The latest patch is here, and Forza Motorsport Update 8 focuses on track toys for new content. It also changes the way Safety Rating is calculated in Featured Multiplayer.
Images: Microsoft
A new month means a new Forza Motorsport update, and this time, the spotlight is on track toys. The following four new spotlight cars are going to hit the virtual track, those being the 2019 Ginetta G40 Junior, the 2015 Porsche Cayman GTS, the 2013 Caterham Superlight R500, and the 2019 Elemental RP1.
With the cars, the various career and multiplayer events to match are also added via the update. You can find the full list of content additions below.
Forza Motorsport Update 8 - Content
Career Events
- Featured Tour: Track Toys Tour (Available from May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – June 26 5pm PT | June 27 12am UTC)
- Ginetta Juniors (Starts May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC)
- Weekend Warriors (Starts May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- Kit Caterhams (Starts May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- Track Toys (Starts June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC)
- Open Class Tour – 1960s Celebration (Available from May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
- D Class Series
- C Class Series
- B Class Series
- A Class Series
Reward Cars
- Track Toys Tour: 2019 Porsche #70 Porsche Motorsport 935
- Open Class Tour: 2011 BMW 1 Series M Coupé
Spotlight Cars
- 2019 Ginetta G40 Junior (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- 2015 Porsche Cayman GTS (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- 2013 Caterham Superlight R500 (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- 2019 Elemental RP1 (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
VIP Discount Cars
- 2014 BAC Mono (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
- 2016 Lotus 3 Eleven (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- 1996 Porsche 996 GT1 (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- 1994 Mazda Miata (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- 2016 Brabham BT62 (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
Multiplayer Events
Spec Series
- Lotus 3-Eleven Spec Series (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- Early Factory Racecar Series (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- Mazda Miata Spec Series (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- Modern Factory Racecar Series (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
Open Series
- R Class Series and P Class Series (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- B Class Series and D Class Series (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- A Class Series and X Class Series (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- S Class Series and C Class Series (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
Spotlight Series
- 2019 Ginetta G40 Junior (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- 2015 Porsche Cayman GTS (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- 2013 Caterham Superlight R500 (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- 2019 Elemental RP1 (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
Rivals Events
- Spec Division: Forza Touring Cars – Virginia International Raceway Full Circuit (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
- VIP: Mono a Mono – 2014 BAC Mono – Yas Marina South Circuit (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
- Celebrate Senna’s Legacy with McLaren – 2018 McLaren Senna – Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 26 5pm PT | June 27 12am UTC)
- Spotlight – 2019 Ginetta G40 Junior – Brands Hatch Indy Circuit (May 15 5pm PT | May 16 12am UTC – May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC)
- Spotlight – 2015 Porsche Cayman GTS – Mugello Club Circuit (May 22 5pm PT | May 23 12am UTC – May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC)
- Spotlight – 2013 Caterham Superlight R500 – Grand Oak Club Circuit (May 29 5pm PT | May 30 12am UTC – June 5 5pm PT | June 12 12am UTC)
- Spotlight – 2019 Elemental RP1 – Lime Rock Full Circuit (June 5 5pm PT | June 6 12am UTC – June 12 5pm PT | June 13 12am UTC)
Meanwhile, the way players' Safety Ratings in multiplayer has been changed slightly. The system now takes the last 20 races a player has contested into account - previously, it was factoring in the last 10. This means SR changes will not happen as quickly - so crash-filled events will not drag it down immediately if you are consisten in other races, but increases will also take more time.
In parallel, the matchmaking system has been adjusted, factoring in Safety Ratings closer to the player's own SR when grouping with other racers.
On the gameplay front, the addition of the Tire Wear Scale option to Free Play and multiplayer modes is likely the most interesting change. This allows players to adjust the rate of tire wear, using values that range from 0.5x to 10x.
There are many more changes and fixes under the hood, though, including some cars receiving balancing tweaks for the Featured Multiplayer Spec Series. You can find the full changelog below.
Forza Motorsport Update 8 Changelog
Stability [All Platforms]
- Fixed a game crash caused by quickly and repeatedly changing the number of Drivatar AI opponents in Free Play event setup. [1717959]
- Fixed an issue that occurred when exiting out of pre-race in Free Play quickly after switching cars or modifying the event setup would cause a soft lock in the loading screen. [1732080]
- Fixed a stability issue when the player would exit to Event Menu while on track in during a Test Drive. [1751335]
- Fixed an issue in which disconnecting and reconnecting a controller would prevent the player from progressing to the game menu. [1734977]
PC
- Improvements have been made to video memory usage on PC.
