Forza Horizon 2: Storm Island DLC review for Xbox One

Looking for an excuse to jump back into the excellent Forza Horizon 2 on Xbox One? Look no further than the equally excellent, recently released DLC Storm Island. While Driveclub might be the reigning king of console racing weather effects, that doesn?t mean that Playground Games can?t give them a run for their money. Storm Island makes good use of its title, featuring a whole lot of thunder, rain, lightning, and wind, with a heavy emphasis on off-road racing compared to the core Forza Horizon 2 experience.

Once installed, you can access Storm Island via the port in Nice, which in turn transports you to a sizeable island location. You?ll start off with an initial journey to the central hub of Storm Island, where you can then partake in a number of championship events spread out across six different tiers. In addition to the dozens of championships, you can hunt down the singular ?Barn Find?, a very cool addition that?s well worth seeking out, and one that I won?t spoil here. There?s also new Bucket List challenges to check out, five new cars and trucks, new events like Rampage, Brawl, and Gauntlet, new rally specific parts for new and existing garage vehicles, and a host of online additions focused on the new Storm Island location.

So while Storm Island does feature a $20 price tag, you?re really getting a lot of bang for your buck. This DLC release is full of content to explore, with solid additions via the new events and vehicles that work as a natural progression from the ground work laid out by the base game. If you were disappointed in the low number of rally and off-road events found in Forza Horizon 2,  you?ll be able to get your fill here with Storm Island.

And then there?s the aforementioned weather effects. Right from the start, you?ll be introduced to the murky, stormy environment contained within Storm Island. Vehicles are appropriately affected by the rain and mud, while fog will sprout from the ground below and restrict the visibility of every driver present. Swirling tempests can make a difficult race even harder, but there?s an added sense of exhilaration as you attempt to navigate through new areas. You?ll likely encounter a bit of frustration early on, but if you?ve already devoted dozens and dozens of hours to the core game, this expansion will provide just the right amount of added difficulty for you.

All in all, I found myself very impressed by this particular piece of content. It?s easily one of the best DLC releases I?ve had a chance to play all year, and does exactly what DLC should do. Storm Island provides added value for an existing game, filling out the edges of Forza Horizon 2 with lots of new content to explore both online and off, giving an ample number of reasons to jump back in with a game that?s likely been set aside for other titles released between September and now. So if you still have a copy of Forza Horizon 2 in your possession, then do yourself a favor and check out Storm Island, you won?t be disappointed.