After buying the Gold Edition (again) racking up nearly 300 hours and collecting every achievement, I can say this one was a big disappointment. Is the game fun? Yep. Is it pretty? Absolutely stunning views. One of the best looking games on the market by far. Do car go vroom? Many car go very vroom. BUT: This game lacks soul. If there was ever a time to take a leap and give the players a deep singleplayer experience surrounding car culture in Japan, this was it. And in my opinion they missed the mark. This was the time for underglow, bodykits, crazy rims, etc. Unfortunately it just feels like a Ctrl + C Ctrl + V of Horizon 5 but with a Japanese skin. Having to progress the wristband with OFFROAD RACING in JAPAN is a head scratcher for sure. Horizon 6 SHOULD have been tearing through the streets of Tokyo in a crazy tuned Nissan GTR with underglow and and huge flames spitting out the back. There ain't a lot of that going on out here. Onto the Drivatars. Completely terrible. The online experience in these games is essentially hoping the person you have the AUDACITY to pass in a racing game doesn't absolutely destroy you for it. Somebody decided to replicate that in the singleplayer experience. I guess getting you prepared for online? The AI will turn into you if you're along side them, divebomb into your rear bumper regardless of your proximity to the car you're tailing, and will absolutely put you into the wall just like a player online. The Raku Raku Express missions are the worst thing I've grinded through in recent memory. Absolutely atrocious gameplay that isn't anywhere near worth it to do other than getting the achievement if you're into that. Lastly, the Itasha/Anime/Manga whatever crackdown is so stupid it's almost funny. Having a racing game set in JAPAN about JAPANESE CAR CULTURE could inspire some folks to make JAPANESE style art for their cars. But if somebody at Microsoft (more likely an AI moderation tool) determines your design is too much you get a permaban? From the looks of it, they've taken the IRS approach of: "We know what's too much but we won't show you or tell you specifically." I'll make sure to take the goth girls off my car so the 1500 HP Volkswagen with swastikas all over it doesn't get too distracted as it sends me to space for existing on the racetrack. If you're interested in this game, I would not pay more than $20 for it. TL;DR: Game pretty, sorta fun, not very cool AI or online experience, can get banned for anime girls on your car in Japan 5/10.