- Addressed an issue where the screen would flash white when players entered the My Cars menu. [1749202]
- Fixed an issue on Steam where you would repeatedly be shown the Self-Improvement achievement, even when you haven't unlocked it. [1738129]
- Fixed an issue on Steam where the Safety Star and Safety Superstar achievements would accumulate incorrect progress after a multiplayer race. [1738130]
- Fixed an issue where the player could not exit out of Career when hovering over event posters and pressing the right mouse button. [1717135]
- Fixed an issue where Exit Event messages could not be closed out using a Cancel Button (B Button/ESC Key/Right Mouse Click). [1717315]
- Selecting replays using the mouse no longer requires a double click. [1580893]
- We’ve made changes to how PC graphics settings are applied to ensure you are only prompted to restart the game when it is necessary. [1568770]
- Fixed an issue where the player is prompted to restart the game when only the ‘Show Framerate’ toggle has been modified. [1755225]
- Fixed a PC-specific issue where the game would crash when disconnecting a wheel and reconnecting with a controller in Featured Multiplayer. [1728706]
Gameplay [All Platforms]
- Introduced a Tire Wear Scale option to Free Play and Private Multiplayer, allowing adjustments to the rate at which tires are worn. 1x is the default value. At 2x, tire wear will occur twice as fast. Values range from .5x to 10x. This setting is found in the Event Setup Rules tab and in the Fuel & Tire menu when on track.
- Migrated the Open Class Tour in Career from the Builders Cup tab to the Featured tab. The Open Class Tour will be found in the Featured tab going forward.
- Fixed an issue where lap times faster than 18 seconds on Eaglerock Oval in Rivals X Class Time Attack leaderboards were not being posted.
- Fixed the achievement “Leisure Cruise” so that it now correctly unlocks when the specified criteria to complete a single lap at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps during sunset has been met. [1681510]
- Adjusted the rolling start in the Builders Cup Power Tour: Iconic Muscle event so that cars no longer collide before the 3-2-1. [1717346]
- Fixed an issue where players not using steering assists were given control of their car at the wrong time when exiting the pit. [1717893]
- Fixed a bug in Private Multiplayer lobbies where player cars would appear on the track instead of in the pits when the host changes the selected track and while one or more players are in the Post Race screen. [1729190]
- Fixed an issue in Private Multiplayer where timed races didn’t mark laps as dirty when driving off track. [1757780]
- In Featured Multiplayer, Telemetry now states the correct number of Qualifying Laps before Featured Race. [1733624]
- Fixed an issue where every Featured Multiplayer post-race transition would only ever show Laguna Seca art as the next track. Now, the player will see the correct track loading screens when continuing from one completed Featured Multiplayer race to the next event. [1653249]
- Fixed an issue where the "Not Connected" UI popup would repeatedly show during sign-in even after a connection was regained. [1746586]
- Fixed an issue in the Settings menu where resetting all options to default values did not apply to Audio Performance. [1731587]
Multiplayer – Matchmaking and Events [All Platforms]
- We’ve updated Safety Ratings in Featured Multiplayer by increasing the number of previous races the Safety Rating uses to determine your rating from 10 to 20, and by making on-track collisions more impactful to Safety Rating. Changes will take effect after your first race in Update 8.
- In addition, we’ve improved the matchmaking algorithm to search for a narrower range of Safety Ratings compared to your own. For example, players with an 'S' Safety Rating should no longer be matched with players who have 'E' and 'D' Safety Ratings. Groups will be connected to matches based on the player with the lowest Safety Rating.
- We’ve updated Featured Multiplayer events to use consistent weather conditions and avoid unpredictable weather transitions mid-race. [1750733]
- Removed the 2020 KTM X-Bow GT2 and the 2020 Lamborghini Essenza SCV12 from the Forza GT Series and added them to the Modern Factory Racecar Series in Featured Multiplayer. [1753741]
- Added the 2019 Porsche #70 Porsche Motorsport 935 to the Forza GT Series in Featured Multiplayer.
- Developer’s Note: We’re currently working on recategorizing Forza GT racecars into separate spec divisions and expect to push these changes into the game this summer.
- Corrected an issue where the 1969 Lola #6 Sunoco T70 MkIIIB was eligible for the Vintage Le Mans Prototypes Series rather than the Prototype Group Racing Series. [1731588]
Car Balancing [All Platforms]
- The following cars have been rebalanced in Featured Multiplayer Spec Series:
Featured Multiplayer Spec Series Car Name Change Summary Forza GT Series 2019 Ginetta G55 GT4 Engine torque: +25%
Car Mass: +13.4%
Front Downforce: -45%
Rear Downforce: -45%Early Factory Racecar Series 1997 McLaren F1 GT Increased Power 10% Early Factory Racecar Series 1997 Porsche 911 GT1 Strassenversion Increased Power 13%
Lowered weight/ballast 3%Early Factory Racecar Series 1989 Ferrari F40 Competizione Increased power 10%
Weight decreased 2%
Drivatar AI [All Platforms]
- Reduced unnecessary braking scenarios for Drivatar AI opponents. Examples of this include braking while attempting to pass, two cars wide in corners, at the apex of corners, and on straights.
Tracks [All Platforms]
- Increased the track material luminance to be more physically correct, improving the overall contrast and color saturation of the track. This affects newly released tracks as well as future track updates.
