This video has been overshadowed by a far more recent and more fleshed out review of Horizon 2, link to this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-l7jqYsoadqk.htmlsi=EN2JY947zE-4iGf5
I still play it! The online community is still pretty large. I mainly still play it not cuz its my fave racing game but because the disk is stuck in my diak drive and it won't come out mo matter what!
FH1 felt like an actual semi-rpg racing game. FH2 felt like a Top Gear season, any car you want (as long as you progress enough), in Italy with some stunning views and great driving routes, go nuts. FH3 felt like another Top Gear epsiode that had a higher budget and more things to do with off-roaders but this time in Australia. FH4 felt like a new Top Gear episode where they tried and kinda got what the old things had but it just didn't feel the same.
cool, that doesnt change the fact FH4 is still one of, if not the best arcade-esque racing games of this day. Graphics are stunning. Yeah, sounds could do with a lot of work (hope FH5 will bring some loud realistic sounds back).
@@Araararauna7 I know, I love playing FH4, it's all about atmosphere for me though. FH1 and FH2 felt electric when you started with the music and lighting and everything and then you had to work to get that feeling of driving a such a great car by racing and advancing your career. FH4 started you off with some ear-piercing piano notes and just said go have fun, and you can and I do have that fun on it.
The "saturated filter" and the intensity that fh2 and FH3 had was amazing, not only in terms of graphics but also in terms of vibes, compared that to fh4 where, even though it looks way more "realistic" it doesn't have the same vibe, feeling or intensity. That mixed with amazing sounds, a great sense of speed and the handling, the progression and the location, and you get an amazing forza Horizon game
FH2 had the best athmosphere in horizon series in my opinion, in that start intro i felt soo much ''horizon'' vibes than whole FH4 experience. (sorry for bad english)
Yeah! I think the soundtrack is the main culprit though. The simple yet powerful edm of the mid 2010s really makes me feel like I'm in a dream weekend that lasts forever. I think that the 2010s is somewhat of a 'golden age' for edm music. The game just feels so much brighter with that era of sound rather than the darker sound of today with trap music and rap now being mainstream instead of edm. I really want the Coachella vibes and house music back! I realize that I just prefer that era of music. I think the best thing they could do is collaborate with a music streaming service so anyone could craft a soundtrack that aligns with their 'sound of horizon'.
What I can sum up from the horizon series in my pov FH1 (ive sadly never played) : a full story that feels like your building up to something. FH2: Let bulid up to something big but once you get to a certain point do what ever you want FH3: Ok this is your horizon do anything you want but the end goal is to finish the showcase events and have fun FH4: do like 4 races then we give you everything for free don't even have to race
fh4 added so many fuking amazing features for the consumers every single week like adding new cars, and not putting them into a car pack that u have to play real money for, they added an awesome feature where u can just earn the cars for free. They added features like the angle kit and fortune island for the drifters of the game and i honestly dont see many of them giving any props to forza for these features. They now let you literally add things to the map with super 7, so you can make jump courses and make tracks more difficult for the player. I could go on but while the map wasnt great and the story was lacking i have to admit, NOBODY mentions these awesome things that forza added and dont give them any respect, all they ask for is more.
@@Icaruuuuusss I hear what you are saying but here’s my problem with those. Most of what you were mentioned were added after launch. At launch, Horizon 4 was a rushed, empty, uninspired mess of a game. It got slowly better over time but that does not excuse the pathetic launch version of the game
What I loved about fh2 was that they really tried to achieve that festival feeling in a beautiful setting. It made you feel like really taking part in the festival and it felt so realistic. Fh3 and fh4 didn't really achieve that in my opinion. The festival was just a side fact and there was no real story or progression
Exactly my thoughts. I enjoyed feeling like I was really participating in a festival and working my way up in 1 and 2, but I feel like 3 and 4 the festival is just kinda there, and they say hey here’s all these random races that have basically no meaning at all.
I agree with that for the most part. For me, Horizon 3 was the last part that could create a festival feeling for me to some extent, because you could expand the festival over time. In the two games that followed, that was totally missing.
