I have finally decided that I'm going to buy an XBox 360 on Friday with Kinect and Dance Central.

I was tempted to go for a PS3 for GT5 but I'm now reading everywhere that Forza 3 looks and plays nicer than GT5.

Any input on this? Also any advice on what other games I should be looking at? (Halo obviously )

How dare you.......

Did GT5 actually get released today then..... Stuck it on my xmas list but wasn’t holding my breath tbh.

I did go down the route of a Steering Stand Pro and Logitech Driving Force GT for F1 2010 and ready for GT5 (PS3)

Just been to sainsburys and answered my own question, GT5 is out.....

You know Kinect needs 6 foot of space and is said to have lag issues?

I know about the space and it appears (from people reporting back who have actually used it rather than just watched old demos) that the lag is now a non-issue.

I certainly didn't notice any lag when I had a quick demo the other day

Thanks for the heads up though.

Forza 2 was one of the games that prompted me to sell my 360. It was so incredibly disappointing. As a result I never got around to playing Forza 3, but nothing would persuade me to get another 360.

On the strength of GT5 Prologue I'd put my money on GT5...but it'll have to wait until payday.

I've certainly read that some of the visuals in Forza 3 outshine GT5. I think this relates to the standard car models and some of the environments as the premium models look insanely stunning.

I've always accepted GTs flaws though which are most notably physics/collisions and the environment. For me it's about the racing and the cars. I collect the things like Pokemon!

On the otherhand that's where Forza shines for me. The collisions feel/sound/look more genuine and I can't fault the physics. I turned all assists off and drove a powerful rear-drive Ferrari and the difference (to a front drive or assisted car) was staggering.

I also waste far too much time in the Forza paint shop.

I'm not nearly enough of a fanboy to choose one game over the other (or sell my Xbox because I didnt like a game ) or say outright that one is better than the other. For me they offer two different experiences. With GT i'm in for the long hall, treating it like a sim, collecting cars and perfecting license tests, etc without being overly bothered that the trees look like cardboard cutouts. With Forza I accept it's not as involving but still a mighty (and pretty) racing game with the damage and collision model I wish GT had.

Forza 3 is IMHO a great game, I can even win most races (against CPU opponents, I know that if I went online I would get creamed. I just cant remember the tracks well enough ).
and as you are getting the Xbox360 then F3 is a must for racing.

If only it was "a" game...I'm afraid it was many overhyped 360 titles that were utterly disappointing - Gears of War being the main one. Then there was the shocking reliability, leaf-blower soundtrack, £35 annual fee to get full functionality and the Fisher Price stylings, staggeringly expensive hard drives and wifi adaptor. I stuck with it for 18 months but by then I'd had a gut full and got rid of it while it still worked.

Enjoying GT5 so far. Familiar formula but much more of it.

My boss lent me Forza 3 and I was playing last night.

So far I love it! The controls are really good and feel very life like.

It actually reminds me a lot of GT3 and GT4 but better looking. (This is a good thing as I thought that nothing could beat/match GT controls and handling).

I'm currently still racing my Toyota Yaris around though so it'll be a while before I'm driving Evos and Enzos.

I'm currently leaning towards Forza more than GT, primarily because the damage is more realistic. GT always seems to have cars that would survive a tactical nuclear strike.

I never understood the "arcade" tag Forza gets from GT fans. I love GT but I'm not so blind to see that Forza is a cracking game. The physics and damage in Forza3 are especially good IMO.

Someone linked to this video over on CVG which raised a few eyebrows

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu1FtHEC3So

There is a problem with the Ai cars in GT5 behaving like they are on a Scalextric track. They don’t seem to know where you are, and just career into you regardless. This doesn’t help much if you are in a race or doing a license test which has a “no contact” rule. Get shunted, and you’re disqualified.

+1
I've had this on the licensing tests. On one of the speedway tests, they do seem to edge over a little if you're right next to them, but otherwise will happily smack into you. Not very realistic!

I have noticed this in F3. When cars are trying to pass you can move to block them and it will alter what they do.