Treat this purely as a rumour for now, but new details for Turn 10 Studios' next iteration in the Forza franchise appear to have landed courtesy of a survey sent into Kotaku that "asked respondents' reactions to certain statements of up coming features."

Originally revealed at E3 last year, we already know that Forza 4 will feature Kinect support, but according to it you won't just have to steer an invisible wheel. A casual mode will allow players to drive vehicles with their hands at "10 and 2," but with assists off Kinect will also utilise head-tracking, which may lead to a new strategy for cornering as it allows you to adjust your body to look around the track. The menu system may also take advantage of Kinect's microphone support, allowing you navigate through the game with your voice only.

Other details include: a roster of 500 cars and 80 manufacturers, graphics that will be "10 times better than the previous version, including new lighting and shading model"; and a brand new automotive world tour mode that will host a variety of different events.

A virtual showroom, narrated by Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson, will apparently allow you to take a good look at all the cars on offer and learn about their features. At E3 last year, Microsoft showed how you could point at features such as headlights or the engine and get further information about them.

All the more interesting is that the survey apparently asks consumers if they would like to see an open-world Forza game in the future. Surely, the answer will be a resounding “yes.”

Last month, we also learned that Turn 10 is upping the level of realism on the track by delivering the "most up-to-date simulation of how modern tires grip or slip in a variety of racing conditions".

There’s not too much longer to wait until to see how all the new features gel together – Microsoft has confirmed that Forza 4 will launch this Autumn.

Source - Kotaku