Sheeesh fh 2 looks insane.... You had everything with fh 2: good story, beautiful map , great engine sounds , good sense of speed , amazing looking dynamic weather , one of the best soundtracks racing game received and pretty good graphics.... Forza Horizon 2 is just perfect racing game...
@@freddieparrydrums Im also 15 :)..... Wish i experienced the game that earlier like you , but my country is not that good in terms of financies soo back then i didnt even had console until 2018 when i bought x360.... I had that shitty fh 2 version for x360..... Even tho it was bad i was still thankful for what i have.... But i experienced fh1 and fm 4.... Fh1 is also amazing game soo when i buy the xbox one version of fh2 i could decide which forza horizon is my favourite.....(i also played fh3 and fh4 on pc)
There is a very small detail I absolutely adore in Forza Horizon 2, and it is the camera angles. IDK why, but the camera angles before the race, when you get out of the garage, the road trip summary, and even the cutscenes themselves, mixed with the oh so natural camera shake makes the presentation soooooooooo good.
This was the last game that actually cared about the festival, the music was phenomenal. I still remember the intro with the classic mustang and the woman speaking to you. Phenomenal
Fh3 was also good tho, fh3 you had to race and continue your campaign to enlarge your festival, i still play fh3 to this day and i think fh3 has the best map. Outback, surfers paradise (city), jungle, byron bay (beachy area and also small town).
Ikr. I used to play lots of horizon 2 because it feels just so beautiful, driving past the italian towns and countryside and the french areas with my Ferrari Enzo or 458 italia. One of the very best racing games I've ever played in my life. Meant a lot for me. Hopefully i will consider purchasing xbox series x in the future years just to play some horizon 2 in the weekends when I'm in a better position in my life
@@spencerkendrick1427 That's nice mate :). I still am yet to play fh2 since 3 years because i didn't use my xbox but now that i will be travelling in a couple of months, i will definitely consider buying an xbox series x once i become more settled. And yeah, the coastline of casteletto is by far the best thing I've experienced in a racing game 😍
The map in Forza Horizon 5 is too wide open, really robs a sense of speed and engagement when you can be wide open throttle everywhere you go. I played FH2 so much that I could navigate to different parts of the map without setting routes to them on the in-game map. Really great game, much more based in reality than the new ones.
you ever also notice the highway section in 2 has some high speed corners, 3 lanes, as well as also going DIAGONALLY from one corner to the other corner of the map? And then the next games have smaller 2 lane highways that are basically just straight roads so you can hit your car's top speed.
This game has given me so many memories over the years. Even 8 years on, I still play this game semi-regularly. I come back to it and it makes me just feel so warm. The location, cars, soundtrack, story, festivals are just perfect in this game. And the graphics hold up so well. They captured the Italian car culture so well. I have so much love for this game
I personally love Forza Horizon 1. The music, vibes… they are just so memorable. They even have some cars we don’t have nowadays like the LFA Nurburgring Edition and MazdaSpeed RX-8. Just so much fun memories racing with my friends too
They actually made so much effort for this game, that it aged perfectly, it's a shame that for FH5, it took 4 years of development, and it's still a dry yearly release looking mediocrity, the graphics may be good, but there's no actual cutscenes for that one, they're just zoomed out talking with random animations
this guy really nailed it. FH2 and even 3 had soul to it. FH4 while technically superior is just missing that fun factor. Reminds me of how car reviews compare mclarens to ferraris and lamborghinis. Yes the mclaren is faster but is it really better?
This. I loved 3, and 4 felt like they turned up the annoying random cut scenes and calls. Also the map could've been better I think. But the engine sounds really killed it for me. They're just so uninspiring, that I don't even want to drive around for fun.
