Forza 4 pitch video pulled by Microsoft

by Ludwig Kietzmann on Apr 2nd 2011 6:30PM

If you must suffer an unforeseen failure in confidentiality on any day of the year, what better day than April 1st? It's the one time when the internet can muster some skepticism, even while presented with purportedly leaked footage of a high-profile sequel. Doubt over the authenticity of an "internal" pitch video of Forza Motorsport 4 might have obscured the news, had Microsoft not pulled it from Youtube.

According to a Microsoft statement received and published by several gaming news sites, the video "was not intended for public distribution and may not accurately reflect features and functionality that ship in Forza Motorsport 4." The company's concern may lie in promising features that have yet to be finalized, such as 16-player online races, the contribution of over 80 automobile manufacturers and the introduction of social car clubs.

(One promoted feature we can rule out with ease, however, is the career mode that has you "literally" traveling the globe. Forza 4 isn't likely to include a bundle of plane tickets -- if it did, you'd have a cheap opportunity to swing by this year's semantics nazi convention.)

Considering the glossy, flattering nature of the video, and the presence of already-announced additions like Kinect head tracking, it's possible that April Fools' Day marked the start of a viral marketing campaign for Forza 4. Let's see how long this version of the video stays up, and whether Microsoft comes knocking on our door. Not literally.

Source: CVG, YouTube

Tags: april-fools, forza-4, forza-motorsport-4, kinect, kinect-forza, leak, microsoft, release-date, turn-10, xbox

Reader Comments (78)

April fools on you

@Sktrut
Wait...you actually think that video was just a joke?!

Oh boy.

A video, once it reaches the internet, is as impossible to remove as a fart in an elevator. Once released, it will live a life of its own.

- Pure Black's wise words of the day

"...no controller required..."

Except when you want to access the dashboard.

@Frostblade10

Agreed. That is annoying.

Why in the world would Microsoft pull a video this awesome?

@Subarub
Same reason they didn't release the Zune outside of the US.

They're silly!

(although I never really wanted a Zune. It just seemed crazy to artificially limit your market like that)

@Subarub
Because its not supposed to be.

Guaranteed that 90% makes it through to final... 10% gets cut.

@VeeDeeVee
Coincidentally that's exactly the same reason they didn't release the Courier! :(
MS makes some STUPID decisions sometimes...

@Subarub People might actually expect the game to come with a number of new features and innovations, instead of being a barren rehash with a score of new DLC

And we can't have that.

@VeeDeeVee

It just fits with MS' policy of "Give America everything... Rest of the world? What are y--- Oh! Right... Give them just the basic stuff. What? Yeah, sure, charge them more for their Xbox Live as well, we're doing them a favour by supporting their region anyway."

Part-joking aside, this was most likely being shown internally to executives. A version of this video will also probably end up being shown at E3, probably truncated. Heaven knows Microsoft needs a good E3 showing this year... Sitting through that Kinect nonsense last year was an experience I don't want to repeat... Although I said that after the 2008 Nintendo conference... If anyone needs a reminder of that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XR7LaJLLf8

@SSUK Agreed, Kinect, Kinect, Kinect, Kinect, CoD, Halo, Kinect O_o

Sony's was actually good last year compared to MS's

So this will have the same effect of Mario Kart Wii.

Use motion/new controls all you want.
You're going to lose to those who use a controller.

@VeeDeeVee umm... what do you mean? Mario Kart Wii allowed people to use not motion controls, they just gave it as another option

@RedFishFire

And you were placed in the same matches with people who did. And he's saying you will lose to them, like people lost to them in Mario Kart.

@VeeDeeVee
Seriously. I can't believe people actually used the motion stuff. It's fun against the computer, but competitively... it's srs bzns.

@Drakkenfyre ohh i thought he ment that mario kart only allowed motion controls, and that forza 4 will only have motion controls or something. totally misread what he said sorry

@VeeDeeVee

I personally like the idea of a controller and head tracking. if i can drive with a controller but look to my left, like driving a real car, then i like it. but they need to make sure to integrate both. that is the only true success of the kinect, integration with both a controller and motion controller.

@The Only Girl
I give some props to those with the Gold Wheel icon in Mario Kart Wii. They either don't care, or mastered that thing inside and out. Better than I could ever do, anyway.

