Confirmed: Spa-Francorchamps Joins Forza Motorsport Track List

Forza Motorsport 2023 Spa-Francorchamps.jpeg
Some racing circuits are so iconic that they just cannot be overlooked, and Spa-Francorchamps is certainly part of this category. It should come as a surprise that the iconic track laid out in the Ardennes is the latest venue to be confirmed as part of Forza Motorsport's launch lineup.

Image credit: Turn 10 Studios/Microsoft

Shortly after announcing the Nürburgring and Mugello, Forza added the next historic circuit to its roster. Spa is a mainstay in most sims, so the site of the Belgian Grand Prix, the 6 Hours of Spa or the 24 Hours of Spa could not be left out for Forza Motorsport either. At roughly 7 kilometers, it is one of the longer modern tracks, offering a unique challenge to drivers not only through the daring Eau Rouge-Raidillon complex of corners.

The track has been part of the series since Forza Motorsport 5, appearing in every Motorsport title since making its debut in the fifth instalment in 2013. Interestingly, however, the track will not feature the renovations of recent years, according to the teaser - the old grandstands opposite the endurance pit lane are visible, as is the house at the top of Raidillon that used to be home to a bar.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1696281748441546936

Layout Remains Unchanged​

The grandstands have been replaced for the 2023 season, and the house has been gone since the renovations started in late 2021 to extend the run-off area at Eau Rouge and Raidillon following serious accidents that saw cars being thrown back onto the racing line after hitting the wall, one of which tragically resulted in the death of French Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert in 2019.

The track layout itself has not changed, but the addition of gravel to certain runoff areas such as that of La Source would change the way drivers would approach the corner - running wide over the kerb has more drastic consequences with gravel present compared to the tarmac runoff of the slightly older version, as we have already argued in regards to iRacing's version of Spa.

Either way, using a slightly dated version will not change the thrill of trying to master the iconic Belgian circuit, especially with the enormous variety of cars Forza Motorsport has to offer. Find out what has been confirmed for launch day here. The game will release for PC via Steam and the Xbox Store, and Xbox Series X|S on October 10th.

Your Thoughts​

What do you think about Spa returning to Forza Motorsport? What other tracks would you like to see in the game? Let us know in the comments below!
About author
Yannik Haustein
Yannik Haustein
Lifelong motorsport enthusiast and sim racing aficionado, walking racing history encyclopedia.

Sim racing editor, streamer and one half of the SimRacing Buddies podcast (warning, German!).

Heel & Toe Gang 4 life :D

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Comments

jappygamer
wow i was not expecting this spa circuit is a great surprise, but for me i will make the buy decision if they decide to add ..... MONZA with its first and peaceful chicane! My wallet is already half open!
 
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th3orist said:
they reused all geometry, just slapped on it some better textures.
i dont know man, it is kind of low effort for a 6 years break.
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Can you provide some evidence? How do you know which data they used? Maybe they used old laser scan data and made a new more detailed model based on that. Or maybe they made new scan 3 years ago. I don't have this kind of information and I didn't play the game yet. I am sick of people making statements like this without any kind of evidence. Like those comments about old models for cars. If they made laser scans in the past, why would they make completely new models if the cars are still the same? The only important thing is how it feels in my hands.
 
S
I would love to see Sebring, Sonoma and Road Atlanta as last 3 circuits. But Brands Hatch, Oulton Park or Lime Rock would be also nice. I hope they will be releasing new circuits on regular basis and in a few years they will fill in the gaps.
 
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Ser Hashut said:
The only important thing is how it feels in my hands.
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To me not really. I expect it to be also visually impressive, actually the visuals should be better than the physics/driving, since thats what a simcade title of this caliber has been about always, because as far as the pure driving goes, the simulators are better. So if it was only for the driving, i would not consider FM or GT games. Thats why i am quite pedantic about the game's visuals. Sure, the driving needs to feel nice, but what i am saying is that i have a different measurement stick when it comes to visuals for a game like FM compared to let's say rFactor2 or iRacing or even ACC. And the other way around when it comes to physics and driving feel. I can forgive visual shortcoming on racing sims, i can't do this with Gran Turismo or FM, at least i hold them to higher standards than a racing sim. And Forza being on a 6 years break AND not supporting older gen consoles (unlike Sony with GT7) definitely has to blow me away.