- Maple Valley has been refreshed with “Mobil 1 Presents Maple Valley” race day branding, which includes new track signage featuring Mobil 1.
- Fixed multiple pop-in zones across the entire Maple Valley track.
- Fixed multiple pop-in zones across the entire Mid-Ohio track.
- Fixed numerous areas across Mid-Ohio where textures were displayed at low resolution or stretched.
- Placed a barrier along the pit exit at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. To accommodate this change, leaderboards for this track have been reset.
- Fixed a couple zones at Brands Hatch that were missing or displaying broken skids.
- We’ve reset leaderboards for Le Mans track layouts following the changes made to this track in Update 7.
Cars [All Platforms]
- 2016 Ford Shelby GT350R: Fixed an issue where suspension couldn’t be tuned without the Drift Suspension upgrade. [1648500]
- 2013 McLaren P1: Fixed an issue where the aero wing wasn’t displaying its deployment animation when accelerating after braking for a turn. [1592856]
- 1992 Volkswagen Golf Gti 16v Mk2: Fixed an issue where the Analog speedometer did not match the telemetry. [1652263]
- Fixed an issue on select cars where the fog lights or reflectors would instead act as brake lights. This fix applies to the 1998 Toyota Supra RZ, 2003 Ford Focus RS and 1997 McLaren F1 GT. [1730279] [1731165]
Livery Editor [All Platforms]
- Introduced a Vinyl Material tool to the Livery Editor which can be used to uniformly adjust all vinyl materials on a car from matte (non-reflective) to glossy (reflective). This includes a reset option to revert all vinyls to match car paint glossiness. Imported designs from Forza Horizon 5 using its similar feature will automatically inherit these values.
- When removing a livery from a vehicle, the color will now be reset to the default manufacturer color instead of the color when the player purchases it. [1731939]
- Adjusted the arrangement of hint buttons in Livery Editor at the bottom of the screen. [1741965]
- Fixed an issue in the Livery Editor where the save popup would not be shown when exiting after flipping a decal or creating a mask from a layer. [1739245]
- The 'Find Designs' menu is now accessible for rental cars when players try to open it from 'Design & Paint Menu' and 'Livery Mode Select' scenes. [1643182]
- Fixed an issue where the game was creating empty base model liveries. Forza base liveries will no longer be created and stored unless it's the current livery in use. [1551365]
- Added iconography to layers in the Livery Editor. The player can now see icons to indicate if it's a mask layer or a locked layer. [1370431]
- The background values (position, scale, color, etc.) will not change when the player is navigating through the lighting options panel. [1734187]
- Fixed issues when flipping the rotation of vinyls in the Livery Editor. [1728080]
- Fixed an issue to prevent zooming of camera if the mouse is over Livery Color Selector in all color modes (Normal, Manufacturer, Special) for consistency. [1721951]
- Addressed an issue where player brake calipers were displaying the wrong color instead of the expected special colors. [1712512]
- Fixed an issue in the Design & Paint menu where non-block color vinyl shapes ignored mask effects. [1630741]
Accessibility [All Platforms]
- Screen Narrator now properly narrates the “Place in Car Bay” scene. [1738094]
- Screen Narrator will now read associated credit bonuses as part of the option value names on Free Play Advanced options which affect credits earned during the event. This change also fixes the display of the bonus percentages for all players. [1721875]
- Fixed intermittent failures of Screen Narrator to read the tab names in the Builders Cup Series Selection scene. [1721928]
- Screen Narrator now fully supports the “Series Standings” leaderboard scene accessed from the Builders Cup Event Setup scene. [1721944], [1657223]
- Screen Narrator now correctly reads the Driving Assists modal popup for new players during the initial races of Career mode. [1738064]
- Screen Narrator will now always correctly read the Data Out IP Address and Port settings in the Gameplay & HUD settings menu. [1667393]
- Fixed an issue with Screen Narrator reading DLC pack descriptions twice in Purchase Options menu. [1746587]
- Added descriptive text for the SoundCloud Driver Suit. [1708217]
- The Tune Setups menu is now fully narrated. [1709554]
Localization [All Platforms]
- Fixed an issue where several words were not translated when using [sv-SE] (Swedish-Sweden) language. [1589182]
- Fixed an issue causing hint button text to exceed the text boundaries in several languages. [1711597]
- Fixed a typo in Screen Narrator voiceovers in [pt-BR] (Portuguese-Brazil) when viewing car info panels. [1712323]
- Fixed an issue that caused text to overlap in the Fuel & Tire setup screen when text size is set to largest, and the language is set to [fi-FI] (Finnish-Finland). [1749301]
- Fixed an issue where the word “Pause” is not translated in [ja-JP] (Japanese-Japan). [1749465]
- Fixed an issue where the word “Hardcore” is not translated in several languages. [1749471]
- Fixed an incorrect character in [zh-TW] (Taiwanese Mandarin-Taiwan) that caused Fuel & Tire menu categories to be mistranslated. [1749479]
What are your thoughts on Forza Motorsport Update 8? Let us know on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments below!
