So, why Motegi? Motegi was already on a short list of tracks with international name recognition and cool gameplay moments that we started researching immediately after finishing FM2. However, knowing how long it took to create each environment, Motegi moved to the top of the pile because of how many ribbons that we could give players with this one environment. Basically, we knew that Motegi would give players the most gameplay bang!

GS: For those who've never seen the course before, what aspects of the track should they look out for?

DG: The full track is one of the longer ribbons in Forza Motorsport. It's a nice mix of combination corners and pretty brutal hairpins. The short West Course is one the shorter ribbons in the game so that there are always cars around. The bonus is that Motegi Speedway is really different from any of our other tracks (even the other oval). The NW curve is tight enough that braking is still required. This also seems to make it less of a pure flat-out top-speed contest than the Nissan Speedway.

GS: Motegi is known for its dual-track nature--a road course and an oval. How many variations will you be able to run in the game, and how are the different ribbons configured?

DG: Four variations, including three road courses and the oval.

You won't just be turning left on Twin Ring.

GS: Do you have any setup tips for folks looking to be fast around the course?

DG: I'm still trying to crack that nut. The three road-course layouts range from very short with long straights for maximum speed, to very long with varied turns. These layouts demand tuning trade-offs. I've been focusing on an understeering setup that gives me high speed and braking stability in order to set up a late apex onto the long straight. I'm still not convinced that this is the best approach for my driving style.

GS: One slightly off-topic question regarding Project Gotham Racing 4. In the past, you've spoken before of Turn 10 and Bizarre sharing ideas between Forza and PGR and I'm curious to hear A) your general thoughts on the game, B) if there's something in PGR 4 you'd like to see in the Forza series, and C) any thoughts you have about the future of PGR now that Bizarre has been acquired by Activision.

DG: I think PGR4 is the best PGR to date. I really like hydroplaning through standing water. The photo sharing from your garage is pretty cool, too. If there is one thing I would add to Forza from the PGR series, it would be Geometry Wars. As far as what happens to the PGR franchise now that Bizarre has been acquired...your guess is as good as mine. Personally, I really liked having a second racing franchise in MGS to commiserate with.

142 Comments

  • keyboarder20

    Posted Nov 1, 2007 6:01 am PT

    I love my 360, i like my Forza 2 but there is no way that i am paying for this download. Microsoft ,this time i must tell you GET LOST. I bet some people don`t mind being ripped off like this. I already pay for XBOX LIVE GOLD, if you thing you are making me pay for more download content, for a game you could not be bother to provide enough tracks to start with , you have another thing coming your way. Carry on like this and i am going 100% Sony`s way.

  • daviwinn

    Posted Oct 30, 2007 3:30 pm PT

    So Gamespot still hasn't mentioned the price dropping to 400 points. This game must not be a high enough priority for them to bother correcting it. It's a shame. I hope no one takes a look at this article then decides not to download the track because it say's 600 points here.

  • calzoony

    Posted Oct 29, 2007 11:18 am PT

    this update will be well good just about to download, i love this game its sooo fun

  • shabulia

    Posted Oct 28, 2007 8:09 pm PT

    I don't mind paying the updates.... what pisses me off is how Forza 2 is included with the Xbox 360 now, free of charge (along with Marvel Ultimate Universe). I paid full price for my Forza 2 and I still have to pay more if I want any of the new editions from online. I wish Microsoft would compensate some of us that have had the game since day 1 at least partially.

  • BRETTJB99

    Posted Oct 28, 2007 4:13 pm PT

    To pay for it its worth it, online makes it even greater me and some other people started a drifting type of mode my Gamertag is BRETTJB it is great mode i'll hook u up anyways i play everyday and almost everyday i race this track and over a +1 year year period dont u think it is worth it the car downloads are pretty sweet too!

  • escalade1

    Posted Oct 28, 2007 2:25 pm PT

    i hate how you always have to pay for these little updates

  • Alpha_Omega69

    Posted Oct 27, 2007 4:02 pm PT

    Why are they making such a big deal about a track? I would prefer it if they added newer cars, like the Lambo LP640, Challenger Concept, or the Camaro Concept.

  • UltimateRAGEX

    Posted Oct 27, 2007 6:25 am PT

    Hey at least they lowered the price!

  • pbking13

    Posted Oct 26, 2007 8:46 pm PT

    Sweet.

  • windwalker619

    Posted Oct 26, 2007 4:01 pm PT

    is this pack gonna be for free, or maybe u should buy it by mp ?

  • AlbertPerk

    Posted Oct 26, 2007 5:45 am PT

    RaymondD Yeah right! Besides Gran Turismo, Forza 2 is one of the best racing games I've ever played!

  • RaymonD_SS posted Oct 26, 2007 1:52 am PT (does not meet display criteria. login to show)

    RaymonD_SS

    Posted Oct 26, 2007 1:52 am PT (hide)

    Play "Race 07" much better and more realistic than this crap.