I think the same, Forza Horizon 4 has the best graphics in a Horizon game, but is not that fun. For me the best horizon games are 1 and 3, but I don’t really like Forza Horizon 2 because for me it lacked of life and was a bit boring to play compared with 1 and 3, but it would be because I played the xbox 360 version of the game. Years later I had the opportunity to play it on xbox one, and although I did not play it much because I had already finished it on xbox 360, I can say that there are cinematics that in the xbox 360 version were cut and races and dialogues that are non-existent, the which give more life and variety to the game, and apparently there are scenarios that were removed in that version.
Ya I definitely would choose the Mclaren over a Ferrari or Lamborghini but to each their own. On that note I also prefer FH4 and FH3 to FH2. I just basically didn't like FH1
11:18 YES! This road is the proof, that map doesn't have to be too open to be great. For me: FH1: dream vacation time. FH2: dream vacation time. FH3: fun, beautiful map, but it's too easy, lack of driving roads. FH4: feels like full time job - no purpose, too much exclusive content, too much time-based online content, etc.
I played Forza horizon 2 and it was the first horizon game that I played and it introduced me to the Forza series even though it wasn’t actually my game or console. I used to play Forza horizon 2 every day after school at my friends house and not do my homework. I miss playing this game and I have great memories of just driving around, especially going back and fourth from the nice festival to some shipping yard, destroying some mopeds and motorcycles, exploring and enjoying driving around in a blacked out shitbox because it was the only car that my friend would give me until later on I was able to use a Lamborghini. I remember driving through fields and noticing the damage I’ve done to my car, finding barn finds and exploring the different cities. I think my friend even tuned my shitbox to the worst or the best tuning available, I don’t remember. I loved the atmosphere, the sound design, the graphics, landscapes and views. I love Italy and it is so much better than horizon 4, which is the second game I played on my own Xbox which is a HUGE downgrade compared to 4. The only things I like about 4 is the graphics, cars, forests, and the seasons. I played Horizon 4 and somehow enjoyed it a bit but it will never even come close to horizon 2 even though I vaguely remember the game now, it still is better than 4 and 5 no doubt.
i spent hours on fh2 back in the day grinding for cars and it always felt very rewarding, i've put probably like 60 hours into FH4 and have everything and i've probably spent about 2hrs in total doing races... FH2 will always been the greatest horizon
I think the fh4 map had a huge contribution to why it wasn’t as vibrant as the last 3 games. Fh1 to 3 where all set in warm deserted places while fh4 was in England which we all know isn’t the most vibrant place.
FH4 felt more vibrant to me, FH3 and those that came before it have unrealistic warmer tones. Are you guys playing on PC or Xbox with HDR and full sRGB color space?
@@lightbox8019 I’m playing on Xbox One X, with HDR and all the fancy tricks on. It can be vibrant, but only in limited times with the “seasons”winter isn’t, spring can be but rains most of the time, summer is vibrant and fall… kind of?
@@UltraViolet_Moses Sometimes if HDR isn't setup right or the TV isn't certified over HDR600, things can looked washed out. It shouldn't change overall with the seasons.
What i loved about FH2 was the fact that it had that progression of the championships where you completed one at every location in every car type. It really gave you a reason to choose a car that wasn't your normal choice.
I loved the fast and furious dlc and the fast and furious stand alone forza game cause the guy who built the cars in the movies helped the forza devs make sure they were really accurate to their movie counter parts and they are amazing and the most unique in the game imo.
@@StewHeisenberg it was fun but vary short and on just one small part of the main map of horizon 2. The thing I liked most is the actual fast and furious cars being playable in the main fh2 game and they are so damn amazing to drive and how they sound. I hate that these things get delisted.
Forza Horizon 1 and 2 are the only ones were I hop from time to time, specially Horizon 2 for the map, I just mess on it without HUD is a blast. And yeah, Horizon 2 sounds better than 4, sounds are straight from previous X360 iterations or new recorded...Also the illumination in Horizon 2 is quite natural. Nice video!
this game introduced me to xbox because it came with the xbox one free and i didnt even race i just set a marker to the other side of the map and just enjoyed the music and the map. This game really hits hard after all these years...