About car models, just pause this video at second 8 or 9 and look at that model, to me it really looks absolutely bad for a 2023 top visuals racing game. It looks like straight up ported over from FM 3 or 4. I really hope that the shaders and whatnot were not finished on that car. I know its just one example and cars they made for this title will look better, but if they reuse old models then there should be some kind of parity.
 
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th3orist said:
To me not really. I expect it to be also visually impressive, actually the visuals should be better than the physics/driving, since thats what a simcade title of this caliber has been about always, because as far as the pure driving goes, the simulators are better. So if it was only for the driving, i would not consider FM or GT games. Thats why i am quite pedantic about the game's visuals.
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1. Did you see it in native resolution on your monitor? I wouldn't rate it just based on few low quality videos in social media. I bet it can look beautiful with RT lightning. Also why did you switch topic to visuals? Until now we discussed that they use old version of circuit. That's not the same as visual quality.
2. Why it can't have physics/driving on AMS2/ACC/rF2 level? Just because you said it must be simcade? If they invested more money into this core stuff rather then updating each detail around circuit or car models, I will be for sure happier then if they would try to be another GT7, which has some nice visuals, but everything else is almost unchanged since GT5/6.
 
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Ser Hashut said:
1. Did you see it in native resolution on your monitor? I wouldn't rate it just based on few low quality videos in social media. I bet it can look beautiful with RT lightning. Also why did you switch topic to visuals? Until now we discussed that they use old version of circuit. That's not the same as visual quality.
2. Why it can't have physics/driving on AMS2/ACC/rF2 level? Just because you said it must be simcade? If they invested more money into this core stuff rather then updating each detail around circuit or car models, I will be for sure happier then if they would try to be another GT7, which has some nice visuals, but everything else is almost unchanged since GT5/6.
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1) I have not seen it in native but i have enough experience with youtube footage and know exactly what i have to look for in order to be able to get a pretty good idea whether or not the native image i will see will be to my liking. Thats what i based my opinion on. About the track i simply assumed they were reusing the mesh and the geometry simply for the same reason why they reuse older car models from their other games, to save money (which is fine), but if Rennsport has the updated version of Spa that is already for over a year there, then one would think a company like Turn 10 could pull it off too :)

2) Again, experience with this game series. Just like Gran Turismo was never on the level of 'actual' Sims, the same goes for me for the FM games. They are definitely leaned towards simulation, but they just dont have the same fidelity as the racing sims and i do not see Turn 10 changing this now. And its also not really feasible because there is a reason why Racing sims have way less cars than GT or FM. Because it takes a lot of time to dial in the physics. It would not be viable from Turn 10s or PDs point of view to spend that amount of time on one car like Kunos does to dial in the physics, because the main audience of these games is simply not the audience that is super hardcore into iRacing, ACC etc. Sure there will be people like us who can enjoy both, but the bulk of the playerbase of GT or FM is not playing ACC. So there is for Turn10 no need to go overboard with the physics on all of the 400 or what cars. ACC had exactly 12 or 13 cars only at launch. For a reason.
 
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th3orist said:
1) I have not seen it in native but i have enough experience with youtube footage and know exactly what i have to look for in order to be able to get a pretty good idea whether or not the native image i will see will be to my liking.

2) And its also not really feasible because there is a reason why Racing sims have way less cars than GT or FM. Because it takes a lot of time to dial in the physics. It would not be viable from Turn 10s or PDs point of view to spend that amount of time on one car like Kunos does.
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1- So you are expert on judging games based on YT videos? I can't compete with that. I rather try them on my own and I will wait for direct experience.

