Microsoft used its E3 2014 press conference to give away a freebie to all Xbox One owners. Well, sort of. A Forza 5 Nurburgring track has now been added to the game, and a new (paid) Car Pack adds five cars to the Forza 5 car list. The Forza 5 Nurburgring track is now available as free DLC for all Forza 5 owners, though, so if you own the Xbox One racing game, you can now download and play on the fabled track for free.
The Forza 5 Nurburgring track marks the third free add-on track for Forza 5. However, by announcing the epic track’s addition at its E3 2014 press conference, Microsoft clearly acknowledged that Nurburgring is the most important of the three.
Nurburgring is a massive track and requires incredible skill to navigate its corners and straightaways. Turn 10 Studios, the developers of Forza 5, acknowledged it posed an equally tough challenge to develop the DLC track. Unfortunately, they went a bit heavy on the hype, stating that the Forza 5 Nurburgring track is “the biggest and most challenging example of content that Turn 10 has ever created.”
That may be true, but there’s no need to boast about it.
To be fair, the Forza 5 Nurburgring track differs a bit from how the Nurburgring track has appeared in other games. Indeed, it’s even different than the Ring’s previous appearance in the Forza series. It’s been more than a decade since the Ring was originally captured for earlier versions of the Forza franchise.
This Xbox One / Forza 5 version of the Ring includes the full GP circuit, the 13-mile Nordschleife, and, for the first time in the Forza series, the gargantuan 16-mile combined circuit. In addition, 26,000 trees line the track.
The Forza 5 Nurburgring track has been fully integrated into all aspects of the game. New events are now available that feature the track in Career Mode, there are new events in Rivals Mode, and there are new Multiplayer lobbies where you can take the Ring along with up to 15 other players.
While announcing the free Nurburgring DLC, Microsoft also took the wraps off the Nurburgring Booster Car Pack. The Nurburgring Booster Car Pack includes five cars to collect, race, and customize: the 1989 Audi #4 Audi 90 quattro IMSA GTO, the 1967 Brabham BT24, the 2013 Ford Formula Ford EcoBoost 200, the 1939 Maserati 8CTF and the 1956 Lotus Eleven.
You can see a video of the Forza 5 Nurburgring track in action at this link.