Players: 1 - 2 (1 - 8 via Online)
Price: $59.99
Platform(s): Xbox 360
Developer: Turn 10 Studios
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
ESRB: Everyone
Release Date: May, 2007
Website: www.Xbox.com/en-US/Games/f/ForzaMotorsport2

The finish line for development time is almost here. Forza Motorsport 2, the renown racing simulator, will feature some of the most realistic looking vehicles and unmatched tuning options for true gearheads. Plus, it’s one of the few racing titles that let you wreck some of the most expensive vehicles in the world.

Featuring 300+ of some of the best (and worst) cars from car manufacturers worldwide – Forza 2 definitely doesn’t wade in shallow water when it comes to vehicle selection. And if you haven’t played Forza Motorsport on the original Xbox, than the only thing you need to know is that it’s like Gran Turismo. Except, the cars have damage...you can also tune your automobile to fine perfection, and the AI actually tries to win at all costs. Okay, so it’s not like Gran Turismo...but you get my drift.

But let’s not twaddle about what you may already be expecting from the game. Instead, let’s discuss some of the new gizmos and glamors present in this sequel: Specifically, the Auction House. Now the original Forza introduced a grand-fantastic way to sell custom vehicles, not-so-custom vehicles and even sorry-butt rickety jalopies. Forza 2, however, takes that concept to the next level by giving gamers the opportunity to showcase prized possessions in the Auction House. Even if you’re not interested in buying from someone you can still give your eyes a vacation by letting them rest on the sights of some amazing (and not-so-amazing) custom jobs by other Live gamers.

What makes the Auction House so prestigious is that the updated Livery Editor gives gamers an unprecedented amount of control over how they customize and detail every aspect of their car’s appearance. Once you think you’ve got a best seller on your hands you can auction it up for a virtual sale over Xbox live. Pretty neat huh? Yeah, I think so too.

Now, before your car makes it to the Auction House you’ll actually have to put some work into it. This is where Forza 2 excels. Side panels can help increase wind resistance, while a snazzy spoiler combined with the right hood may influence better grip, acceleration and even speed. But heck, who wants car-mods for performance? We all know the whole point of tricking out your vehicle is to make it look like it’ll wipe the floor with the competition. Even if it your RX-7 can’t muster the turns too good – if it looks like a million bucks then that’s all that matters. Am I right? Yeah, of course I am.

In addition to the custom car features and Auction House, Forza 2 features a re-built physics engine for 360 calculations per second, resulting in one of the most advanced in-game racing simulations around (duh). And there’s now a total of 45 different tracks that span the likes of 12 different environments to race any of the 300+ vehicles on. A quick note, though: My only gripe about the original Forza was that the career mode didn’t make full use of every track – and it seemed like some of the same tracks were done a million times over. Hopefully this [minor] issue is resolved in Forza 2.

And for the racing noobs (you know who you are) there’s even more racing assists to help guide amateur racers around every track. Racing lines help dictate proper speeds and positioning to effectively race through each course. There's also stability management, traction control and auto-shifting to ensure that noobs don't bomb on the race course. Thankfully, the original Forza gave point-perks to advanced racers for turning off assists of any kind...hopefully that stays true for Forza 2. Nevertheless, one thing that hasn’t gone away is the online modes. And if you’re good enough you can even earn career points via competition with other players over Live. Alternatively you can also view the competition with the Forza Motorsport 2 TV feature; gamers can easily drop in on the action and watch some wheel-to-wheel tire grinding.

You can look for Forza Motorsport 2 to hit store shelves this May for the Xbox 360, and for further information you can visit the Official Xbox Website.