This was the last game in the Horizon series that felt fun to play. I sank hours into 3 and 4 but that was because I had no other games where the handling model felt that good.
The nostalgia and all the memories are some of the best memories of my childhood. I remember when my mom first got me the game, I was thrilled. I wish I can go back I really do.
Horizon 2 had such an amazing vibe/atmosphere. Like you said it feels like you have to work a little bit for everything at first and makes it all the more satisfying when you can buy the cars you love! I loved this game so much that i recently reset my progress and started from the beginning!
It's not even nostalgia or rose tinted glasses. This game has a better soundtrack, map, car audio, sense of speed, game layout etc. I have played all of them and still come back to this game everytime.
I got horizon 2 a week ago and I’ve literally fallen in love with it. In fact, I think they should even make a remastered version of the game. Better graphics, over double the mapsize(it already feels huge anyway), maybe adding Monaco, or a major Italian city as well as mountainous areas and beach areas. Then adding all the newer cars into the game as well. I just feel like this location and map was way too good for it’s time, and the game deserves to have the graphics, size, and car list of the newer games like horizon 5
Let's not forget how amazing it was to make the jump from Xbox 360 to Xbox One graphics with this game. The added power of the new generation made a huge differance. FH2 still looks absolutely beautiful.
For me, I love the story for the Horizon 1. I still play it again and again like I just can't stop playing it. I'm used to be a NFS fan for years but then I started playing Forza Motorsport 4 on my xbox 360 and that's when I love Forza games🔥and yeah, I miss the old day like the Horizon 1 and 2. It's like you gotta grind more to get what you want and you feel more connected towards the game👍 great video man, keep it up💪
I played forza horizon 2 on xbox 360 and it's a great game, decent amount of cars, vast customization, races that can range from cars, planes and trains. And collectibles ranging from abandoned cars in barns to plaques that might not seem very important the first time you see them, but can be very useful at the end of the game, unlocking discounts and extra cash. everything a racing game needs, the only thing that could improve further would be the addition of motorcycles, but the way it's implemented in Test Drive Unlimited, it's better to leave it as it is
i remember getting home from school, popping the disc in and grabbing my crappy xbox headphones and playing for hours with my friends exploring the map, doing drag races, ect. The game still has its nostoligiac charm, and i love it. I frequent the game very often nowadays too.
What a great surprise Moses, having played horizon 2 on the 360 definitely didn't gave the same experience as the Xbox one but a lot still relatable like the engine sound, listening to the Integra on this and then on horizon 3 seems like they where just sloppy and this is from someone who put more than 250 hours on it without realizing the weird sound on cars, also the map with the coastline is amazing specially while sunny not to mention all the diversity with the city and rural areas so well made make it very memorable. The FnF dlc, considering it was free and didn't needed the base game was a great present given to the fans
I never personally played horizon 2, but it has everything I love about horizon 5 tbh, they came in clutch with those new engine sounds it's very reminiscent of the old days, if anybody from playground games is reading this I love you dawg, keep up the good work
forza horizon 2 is my 2nd favorite game, because the forza motosport 4 is my favorite game, and yes, i really agree all with you say, i love this game, i miss play this game in my xbox 360, this game is very nostalgic and I come to cry so much that I miss you, good times, thank you forza horizon 2, but, forza horizon 3, i´m played and I didn't like hes used not of forza horizon 1 and horizon 2, lets take an example, you´re not a beginner anymore, you are the boss, you manage the horizon festival, unlike horizon 1 and 2 you're a beginner, the horizon 1 and 2 are very much good games, everything you talked about, like your favorite part of the map, the sounds, everything I agree, with even your favorite part of the map also being mine, so that was all I had to talk about, not only horizon 2, horizon 1 is also very nostalgic, thanks microsoft for giving us good games and good memories. end. ps: if I have any spelling mistakes, forgive me, because I'm Brazilian.