Why would a video with the phrase "for internal use only" also have "actual in-game footage", and a bunch of publicity blurbs on it?

Calling BS on this one. It was an intentional leak, on April Fool's, to generate hype. Pulling it was to create more attention

This video was likely made by PR people for executives and head honchos at Microsoft who aren't involved in actual video game creation.

@Drakkenfyre
"Hey! Sony Ericsson did it, too!"

@Drakkenfyre

The video was probably meant to be seen by buyers from big retail chains like Best Buy and Gamestop.

Still not buying it. Too many "leaks" that turn out to be intentional. It went up on April Fool's day, leading to the ability to call it a hoax if it went wrong. Then it gets pulled and "it's not the final game", which has been used countless times before. I say it's to generate publicity.

i had only the forza 2 and im not a fan of simulators but this is must buy easy.

The new Forza 3 Complete Collection is now $30 at all stores. It's really a good deal actually with enough content for a year of play.

I hope Kinect is just an option...

@Vidaluko Nope.

It's going to be 100% Kinekt only. No controllers allowed. Racing simulators are certainly not all about precision and catering to driving enthusiasts. Not at all.

I really hope your comment was a joke, but I don't think it was, so here's a knock on the head for you...*knock knock*

@VIDEOGAMES

From the video: "With Kinect friends can hop on the couch and play with the ultimate car collection. All the power and fun you've came to expect from Forza, but no controller required."

It sounds like there is a Kinect mode for those that want it. I wouldn't say that it is Kinect only controlled.

How do they expect to bring the best looking game of 2010 when it's on 6 year old hardware?

Graphics get better every year and they release a new Forza every 2 years. I'm definitely seeing better graphics with the in-game footage here. To be honest Forza 2 strong points were the 360-calculations-a-second physics and 60 fps, not the graphics. The graphics in Forza 3 was a new game engine and they looked better, but overly saturated and cartoony. Forza 4 looks photorealistic for the first time, IMO.

@EfemaN

Because every game it is competing with is also on 6 year old hardware?

I facepalmed at the part where the two people were playing with their arms outstretched. How can you call your game a racing sim and still have Mario Kart controls? When it comes to racing games people want the best controllers available (that's why they spend hundreds on racing wheels!), not hands-free, that's just going backwards! Besides, I imagine that'd get tiring really fast... and you know how long those races in Forza can get.

I'm also kind of skeptical about the best-graphics-evar claim. Xbox 360 is pretty old by now, and there's already been 2 Forzas on it. Wouldn't it be better to just hold this one off till the next console and REALLY blow us away? Oh, that's right, Microsoft is convinced Kinect will give the 360 another half-decade of life -_-

At any rate, I still loved Forza 3 so I'll be picking up this one on launch. Other then the Kinect nonsense, it looks fantastic so far.

I'm am always surprised how people just don't get it. They showed a dad and his 5-year old son using the motion controls. A controller with 15 buttons can be daunting to a little kid, or a mom, but they know how to stick their hands out and pretend to drive. Totally and completely natural for them. I will be using my MS force feedback wheel like I do for all my racing games.

I think they mean the best Forza graphics ever.

@GordoJones88 (and the rest of you downvote-happy idiots)

1. There are racing games for kids and casual racing game fans. This isn't one of them. And implementing a hand-free controls isn't going to change that, because the game will still run with the same physics regardless. You can make the easiest controller possible for Forza, but a five year old is still gonna be rubbish at it. Besides, kids don't want to play a racing simulator, they want to play Mario Kart. Other then the head-tracking feature, the implementation of Kinect in Forza is a waste of time and resource which can be used to better the game in other areas.

2. Try and hold your arms out for a few good minutes, and see how quickly tired they get. Now imagine doing this twenty minutes to an hour (yes Forza races can run that long).

3. Um, I'm pretty sure 'UNMATCHED GRAPHICS' in big bold letters means they're talking about more then just their previous games.

@Lucky48

/brofist

@Talisman

Wow, your comment is so faded I could barely find the reply button just now. Forza 3 already has the option for automatic throttle and braking, they are just adding the option to steer with Kinect now. You and I may not play with the assists on, but with them all on and the 'rewind' feature, the game is easy enough for beginners. Most races are only a few minutes long, just enough time for daddy and little Johnny to race each other before dinner is ready. A good deal of Forza is not just about the racing, but being about car enthusiasts in general. The game is still sim for hardcore players, but also accessible for families and new players.

