Driving the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport in Forza Motorsport 7!
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My husband, who hones his skills daily on Gran Turismo for PlayStation, recently tried driving the Cayman GT4 Clubsport in Forza Motorsport 7, and he wrote up his impressions and experience. Please have a look if you’re interested.
Forza Motorsport 7
A while ago, there was news that the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport became available in the racing simulator Forza Motorsport 7. However, since I had been mostly playing Gran Turismo SPORT recently, I hadn’t had a chance to try it until now.
Forza Motorsport 7 is a racing simulation game available on Xbox and Windows PCs. Its standout features include stunning graphics, immersive sound, and a wide variety of cars, making it a very appealing game.
Currently, at home, I have:
- Gran Turismo SPORT (PS4)
- Assetto Corsa (PS4)
- Project Cars 2 (PS4)
- iRacing (Windows)
- rFactor 2 (Windows)
- Forza Motorsport 7 (Windows)
- Forza Horizon 3 (Windows)
and I switch between them depending on my mood.
For more detailed explanations, I’ve also introduced these in a past article, which you can refer to:
This time, the newly released car is the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport.
This is a race-only car in real life and cannot be driven on public roads. It is possible to purchase it in Japan, but participation in the new series organized by Porsche Japan, the Porsche Sprint Challenge Japan (PSCJ), is mandatory.
Driving the Cayman GT4 Clubsport
So, I quickly got the car and decided to test it out at Suzuka Circuit.
One feature of Forza, and this game in particular, is that the difficulty varies greatly depending on the steering assist level setting. Of course, other games have this too, but I think the range is especially wide here.
Basically, when I play racing games, I run with no assists at all, and in Forza 7, the “Simulation” steering setting corresponds to that.
However, with this setting, driving becomes very difficult. The steering is too sensitive and quickly reaches its maximum angle, causing the front tires to lose grip and resulting in frequent understeer. Even after adjusting the steering wheel’s rotation angle to the loosest maximum setting, it remains challenging. (Especially after playing other games, it’s hard to get used to.)
Therefore, unless you are very familiar with Forza, I recommend setting the steering assist to “Normal” mode, which helps prevent oversteering. Personally, I feel that “Normal” is closest to the sensation of driving a real car on a circuit.
Once I started driving with the “Normal” setting, it was indeed easier to handle. The graphics are just as impressive as Gran Turismo SPORT—very realistic and beautiful. And the sound is quite good.
While the sound in Gran Turismo SPORT tends to feel a bit game-like, Forza reproduces the unique “keen” sound of a racing car like the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport very well, without being harsh on the ears. Also, the exhaust and engine sounds feel very authentic.
The cockpit view is also realistic, and playing on a large screen gives a strong sense of immersion. By the way, unlike Gran Turismo SPORT, Forza 7 does not offer a view that hides the car body completely, showing only the road; you always play with at least part of the car visible.
I personally find the cockpit view the easiest and most enjoyable to use.
After a good session of time attack at Suzuka,
Here are my impressions purely as a simulator, comparing it with the 981 Cayman GT4 (not the Clubsport version).
Compared to the regular GT4, the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport is noticeably easier to drive, and even in-game, the feeling of a lighter chassis is very clear. It has stronger downforce, better brakes, and especially through the S-curves, it feels nimble and responsive. At Suzuka, with the default setup, it runs around 2’08”, while the regular GT4 clocks about 2’28”. I’m not sure how this compares to real life, but as expected from the Clubsport, the performance difference is obvious.
Incidentally, the real-life Cayman GT4 Clubsport’s Suzuka lap record is 2’14.878, so Forza’s GT4 Clubsport might be a bit too fast.
In Forza, you can only choose between race tires and drift tires, so tire options are very limited. However, you can freely adjust tire width, air pressure, and other suspension settings, so tuning to your liking is possible.
Compared to other simulators, I personally find Forza 7’s handling a bit quirky. So I don’t usually use it for practice, but I really appreciate that it offers many Porsche models and releases new cars relatively quickly.
Besides the 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport, the Porsche models available in Forza 7 include the following, ranging from the latest to classic legends:
2019 911 GT3 RS, 2018 911 GT2 RS, 2018 Cayenne Turbo, 2017 #92 Porsche GT Team 911 RSR, 2017 Panamera Turbo, 2017 #19 Porsche Team 919 Hybrid, 2016 911 GT3 RS [991.2], 2016 Cayman GT4, 2015 Macan Turbo, 2015 #19 Porsche Team 919 Hybrid, 2014 918 Spyder, 2014 911 Turbo S [991], 2012 911 GT2 RS [997], 2012 911 GT3 RS 4.0 [997], 2012 Cayenne Turbo, 2011 #45 Flying Lizard 911 GT3-RSR, 2008 #7 Penske Racing RS Spyder Evo, 2004 911 GT3 [996], 2003 Carrera GT, 1998 911 GT1 Strassenversion, 1995 911 GT2 [993], 1993 911 Turbo S Leichtbau, 1993 928 GTS, 1989 944 Turbo, 1987 959, 1987 #17 Porsche AG 962c, 1987 #17 Porsche Dunlop 962c, 1982 911 Turbo 3.3, 1980 924 Carrera GTS, 1978 #78 MOMO 935/78, 1973 911 Carrera RS, 1964 904 Carrera GTS, 1970 914/6, 1966 906 Carrera 6, 1971 #23 917/20
1962 804, 1960 718 RS 60, 1957 356A Speedster, 1955 550A Spyder
If you love Porsche, definitely give Forza Motorsport 7 a try!
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