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I'm a newbie to modern racing games, the last racing game I played was nfs most wanted.. I wanted to get back into racing after watching an amazing video on youtube so went and bought myself the Forza motorsport 4 for xbox.

While racing, I noticed that even though I had the acceleration button pressed, the car slowed down during turns etc.. (noticeable by the sound) and after tampering with the settings I found out that changing difficulty level to Hard (or pro) from medium seemed to eliminate that.. however, I had a new problem to deal with.. my car was completely out of control.

I noticed that in hard mode, the auto stabilizer is turned off, breaking is not assisted and steering is ABS (whatever that means).. Now my cars have much wider turning curve and it is impossible to make a turn without spinning, coming to a halt or a straight on colliding with the sides of the track.

I've tried not accelerating, braking, reversing during turns - all have the same effect - collision or spinning.

Why is this all so difficult? what happened to "floor the gas and go" idea, like the one they had on nfs, it was still a lot of fun to play without actually getting into the "realism" - if that is what it is..

My real question is - How do I work, rather, how do I make my turns in the "hard" mode in Forza motorsport 4? Is there some trick I need to follow?

ps: I noticed the same is true for Gran Turismo 5 on ps3, though I haven't played it much.

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I totally agree with Dave McClelland, but want to add a few points from my own experience.

You don't have to have all of the driver assists turned on for the game to be enjoyable as a newbie, but some are definitely helpful.

I have turned automatic braking completely off, but left ABS turned on. In Forza 4, automatic braking will apply the brakes when it thinks you're going too fast for the part of the track that you're on. ABS ensures that you don't lock the brakes under heavy braking. It's standard equipment on pretty much every car produced today IRL. The reason I turned off automatic braking is that I find that it brakes too early, too hard, or unnecessarily, increasing lap times. For the gas peddle always down crowd, it's useful, but for anyone who has actually driven a car and knows that you have to slow down for corners, it's usually more of a hindrance than a helper.

Next is the racing line. I've set it to show braking only. This is because I know the general rules for getting fast lap times: slow in, fast out, hit the apex of the turn, etc. I pretty much know what the racing line is, and usually have a good idea of where to turn in, but don't really know where to start braking on most tracks. If you don't know what the racing line is, then you may want to set it to show the full racing line.

For the rest of the driver assists, I have them set to a mix of on, off, or intermediate. For me personally, I've struck a nice balance between controlling the car and getting good lap times. Note that good players can get better lap times with these driver assists turned off than they would if they were on.

But even if you had all the driver assists turned on, you still wouldn't be able to play Forza like an arcade racer. Too much gas too early in a turn, even with the automatic braking, and you'll be drifting at best, but more likely spinning out and crashing into the exit guard rail. For the gas peddle always down crowd, there are some corners that the automatic braking will get them through, but most will end like I just described. Proper throttle control is key to successfully negotiating corners in Forza. Luckily you don't have to worry about braking control as much with ABS turned on, as long as you don't try cornering too hard with the brakes on.

You're going to have to find the perfect balance between how much you control the car, and how much control you hand over to the "onboard computer" (i.e. the game). In the end though, you simply can't treat Forza 4 like an arcade racer. You can find a load of racing techniques that will help you when playing racing sims, as well as arcade racers. Start with some of the theory, and you'll start seeing your lap times improve.

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  • HI, thank you, ton on information here, I tried a few more variations, mostly the ones you suggested and few ones that I wanted to change too.. I think I am starting to understand.. It is not so much as just racing but racing as close to being in a real world race! I have to think about my car even touching other cars etc.. It is a great game! Oct 16, 2012 at 9:05
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Comparing Forza and GT5 to games like Need For Speed is like comparing NFL Blitz to the Madden series. Forza prides itself on being a hyper-realistic racing simulator, not just a "racing game." As such, the vehicle mechanics aim to be as true to life as possible. If the game is too difficult for you on hard, my best advice is don't play on hard.

Forza's hard difficulty removes features like traction control and ABS, as well as line indicators (that can tell you where to drive, or just went to slow down for a turn). These things are meant to help newer drivers. Turning them off is something only very skilled drivers should do.

If you are unhappy with the car slowing itself down, there is a setting you can adjust independently. I'm not sure offhand, but I think it's called "braking assist." Play around with the difficulty settings a bit - they allow you to customize all the options. Start with medium or easy, but turn off brake assist if it's proving too easy. Wash, rinse, and repeat with the other options to find a difficulty that's right for you.

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  • Hi, thanks for the answer. I don't even know what comparing NFL Blitz to Madden series is like, but I'm assuming something stone age to current age, or comparing two incomparable things. Either way, isn't the goal of a game (and the fun) is to beat it on it's hardest level? I feel like I'm missing out on something if I don't play it on higher levels, or I'm somehow inferior to other players who play on that level.. Isn't "practice" key to mastering the level? - and so my question; how would I make that turn so I would get a basic idea and practice more at it until I could.. Oct 15, 2012 at 13:07
  • Ah, the last paragraph seems to answer my question a bit more.. Thank you. Oct 15, 2012 at 13:08
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    @LocustHorde I accidentally submitted after the second paragraph. Make no mistake, Forza is an incredibly difficult game - going straight to the hardest difficulty is just not going to work. Start on an easier difficulty, and if you're determined to beat it on hard, change settings one by one to get used to playing without each assist type. And good luck, because you'll need it. Oct 15, 2012 at 13:13
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    Also, there are plenty of different customizations you can do with the car setups. For example, adjusting the downforce and springs can either make you turn better or turn worse depending on your setup. Each track and each car have their own unique customization. I personally prefer driving with real-wheel drive cars, my driving style in the game makes those cars easier for me to corner with. Yes, the game can be very hard but that is what makes it so much fun. I'm waiting for the next Forza game to come out very soon, can't wait to get my hands on it! Until then, race on!
    – C-dizzle
    Oct 15, 2012 at 14:05
  • @C-dizzle, thank you! I downloaded the Horizon demo on xbox live and it is amazing! Oct 16, 2012 at 9:06
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What you need to do is spend time tuning your car. If you're spinning out in turns, you'll probably want to adjust your differential, brake balance, Brake pressure (90% seems to be best) and downforce. When you get those down, also spend some time on rear-end toe-in/toe-out. Rear toe-out makes it easier to drift, but at the cost of a higher risk of spinning out.

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