Forza Horizon 2 coming with Furious7
Xbox and Universal Partnerships & Licensing have announced an unprecedented partnership to bring a unique, interactive, and exclusive experience to millions of Xbox fans worldwide. For the first time ever, the thrilling driving and amazing cars of Forza are combining with the unstoppable “Fast & Furious” movie franchise to create an original adventure filled with high-speed automotive action in Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious.
If you don’t own Forza Horizon 2, don’t worry: This is a standalone, open-world expansion. Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious puts you behind the wheel of more than 11 iconic vehicles from the “Fast & Furious” films – including some exciting new cars from the upcoming “Furious 7.”
In Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious, you’ll be recruited by Fast & Furious expert mechanic Tej Parker, voiced by Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, to source cars for the Fast & Furious crew’s next big mission. You’ll take part in a series of thrilling car challenges set in the idyllic south of France, and inspired by both the “Fast & Furious” movies and Forza’s awesome, pulse-pounding gameplay.
As you complete game challenges, you’ll unlock new cars that you can drive throughout the open world in free roam play. You’ll also be able to take photos of your favorite cars and share them with fellow Forza players via the official Forza website and the Forza Hub app exclusively on Xbox One.
“Forza is synonymous with racing and fun, so it’s only natural for us to work with one of the most celebrated action franchises in the world,” said Phil Spencer, Head of Xbox. “This is a great way to bring Forza players into the world of ‘Fast & Furious,’ and in Forza Horizon 2 Presents Fast & Furious, every fan will get a chance to go wheels-first into the exciting action of the ‘Fast & Furious’ franchise.”
To celebrate the April 3 theatrical launch of “Furious 7,” the expansion will be available at no charge for a limited two-week period. Players can download the expansion on Xbox One or Xbox 360 (at no charge!) from March 27 through April 10; after this, the expansion will cost $10. Players who downloaded it during the initial two-week window can continue to play without restriction.
“‘Furious 7’ is our biggest ‘Fast & Furious’ movie yet, and partnering with the world-class team at Turn 10 Studios offered an exceptional opportunity to thank our millions of passionate fans in an exciting way and to immerse them in an interactive experience that is both visually stunning and adrenaline-charged,” said Bill Kispert, Executive Vice President, Worldwide Digital Platforms, Universal Partnerships & Licensing. “In this adventure, fans will experience the thrill of the ‘Fast & Furious’ series’ most iconic cars through the amazing gameplay of Forza, and we couldn’t think of a better combination for gamers and movie fans alike.”
In many ways, Forza Horizon 2 is close to being the perfect racing game, a textbook example of what a sequel should be. It feels simultaneously familiar and new - inspired by the best open-world racers in recent memory, the result of well-practised refinement. But as it wows you, it also reveals its shabby edges, glaring flaws that leave you to sigh and think, 'Well, that's a shame'.
But when it's good, it's very, very good. This is a party that celebrates the thrill of everything on four wheels, from saloon cars to campervans, flighty open-wheelers to rally monsters. After the intro movie, you're immediately given the loan of the game's hero car - jet-fighter-without wings Huracán - and treated to a series of highlights, blasting up a coastal route and past open fields, the soundtrack matching the intoxicating rush of threading a hypercar through traffic. Southern Europe is your playground, a sprawling map that encompasses six hubs in two (very compressed and modified) versions of France and Italy, where the sunshine is only occasionally broken by spells of beautiful, beading rain. Even then you might catch a rainbow hanging in the vapour.
The whole package feels inclusive. Forza Horizon's Colorado presented you as the outsider, challenged at every turn by a cluster of obnoxious characters ready with a quip about why you were no good. They, thankfully, are gone - the focus barely wavers from the cars, and you're treated as another visitor who's celebrating the sheer fun of driving and racing, forever rolling into a party where everyone gets a present and surprises are plentiful. Granted, the original Horizon did this, too - but here it's truly wonderful, and it adds to the feeling that you're on a permanent holiday.
The goal is the same as it was in Colorado - progress through a series of championships to reach the finale at the Horizon Festival. There's some freedom in the way you get there, as you'll only need to complete a fraction of the championships on offer to qualify for the finale, zigzagging from discipline to discipline. What's more, the world is populated with enough distractions along the way that you probably won't feel bad if you never made it.
Sure, the structure will be familiar to Horizon veterans, and systems that have been deconstructed and repurposed are easily recognised. There's the bucket list challenges, where you're given a car and then told to break a certain speed, find the shortest route while you barrel cross-country or rack up skill points within a time limit. Later on, photo challenges reward you for taking a picture of each of the 200 launch cars. Barn finds periodically crop up, and you'll go on a scavenger hunt for a relic that's been left to rot. Keep an eye out, too, for billboards to smash for XP and credits, speed zones and cameras to fly through.
Even after smashing every last one of the 150 billboards, leaving a mark in the speedtraps and zones, and kicking the bucket list, there'll always be a challenge waiting. Lose yourself in its breadth and you'll never look back - and why would you when there's always something to chase over the horizon?
