FH5, Series 36, Week 4

Treasure hunt. Deberti Mustang + speed zone = job done. The wheel spin afterwards threw an International Scout at me, which was ironic because it’s also a reward for a seasonal for those players who are too indigent to buy it from the AH or the Autoshow.

The weekly in the 190E posed no problems. I need to rebuild the car, though.

Took a photo. Got some clothing. I’m surprised MS hasn’t forced PGG to market real-life Forza-branded clothing. “Milk the franchise, Luke.”

I one-shotted all the PR stunts, but had practised them beforehand, finding that the International Scout needed an engine swap to be able to hit the targets. SWSs, one-third good, one-third excellent, one-third very excellent.

My testing for Going International was a prize pain. The category for it was D500 cult classics. I started with the Fiat-Abarth Esseesse, which – if I remember rightly – had been a sound performer in a previous seasonal. No, underpowered. The Gremlin was a possibility (just) and the Datsun 510 (just), but the drivatars kept running off in the Peel P50, The BMW Isetta, and the VW Type 2. The P50 was impossible to control. The Isetta was better [Poetry? Too early in the day for this. –ed.], but the moment I passed the Isetta in 3rd, it sailed past me a moment later. The answer ended up being the VW Type 2. The answer was to stick in the 2.0l i4 engine, make it AWD, and widen the tyres. The handling was a little iffy, but manageable, and it managed to dominate all three races.

I picked the Honda S2000 for Just my Type. I left it AWD because the first race was Panorámica. Yes, my least favourite sprint race in the game. This is yet another min.-build seasonal with a max. PI that offers little scope for upgrading cars. Not fun. 3rd VW Type 2.

Eventlab (1). Yes, for the first time this series, the Eventlab tiles were functioning. I went with the Lynk & Co Cyan Racing for Lighthouse National Circuit, which has a roughly hourglass-style layout. Not the most interesting thing, but good use of props. There was also some drivatar weirdness because on lap 3, I noticed that there was a line of them stuck on the start-finish line. As I passed them by, some of them resumed racing, but most of them remained where they were to the end of the race.

Eventlab (2). Teotihuacán Ruins Restored was a road race in rally cars even though Teotihuacán is a dirt race. Fine, but marks off for car-track mismatch. Good use of props.

Horizon Tour. The random, unfamiliar category was movie cars, and since the tile had the Aston Martin DB5, I grabbed mine. The three races were in Guanajuato. I started last in Bola Ocho and won the race. I’m going to be a little smug here because the player who might’ve won the race was a clown who thought every corner was a drift zone. The second race was Cathedral. I started last, I came 1st. The last race was my well-practised favourite, Plaza Circuit. I was on the front row of the human grid. Another win. I don’t know what was going on behind me, but I won all three races by a decent margin probably because I can take corners without sliding sideways or thumping into walls.

I didn’t really know what to choose for the Trial. The Trueno, the GR86 and the 2020 Supra all seemed viable, but I opted for the first of these. 4th in Festival Gatecrash after a mid-pack start, but this was one of those races in which two very fast players triggered rubber banding, and I couldn’t even get near the drivatar ahead of me. I almost got a 3rd in Cruce de Valle, but there’s a late 90° right-hander which caught me out just as I passed the drivatar in 3rd. 4th place again, and the job was done. The Trueno was RWD and the handling a little ropey, but the launch was all right. The drivatar in 3rd behaved a little oddly on both occasions, freezing briefly at the finish before continuing across the line. As for the reward, it ought to have been the MB AMG GT S, which, I think, has only been a reward once. This gave me my third MB AMG GT R.

I one-shotted the HW PR stunt in the FE 911. One-third very good SWS.

Once again I used the F12tdf for the HW seasonal, Porsche up the Power. Three sprint races, but they had to include the annoying Ram’s Head Sprint with that Annoying Hairpin™. 3rd 2019 911 Carrera? Probably.

I knew that the RA PR stunt was going to be the speed trap near the waterfall. It’s not that much of a pain if you start in the forest to the north. I one-shotted this one for a rubbish SWS.

I jumped back into the International Scout for Fancy a Suba’brew, but after the first race, rebuilt it because the handling was a bit naff. The result was a slower vehicle, but it took corners without visiting Barry R. 3rd 2004 Impreza, I believe.

I’ve had a drive in the stock VW Thing, but haven’t done anything with it yet. I note that it has a road-racing perk. Er, why?

I have taken the new Mazda Miata out for a spin. Another decent addition to the collection and the roof animation gets it style points.

Looks like Series 37 is going to be hot hatches, but perhaps (at a guess) modern sports cars as well. If we’re getting new (permanent?) tracks, I’m hoping that they’ll be circuit races. I’ll find out on Tuesday morning next week.

I can’t guess what the new game mode in Series 38 might be, but wonder whether it might be an addition to the Playground Games events. Certainly I shan’t be surprised if it’s another instance of social gaming.