2- Do you really think that laws of physics apply differently to various cars? That's very funny opinion and any physicist would laugh on it. And spending time on particular cars in Forza? How would you do that, when there are endless options for upgrade variations. They just can't meet similar level of simulation like all the engine modes and other specific stuff for cars in ACC. But once physics engine is done right, you can apply it to any number of cars. It just takes more effort if all cars behave as expected, so it's for sure tougher, but believable simulation is achievable. It just won't be as detailed as that new F1 mod for AC, where single car has crazy level of detail :)
 
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Ser Hashut said:
They just can't meet similar level of simulation...
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But wait a moment. That is exactly what i said and i also said that this is not something i expect Forza or Gran Turismo to do. You were the one asking me "Why it can't have physics/driving on AMS2/ACC/rF2 level? Just because you said it must be simcade? If they invested more money into this core stuff rather then..."
But in your last post you basically prove my point, they simply can't reach the same level. Or am i missing some intricate detail here? I said that i am not expecting FM or GT to be on a level with iRacing, rF2 or ACC, but thats also exactly why i am expecting them to exceed in the visual department.

And as for 1): I am not an expert. I simply know for myself what to look for in prerelease 4k footage in order to get a decent idea about the visual fidelity i will see on my own screen once i boot the game up. They are showing us this after all in order to show off the game, don't they? And thats how i treat it. I see what they show off and judge it, or at least i have some preliminary opinion about it. And last i checked that was not something that crazy :)
There are also games where i think from the footage "damn this looks really good". So in this case my opinion is "its ok i guess, but i am not blown away, i expected it to look better."
 
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To answer you, theorist, you who define Forza as an arcade sim (with good reason so far but of quality) and who decide that an arcade sim must be splendid graphically rather than offering an enriching experience in terms of simracing since "real sims will always be better than simarcades", that according to your knowledge of YouTube viewing the game is rather ugly, copied from old versions, that you doubt its physical improvements without having tried it, that you think that each Assetto car (which I love especially with CM, CSP and PURE) was tweaked by the small Kunos team since there were very few, etc...
In response therefore, here is a link to view graphic aspects of the game in 4K, to be viewed at 6 minutes 55 and 10 minutes 40,
Isn't that pretty enough for you? And we have the impression that the arcade sim becomes less arcade and more sim when we see the videos where we see the cars skidding, passing on the vibrators... The worst in Forza has always been the management ruffles... But hey, hope keeps us alive, we'll see.
I will also point out to you that Mario Kart is total arcade, but that the gameplay is great.
For the beauty of Forza's graphics, I think you're talking nonsense.
 
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th3orist said:
they reused all geometry, just slapped on it some better textures.
i dont know man, it is kind of low effort for a 6 years break.
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I left you a message right above this one, I'm writing here just so you don't miss it as I talk about you. Good day.
 
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Pazop said:
I left you a message right above this one, I'm writing here just so you don't miss it as I talk about you. Good day.
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I did not miss it, thank you for your input. I have nothing to add or say to what you said. Your post is perfectly fine. Cheers
 
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Pazop said:
Un comparatif F7 et F"8"
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I know the video, but i have to honestly say that for a 6 years break since FM7 thats not enough of a visual improvement what i see in the footage they released. And i do not judge these flashy rendered trailers, i simply judge all the small actual gameplay bits and pieces or their track presentation videos they keep releasing lately. You can pause them at certain points and try to look closer and all i can say is that i am not impressed by the detail and texture work. I simply expect more from Forza Motorsport. As it was pointed out, and i agree, the driving feel has to be good and also the whole campaign progression, that car-pg mechanics etc. Thats also my hope that they improved in these areas coming from FM7. We can all agree that having simply gorgeous visuals does not make a good game. So i am well aware that there are other factors that are more important for long term motivation than visuals. Yet it does not mean i can't be slightly disappointed from the footage i've seen.

Edit: But there is hope for me. As IGN pointed out, they were also somewhat disappointed with the visuals a few months ago when we got the first actual gameplay snippets. And they said that the build Turn10 brought to Gamescom was way better looking in comparison. So thats good to hear.
 