  • Holysapyn

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 11:30 pm PT

    This is some great news i really enjoy forza 2 and look forward to more racing. I do have some requests though (and yes they are minor) could we possiblely have some more Rims and Body mods because theres only 10 or so rims in the game that look good (in my opinion)!!!! i think that would be so cool!!!

  • BraveArc

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 11:26 pm PT

    The track is pretty good.Played all the varations in Gran Turismo 4

  • HellraiserMC

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 10:33 pm PT

    Well, at least all the complaining managed to lower the price. Though I'm still not sure if I'll buy it.

  • Ba0ng89

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 9:28 pm PT

    yea probably nothings free you know

  • daviwinn

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 4:17 pm PT

    so, is Gamespot going to update this with the new price point?

  • arbo303

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 1:42 pm PT

    Another attempt to make a 60 dollar game end up being 200 for everything that could've been included from the beginning. Glad I didn't buy it.

  • sherif77

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 12:34 pm PT

    Is great to see some smart gamers out there ready to say no to getting ripped off. This is funny the next game they will rip us off on is Halo 3. With only 3 big team battle maps you know they are going to do something like this to us. And please spare me the oh they worked on it they have to get paid, whoever says that take a look at their profits on the sales of Halo 3 and shut your mouth.

  • galaxycds

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 11:50 am PT

    The Forza 2 community manager just announced on the msg boards over there that the price is now 400 pts! Nice!

    http://forums.forzamotorsport.net/forums/1066284/ShowThread.aspx#1066284

  • kevin82485

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 10:49 am PT

    I would rather have fictional tracks for free than 1 real-world track for $7.50. Bring back some of the fictional tracks that were in Forza 1. They were good tracks.

  • Rumstocker

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 10:08 am PT

    i applaud kjraider88 for owning both systems because in my opinion, you should own both in order to be able to rip on one........ with that being said.....

    i disagree.... i agree that the PS3 is a better value.... remember to include built in wifi for the ps3.... this is a $100 accessory for the 360........ but u r talking about the value of each game...... PS3 will make you pay for DLC.... I am not saying i like DLC, but don't rip on the 360 for doing it.... the only reason why ps3 hasn't done it much yet is the fact that there aren't any games

    XBL is easily worth $50 a year... PS3 is free but it's a joke.... an absolute JOKE.... i bought Calling All Cars the other day from PSN (PS3's XBL) and there were 5, count them 5, people playing it online

    Unless PS3's Home program dominates, PS3 online will always stink (expecially since you have to agree to an end-user agreement every time you play any game even if you have played it just like EA games on 360)

    In terms of this Forza track.... it's a complete rip off.... I hope no one buys it

  • kg420

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 9:41 am PT

    @ bmanva...never did I say I bought a pc(mines almost 2 yrs old now) just to play crysis, my apologies for having more than one source of entertainment. Please don't try and turn what I said into some stupid 360vPC debate. My point is that Forza 1 was a great game with great tracks and it's pretty crappy that it looks like the sequel will end up having some astronomical price if you jump at the tracks when first released for $7.50!!! Or is it no longer ok on these boards to disagree with Microsoft on something?

  • zidan4000

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 8:41 am PT

    the biggest problem in forza 2 is lack of tracks , but this problem have an advantage to the player himself!! you can easily remember each track you played in so you can play the track hundreds of times and then get used to it, anyway im not going to buy ONE track for 800 M$ points , i dont think it will be 800 , if its a 200 or 150 maybe i will get it with no problems.

  • sherif77

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 8:40 am PT

    Kjraider88 the PS3 isn't doing this cause they don't really have a XBL service. Their online structure is so pathetic. Just give them time till their home net work is up, and u'll be dealing with the same Moneky A$$ greediness. Ppl just dont buy the content. I know I won't.

  • Kjraider88

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 7:53 am PT

    360 Owners buy the game (60) then pay for live(50/yr +) depending on the payment option. I have a PS3 and 360, and i have spent more on my 360 and i have the same amount of games on each. I think the average consumer in the US are stupid. a 360 at face is cheaper, a couple XBL subscriptions later, you've past the base Ps3 in price, assuming you don't buy a HD DVD player, then you pass the total Pricing for the top PS3... What I'm trying to say is you bought a 360, pay annually for XBL, and now YOU have to deal with this expense, DLC...Deal with it, your the one who bought the 360 so suffer your expenses that come along, including the DLC. I feel PS3 is the better value, and i own both systems, just an opinion, no offense intended.

  • MGSteve

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 6:22 am PT

    @ dryden555 - Well, it takes around 5 man months of time to put a car into GT5, so I'd say don't under-estimate the amount of time it takes to come up with content for games.

    We have the High Definition nature of the 360/PS3 to thank for that - higher def means more detail. More detail = more time to generate the content.

  • dryden555

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 6:18 am PT

    Marka, dont believe everything you read.

  • MGSteve

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 6:17 am PT

    You cheap skates. Would you work for 5 months on developing a track for a racing game and then say ' Oh well, we'll release it for free'?

