Forza Horizon 4 - Xbox One

For many, Forza Horizon has been one of the most consistently good series not just in the world of driving games, but in video games as a whole. Playground could have taken this as a sign to just keep doing what it's been doing and making noticeable but small improvements to the franchise. It hasn't, though, and Forza Horizon is the biggest change to Playground's brand of fast, fun festival racing yet.

First, though, the setting. This time the developer has brought Forza to British shores. You'll see hints of everything from Oxfordshire to the Scottish Highlands, but the north is definitely where the game's heart is and the Lake District and Scotland loom large. Expect sweeping roads and tight dirt tracks in a condensed vision of Britain's most dramatic landscapes.

The changing seasons really mark Forza Horizon 4 out, though. You'll play through spring, summer, autumn and winter, and each one will bring changing conditions that affect not just the atmosphere but the conditions under your tires.

You'll play through each of those seasons in the tutorial, but once you make it to the festival roster. Online functionality has always been a big part of the series, but suddenly now you're in a world populated by other real players, racing in the same seasons as they rotate week by week and, more importantly, racing in new seasonal challenges set out by Playground every time the seasons turn. Suddenly you'll be racing, performing stunts, creating and exploring with plenty of company around you. Horizon isn't a game to be played through, challenge by challenge, but a canvas for Playground to create constantly evolving experiences in. With 450 cars from 100 licensed manufacturers there are plenty of raw materials for the devs to play with, too! more