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th3orist said:
I know the video, but i have to honestly say that for a 6 years break since FM7 thats not enough of a visual improvement what i see in the footage they released. And i do not judge these flashy rendered trailers, i simply judge all the small actual gameplay bits and pieces or their track presentation videos they keep releasing lately. You can pause them at certain points and try to look closer and all i can say is that i am not impressed by the detail and texture work. I simply expect more from Forza Motorsport. As it was pointed out, and i agree, the driving feel has to be good and also the whole campaign progression, that car-pg mechanics etc. Thats also my hope that they improved in these areas coming from FM7. We can all agree that having simply gorgeous visuals does not make a good game. So i am well aware that there are other factors that are more important for long term motivation than visuals. Yet it does not mean i can't be slightly disappointed from the footage i've seen.

Edit: But there is hope for me. As IGN pointed out, they were also somewhat disappointed with the visuals a few months ago when we got the first actual gameplay snippets. And they said that the build Turn10 brought to Gamescom was way better looking in comparison. So thats good to hear.
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You are a person we can talk to, I really appreciate that. For Forza, fingers crossed and then we'll see. For my part (it has nothing to do with Forza, sorry) I have been rediscovering AC with great enthusiasm for a few months with the addition of CM + CSP + PURE modes in VR (VR very improveable thanks to CSP/Mode tweaks: VR ) physics (especially braking), rain, night, real mirrors, etc. and of course the splendid graphics and I'm enjoying it like never before, I can't help but advertise it for the few here who don't know.
Good day to you.
 
T
Pazop said:
You are a person we can talk to, I really appreciate that. For Forza, fingers crossed and then we'll see. For my part (it has nothing to do with Forza, sorry) I have been rediscovering AC with great enthusiasm for a few months with the addition of CM + CSP + PURE modes in VR (VR very improveable thanks to CSP/Mode tweaks: VR ) physics (especially braking), rain, night, real mirrors, etc. and of course the splendid graphics and I'm enjoying it like never before, I can't help but advertise it for the few here who don't know.
Good day to you.
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AC1 is going so strong with all these mods. Kunos definitely have their work cut out for them with Assetto Corsa 2 because the bar is set pretty high by the modding community in AC1. I am super curious to see what Kunos comes up with. Hopefully some Early Access later this year or early next. But they are really keeping their cards close to the chest, aren't they? Absolutely zero, nothing, nada, not even a teaser screenshot of anything.
 
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th3orist said:
But wait a moment. That is exactly what i said and i also said that this is not something i expect Forza or Gran Turismo to do. You were the one asking me "Why it can't have physics/driving on AMS2/ACC/rF2 level? Just because you said it must be simcade? If they invested more money into this core stuff rather then..."
But in your last post you basically prove my point, they simply can't reach the same level. Or am i missing some intricate detail here? I said that i am not expecting FM or GT to be on a level with iRacing, rF2 or ACC, but thats also exactly why i am expecting them to exceed in the visual department.

And as for 1): I am not an expert. I simply know for myself what to look for in prerelease 4k footage in order to get a decent idea about the visual fidelity i will see on my own screen once i boot the game up. They are showing us this after all in order to show off the game, don't they? And thats how i treat it. I see what they show off and judge it, or at least i have some preliminary opinion about it. And last i checked that was not something that crazy :)
There are also games where i think from the footage "damn this looks really good". So in this case my opinion is "its ok i guess, but i am not blown away, i expected it to look better."
Click to expand...
1) If you have just preliminary feelings, just say “I am afraid it may not reach level of visual quality I expect”. Just don’t throw at us final judgment. I get it what makes you cautious, but let’s wait for results on our monitors
2) You spoke about physics and I have no doubt they can get it on mentioned AMS/ACC/rF2 level. What they may miss are simulation details like some assists/engine stuff, but that’s not physics. 2 cars with same weight, center of mass, performance and tires will be always behaving close enough from physics point of view to provide belivable driving feel. Its just matter how deep did they really go. In one week we should get first previews from chosen players, so let’s wait how they see it
 
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