    No, its a company, they have developers and artists to pay! Being a PS3 owner, I don't know how many tracks are in Forza2 anyway, but presuming there are a decent amount, its not as if the game shipped light of tracks is it?

    Problem is people, just because you've shelled out $60 or whatever, why should any extras be free? $7 (around £4 in my money) is nothing and certainly not worth moaning your arse off about.

    By the sound of it you actually get 4 track layouts anyway, so in effect you're getting 4 tracks for $7.50.

    And then to complain and say it should be free... just pathetic, sorry.

    Btw, this track is good fun - been playing it for years in GT4.

    *That Said*, lionelchu's idea of sponsorship for tracks must be a possibility really. Depends if its worth it to the advertiser and the developers though. If 100,000 people download this that's $ 750,000 revenue. Would an advertiser be prepared to pay that to sponsor a track?

  • insane_metalist

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 2:46 am PT

    The track looks unique but it's way too expensive

  • lionelchu

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 2:38 am PT

    i can understand that the companies need to make money, but i don't think the consumer should have to pay for more content after the 60 price tag. i think it would be clever if they could find a sponser and just put a ton of logos all over the track. like little pepsi flags, or a really hot chich wearing axe or something... i think it would help put some money into developers hands and put into the consumers as well.

  • mysteriousminds

    Posted Oct 25, 2007 12:44 am PT

    why isnt it free off xbox live?
    tsk tsk.

  • sherif77

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 11:35 pm PT

    I hate how these companies make money off us the gamer/monkey brain ppl that buy these extras. you have to stop buying these thing so they give us games with contents that we want. GT2 had more tracks than Forza 2 on the PS2, which makes it pretty sad.
    STOP BUYING THESE STUPID EXTRAS OFF THEM SO THEY GET THE MESSAGE.

  • bmanva

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 10:59 pm PT

    "figures...release a sequel with half the tracks that'll ultimately cost $200 to be equal to the original...nice try. Disappointing since the gameplay is there, but the content is lacking terribly track-wise."
    You paid over $1K for a computer run crysis at a decent framerate and you're complaining about turn10 charging $7 for an addon track? Yea...

  • Marka1700

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 10:56 pm PT

    @ those complaining about price, Didn't you read the article, it takes a long time to make these tracks, programers, graphics desingers ect dont work for free.

  • kg420

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 7:21 pm PT

    figures...release a sequel with half the tracks that'll ultimately cost $200 to be equal to the original...nice try. Disappointing since the gameplay is there, but the content is lacking terribly track-wise.

    I'm personally growing bored of the $60 price tag with these half-finished games....I see darker days for my 360 with Crysis and CoD4 coming around for PC shortly.

  • matty_sen

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 6:47 pm PT

    i sense rip-off but 4 tracks, i dunno how diffrent they are and if there good maps they think were made of money (if so then i would be dead or spent)

  • mad1er

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 4:11 pm PT

    pls give us a kaido track for us drifters! fm1 had a sick canyon road. imagine the downhill battles that would be taking place. oh yah a nice bodykit for the 86 trueno would be nice too. id pay 600 pts. for a kaido track...

  • facekick

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 4:00 pm PT

    7.50 for Motegi? The track is not even that great a lot of hard breaking corners and not much to look at. There are better courses out there. And yes, it's too expensive for just one track.

  • DeathStar17

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 1:39 pm PT

    Hey what do you know, another rip off in the form of DLC...

  • n3ck

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 12:22 pm PT

    600points for 1 track???? yeah right! I love Forza, but this is a rip off , if people dont pay it then the price will have to drop, I think 300 is reasonable but 600 is just LOOL, thats like $7.50

  • ManiacCop2

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 11:47 am PT

    Not only is it too expensive, but how about the fact that you probably won't even be able to race this track in career mode?

    7.50 for exhibition races only... weak. They should have thrown in a car or 2 that are well-balanced for the track, and a new career trophy or something.

    btw- 4 tracks is nonsense... the largest ribbon has the entire track, and the other two are just different pieces of it... plus an oval no one wants

    i love forza and forza 2, but cmon with this

  • bspate

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 11:32 am PT

    I love playing Forza 2, but I'm totally bored with the current tracks. However.....$7.50 for one track is ridiculous!! So much for thanking your fans for buying the game originally!!

  • tommyxx516

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 10:58 am PT

    I don't know why people would support the idea of paying $7 to dl 'some' new contents. Thats a major rip off compared to the fact that a game cost $60.

  • trinity_rdp

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 10:33 am PT

    Bring back the Downhill tracks from forza 1

  • dryden555

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 9:47 am PT

    One track? O c'mon. More please

  • ftjx

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 8:52 am PT

    I want a track editor

  • 360player_eq12

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 8:50 am PT

    should of been in the original game.....

  • GIF

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 8:14 am PT

    If there was one thing I would add, it would be open cities and cops. EA pussed out with Need for Speed.

  • soliduseddd

    Posted Oct 24, 2007 7:45 am PT

    boring boring forza 2

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