@GordoJones88 Yeah well I guess reason isn't very popular with Joystiq's readership. I was just stating my opinion as someone whose owned every Forza since the first, but next time I think I'll save myself the time and just write "HURR DURR KINECT IS GAY", as that comment would get the same treatment anyway.

@Talisman
Did you actually play Forza 3? It had a whole tonne of options for making the game more accessible and simple to play.. IF you wanted to. Turning off assists and putting up the difficulty made the game harder and more realistic but some people don't like that.

I really do think one of Forza's strong points is the fact it can appeal to such a wide audience. Unlike GT5 it can be played seriously hardcore with no assists, etc, from the get go or it can be played where you don't even have to accelerate, though you'll earn much less cR and the idea is you gradually learn how to play better.

Well, I mean is not a big part of it, not 100% Kinect

Really?

My comment got super downranked a couple of hours ago, but when you guys put this up, everyone's happy.

@Mr Hett
That's because your "comment" was straight up bitching because Joystiq isn't running what you want, posted on a completely different article that had nothing to do with Forza.

And you're surprised you got downvoted for that?

Also I forgot to add they better have night racing this time around.

@Talisman night, evening, dusk.. and any weather you can think of, on any track - they can add it to the difficulty modifier.. it's what has really been missing for me the last 2 games

Not a racing fan, but this looks cool...I think integrated controls with Kinect for head tracking is where the moneyshot is...likely going to be in Gears 3 as well, imho.

@hiruuamon Yeah, it was pretty cool in Gran Turismo 5

@Lucky48
Not many wheels have a stick... and I don't need to look 90 deg to the side, just 5 to 15 to better track the apex.

Not saying it's going to world changing, but if it's implemented well with kinect (is fast enough, acurate enough, natural enough, etc.) it could add something for the sim fans like myself... a controller is fun, but until your manufacturer of choice starts to ship cars with controllers instead of wheels it's not even remotely the same experience... and when they do you still won't use a stick to change your view...

@Lucky48

Finally someone gets it. I don't know why people keep asking for head tracking. It's one of the most stupid ideas ever.

I guess Microsoft is learning one good thing.

To err is More Human Than Human.

If this game has any type of Free Roam involved I'll be all over it (gotta have somewhere to chill after the races but it's probably not part of their forza franchise)

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Forza Motorsport 4

Forza 4 pitch video pulled by Microsoft

Reader Comments (78)

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 6:40PM Sktrut said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 9:58AM SoldierShredder said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 6:44PM Pure Black World Tendency said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 6:46PM Frostblade10 said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 11:01AM Misfit Toy said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 6:55PM Subarub said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:01PM VeeDeeVee said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 10:58PM Apex Omega said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 12:58AM Indefinite Implosion said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 1:27AM wcarnation said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 4:14AM SSUK said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 8:27AM iceytoa1 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:00PM VeeDeeVee said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:11PM RedFishFire said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:15PM Drakkenfyre said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:51PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:56PM RedFishFire said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 1:37AM LexStewther said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 1:48PM Gameface252 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:01PM Drakkenfyre said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:01PM GordoJones88 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:45PM The Only Girl said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:48PM cool8man said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 9:36PM Drakkenfyre said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:12PM guidcs said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:58PM GordoJones88 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:12PM Vidaluko said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:31PM VIDEOGAMES said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 9:23AM Denbowski said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:18PM EfemaN said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:57PM GordoJones88 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:01PM jchan said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:26PM Talisman said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:51PM GordoJones88 said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 2:15AM Talisman said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 2:22AM Talisman said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 3:15AM GordoJones88 said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 3:31AM Talisman said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 4:46AM Snowblind said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 12:31AM Vidaluko said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 7:51PM Mr Hett said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 9:37PM PointlessPuppies said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:18PM Talisman said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 9:26PM Mazrael said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:39PM hiruuamon said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:45PM wcarnation said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 10:57AM Agnostiq said

Posted: Apr 3rd 2011 11:25AM bm111 said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:46PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Apr 2nd 2011 8:46PM Snappyguy said

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