I loved Horizon 2… but my favorite one will always be the first 1, never ever got the same vibe when starting up a new horizon as the one I got when starting Horizon 1… hearing Scott Tyler for the first time, announcing the beginning of the festival, while you’re already racing in a Viper with the Horizon Champion (Darius Flynt) in his 599XX Evo, then start again with that red Corado, and Scott announces that there are only a few entries left to the festival, racing back up in the ranks to actually become the last one to enter… from the very beginning, it was legendary for me
This video is amazing and very true although my very favourite horizon is number one it is my favourite it’s got the music party/DJ it’s got multiple festivals and gives you that vibe of partying
I still remember so vividly driving the ford transit van flat out from one side of the map to the other at night. And when I did that I was only 10 years old! Now I'm in grade 11 and have adult responsibilities to look "forward" too.
I've had all 5 forza horizon games and I think 4 is the best to me, (just personal opinion) 2 was good but only 4th best out of the series, it was too easy to beat and some challenges just felt silly, I still hate the winter season in 4 but beyond that it just felt amazing to drive around Britain and the soundtrack was also bangin, plus I hope they have another dlc like fortune island, I loved hunting for treasure lol
My favourite Horizon game was Horizon 2 as well, and for many reasons, nothing will really surpass it anytime soon. First of all, the location. For a game that builds on the festival feeling and vibe, Horizon 2's Italy and France was the perfect feel good, always sunny, beautiful sunsets and sunrises, lively nights place to have a game in. Number two, bucket lists! It's a shame the feature dissapeared, but bucket lists were the thing why people play games. Every car person has his/her automotive bucket list, which car they wanna drive in their lifes, and that few minute special drive in a special car was exactly what you needed as a refreshing thing to do between main races. Third, maybe it's just me, but I loved, LOVED how you needed to drive in a car game!!! Like actually drive, instead of spawn at races and fast travel. And the scenery was the reward for it, which is beautiful, so worth every minute! THIS GAME HAD ROADTRIPS!!! Roadtrips were awesome, from one festival to another, you had to travel with others from one place to another for new races!!! This is the most missing feature in all of the Horizon series! ROADTRIPS!!! Engine sounds, the car variety, the damage on cars on cosmetic/simulation damage, the map with the winding roads and turns!!!! The music , the feeling, the intrudoction of a more open playground, thus nicer offroad races! *FORZA HORIZON 2 WAS, AND STILL THE BEST HORIZON GAME, NOBODY CAN CHANGE MY MIND!!!*
I have a theory that Fh2's map was unfinished, as many places look like they should have been accessible but aren't because devs didn't have the time to finish them (for instance there's an underground parking lot at the east of Nice that is modeled but locked). This also explains why there are so many out of map glitches as the devs didn't checked if the fences and walls were not bugged. I think that playground games had to release the game sooner than expected because Xbox needed it to showcase the Xbox One I'd like to know what do you think.
It's been a couple of weeks since I last commented on one of your videos, MO. I've simply just worked too much lately. Just wanted to congratulate you on a great video essay. Keep up the good work. Also, can we get an E3-special, please? 😊
Yeah i just bought an xbox a few weeks ago just to play forza series 😅 haven’t played most of them but i think its the best car racing series apart from the story ofc
I think what drags Horizon 2 down is that once you're done with the Finale, you're left with another 120+ championships to do to fully complete the game. That's my only complaint in this game, everything else is perfect. It's a shame that Horizon 1 and 2 are the only true Horizon games before we got forced down multiplayer features, a live service model and dumbed down everything else with Horizon 3 and 4. I get why they went with the live service model, to reduce the massive amounts of DLC they were starting to put out in favor of free updates that everyone can get, but it's also a lazy way to artificially increase the games' livespan when they don't really offer that much replayability otherwise.
@Dawid XCX Progression, rewards, meaningful events, story, atmosphere, festival feeling, music, interesting characters, severe downgrades to car sounds and more. Horizon was meant to be an open world car culture game, but it turned into Fortnite with cars.
