Videogames’ self-proclaimed “silly season” is finally here. The drought of game releases over the summer period has come to an end; nights are drawing in, the temperature is moving closer to zero, and the release calendar is stuffed to capacity. But where best to place your hard-earned cash? Distancing ourselves from hyperbolic hype speak and unreachable expectations, what should you really be investing your time into? Over the coming weeks, allow New Rising Media to round-up the week’s freshest, most tantalising new releases.

Featuring the rough Yorkshire tones of Top Gear’s Jeremy Clarkson, the latest Forza 4 TV spot was more than a shallow parade of in-game footage – in fact, it featured very little – rather, it was an expression of automotive lust.

And it’s that very message that runs through Forza 4. Sure, it might not have the 1000+ vehicle roster, graphical sheen or mind-boggling depth of Polyphony’s true competitor; but personality? It has that in abundance. Instead, what we get is a number of new tracks (including Germany’s Hockenheimring and fantasy track ‘Bernese Alps’), a garage-full of mouth-watering new cars, Kinect integration, sublime social features, Autovista mode – what we’d label as the car porn equivalent to Page 3 (“phwoar, look at the curves on that” etc. etc.) – and licensed Top Gear content. The test track is a given, as well as views of the now iconic interior of the Surrey studio, while the hugely enjoyable Top Gear challenges round out the package. Now, who’s up for a game of car football?