The world of racing games will never be the same. With 400 cars to choose from and a simulation styled experience that can grab a hold of anyone, yes anyone, whether they’re six or 60, a gamer or non-gamer, has now been bestowed upon us.

Forza Motorsport 3 is designed for casual gamers as well as those who are specific auto aficionados. For example, a friend asked me this weekend to see what Forza 3 had to offer over a couple of Bud Light’s. Why? Well, his father was reading about it in a car magazine and will be buying a  360 this week because of Forza 3. This one game title is seemingly opening up the realm of gaming to a new audience.

Forza 3 places you at the wheel on easy difficulty. This helps you get used to the new handling system and eases you into the driving seat. For some players, simulation style games can be too hard, but Forza 3 finds a line that taps into both playing styles. Using driving and gameplay assists like auto-braking, rewind and auto-tuning, it finds the blend of what fun gaming is. The rewind feature is similar to Codemaster’s Dirt 2, utilizing your learning curve and allowing you to literally rewind mistakes throughout the race. This feature is smooth and easy to use. Simply press the select button to a point before you crashed or made a bad turn as many times as you want.

Inviting you to a new virtual world, Forza 3 also packs in more than 100 tracks, including new additions from Forza 2. Circuit de Catalunya and Le Mans as well as returning favorites like Suzuka, Nürburgring Nordschleife, and the Sebring International Raceway. Forza 3 allows you to stray to off circuit tracks and into new environments like the precipitous Montserrat region in Spain, the jagged Amalfi Coast in Italy and the American Southwest. Aside from the detailed and brilliant environmental graphics, the cars themselves hold you in awe from the start. The attention to every cars detail can be seen from a head light right down to the interior cockpit. As you look around, you can feel the time and work put into this game.

Similar to Forza 2, painters and tuners are able to show off their artistic imagination through the Livery Editor. Customizing cars and sharing designs in the Auction House once again puts Forza into its own breed of a social gaming network. It’s like they put Ebay in a blender with Facebook. All of the 400 cars are tunable and upgradable, allowing players to buy anything they want from other players, using the XP points earned in the game as currency on Xbox Live.

My Favorite Aspects

Season Play – The career mode is played through seasons. That means up to eight races a week, followed by a three lap weekend finale, earning you everything from discounts to XP, and best of all: cars. Each season gets increasingly longer. Season two is about twice the length of the first season and season three is the length of the first two put together. By the time you get to season six, you’ll be spending days upon days pushing through. So don’t expect to have this game as a weekend rental. You’re going to get your moneys worth out of this one when all is said and done.

Details, Details, Details

The attention to detail is mind boggling. For example, the tire physics are so deeply improved, including real time wear, that it enables you get a true understanding of how your car is reacting turn by turn. With all of the driving assists turned off, you can feel the difference from one car to the next. This one aspect creates a new experience from race to race, even if you’re racing the same track over and over again.

The AI

Up to seven AI drivers will challenge you on the tracks and Forza 3 uses Turn 10's Drivatar system, which in essence teaches the computer AI on your driving style. It creates an AI that learns from you. What’s new here is the AI pressure system. Get behind an AI car and, depending on the driver, they might make mistakes. My favorite part of this system comes when I just plain forget I’m racing against the computer generated bots. Playing solo has the feeling that you’re playing against other real players. Sometimes they’ll make dumb mistakes and drive off the track and at other times they’ll move over to box you out of a tight turn. The one drawback in this mode is the AI settings. With three settings given to you (easy, medium, and hard), it feels as if a medium and a half is needed. With the easy and medium being utterly easy over time and hard feeling nearly impossible, I found myself looking for a blend of medium and hard.

Multiplayer

The multiplayer just might be the cherry on top of the sundae that is Forza 3. Turn 10 went out of its way to offer astounding customization. This is the healthiest multiplayer I’ve seen ever offered in a racing game. You can customize every aspect of a race, allowing you to create your own game types easily. For example, you can decide if cars get a head start, which car classes can be used for which teams, or the qualifications for winning a race. High end cars are automatically enabled in the multiplayer, so I’d get in some quality play time before venturing out on your own.