@Dawid XCX what one person finds good and or interesting is subjective, stop acting like a child in this comment section and learn to not care when others think differently
I'd also say this game had the best radio music hands down... it fitted into the horizon theme so well and made your experience more enjoyable... and this is coming from someone who loves NFS and played FH2 on the Xbox 360
With the emphasis of horizon 4, in particular, being on quantity over quality with extremely accessible assets I fear we have a new problem. I fear that a growing fan base; particularly (and not to be harsh) of younger American players are actually starting to get used to and want a super casual game with sheer content quantity. I fear that forza may have gone to a place where if we were to go back to hard progression, quality details and a more structured story line we might see some backlash from the other side.
Dark souls, ninja gaiden these games were tough and players revered these games for brutal difficulty. Each game has a personality. FH 2 had both personality and soul , a very rare combination. Forza should be more like FH2.
I was waiting to hear this opinion. I'm extremely emotionally attached to Forza Horizon 2. The soundtrack, the time in my life and the overall feel of the game.
Tbh fh2 and fh1 were probably some of my favorite games, I cured when my fh1 disc stopped working lol. It’s sad now because it’s more pay 2 win, so many in game purchases and stuff, it’s hard to grind in the new ones.
Not really fh4 is like “win 4 races and get every car and have fun” literally, while fh3 and below are like “alright, do these races and level up and get more races, this festival never ends!” Fh3 had the best expansions thi
@@nothingatall3104 HAHA so true right when I got the notification I got a mclearan senna lol from a gift, this game mad ez and it's rly triggering. I only have 20 hours on fh4 and I have a kossineg regara, mcleran senna a bunch of lamborginis, a r35.
Forza horizon 2 feels more like if you want a country side road it’s right there, if you want a busy city experience just go to Nice, and want an Italian old fashioned road? Boom right there.
When I pulled out the old school Camaro from the garage and then "Brighter Days" by saint Raymond played, I can't convey how awesome that felt just to cruise on a completely stock car after winning it through a wheel spin, beautiful.
In the beginning of your video, you made a massively important point - progression issues. As a seasoned Horizon 4 player. The game has no progression. Making money is easy (I'm sitting on over $65 million) and literally everything is available for you, if you can afford it. There is no story that can be completed, only a little 🏆 symbol to indicate races you've completed at least once. This causes the game to feel "dry" after a while because half the playerbase is only interested in buying the fastest car and maxing out the performance on it. Since that's available to them almost immediately they get bored and leave. Then the other half is interested in tuning at various classes and doing the online racing... which also lacks progression or incentive to keep playing. I have so many cars now that I don't even bother with the slow Auction House any more. I just delete cars I know I'll never drive, even the rarest cars, 1 to 10 million $ cars. I just delete them to make space.
Still remember unlocking that Ferrari from the jet event and being hooked. Also the grind for the veneno. Buying cars in the new game feels so much less rewarding than it did in this one
I looooooove FH2. The feeling of buying a new car, modding it, getting a cool ass community made wrap, and trying it out was so good in this game. The cars look so good.
I really hate how forza horizon 4 just gives out cars all the time for free, i have so many cars i have no interest in ever driving. It should be quite a grind, and you will feel more connected to each individual car if you used it for more than one minute.
Forza Horizon took a direct inspiration from the Test Drive Unlimited series, of which I'd say pioneered the open world racing scene. That game has a story that is enough to keep you interested and has you working your way up the ladder to the end goal of being the solar crown champion. You save up money from doing random challenges, races and championships so that you can buy more cars, upgrades, houses, garages and customization for both your cars and character. Really pioneered the whole racing scene imo
I thought something was wrong with me. Not that I don’t like the new horizon games but horizon 2 was so fun and such a unique feel. Felt more real, more alive.
Horizon 2 was my first Horizon game It was my first xbox I went from PS2 to Xbox 1 and this game man, I still listen to the soundtrack. There's something about the game that was captured that festival feeling. You legitimately felt like you where at a music/cars event. I remembered it being the most open car game ever at the time for me. Upon going back and playing it.... It had way more gaurdrails and restricted areas than Horizon 4
