Next ‘Forza’ Cover Car Revealed As Lamborghini Centenario, Will ‘Forza Horizon 3’ Debut At E3?

Microsoft began teasing its lineup for E3 2016 with a very special Lamborghini reveal. The Centenario was showcased in a new Forza Motorsport 6 trailer on Monday to promote an upcoming racing series for the Xbox One exclusive, and to reveal it as the next Forza cover car. Is Forza Horizon 3 next on the docket for 2016?

Forza developer Turn 10 Studios and Microsoft announced a partnership with Lamborghini to feature the Lamborghini Centenario super sports car as the cover car in the “next chapter” of the long-running racing series.

“We’re excited to continue our long history of working with Lamborghini and to be part of their 100-year anniversary by celebrating the Centenario as the featured cover car of the next Forza game,” said Phil Spencer, head of Xbox. “It’s an honor to announce our partnership at one of the world’s biggest automotive shows, and we look forward to unveiling the game at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo.”

The Forza franchise has turned into an annual franchise over the last handful of years as the mainline Forza Motorsport titles alternate with the Forza Horizon series developed by Playground Games. This naturally leads to widespread belief that Forza Horizon 3 will debut during Microsoft’s E3 press conference in mid-June. Whether the Lamborghini Centenario is lowered from the ceiling or raised up from the floor will have to wait for the show.

“Very few automotive designs are as evocative, iconic or recognizable as a Lamborghini. Whether in Forzavista, on the open road or on a world-famous race-track, our team painstakingly recreates each model with the greatest attention to detail. These cars are truly brought to life using ForzaTech, Turn 10 Studios’ proprietary, state-of-the-art graphics and physics simulation engine,” said Dan Greenawalt, creative director of Turn 10 Studios.

The announcement coincides with the launch of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo race series in Forza Motorsport 6. Players will compete against others across two seasons of Rival and League events using Lamborghini race cars. All players will have the chance to earn the 2015 Lamborghini #63 Squadra Corse Hurácan LP620-2 Super Trofeo by competing.

“One of our ongoing missions at Turn 10 Studios is to foster the merging of automotive culture with gaming culture. Between past tournaments with MLG and Gfinity, Forza has a long history with eSports – one of the fastest growing sports in the world. Our upcoming Lamborghini Super Trofeo series gives us the platform to broadly engage both automotive and gaming communities in a new type of motorsport.”

Season 1 of the Lamborghini Super Trofeo race series starts today, March 2, and runs through March 22. Season 2 picks up immediately afterwards, and lasts until April 12. Each season comes with different rewards for completing certain challenges. For example, setting a clean lap in the weekly Rivals event during the first week results in a Rivals Bronze Variant Livery Gallardo Super Trofeo. Finishing in 50 percent of weekly League grants the League Variant Livery GMG Racing Super Trofeo. Finishing the first season with three Super Trofeo variants results in the Hurácan Super Trofeo bonus car, while finishing both seasons with six Hurácan variants gives the Ultimate Trophy Variant Hurácan Super Trofeo.

Meanwhile, Forza Motoersport 6: Apex will debut as a free racing title for Windows 10 PCs later this spring. The game will feature 4K resolutions, a 12-event “Showcase Tour,” along with a “Spotlight Series” of events that will be updated on a regular basis. A selection of 63 cars and 20 track configurations will be featured along with support for the cloud-powered Drivatars.

Apex is clearly a test bed for Turn 10 Studios and Microsoft to bring the Forza series over to Windows 10. It’s missing some features such as support for racing wheels, but it’s likely the free game is continually to develop those missing features based on feedback from fans. Could this mean Forza Horizon 3 on Windows 10 as well? Time and Microsoft’s E3 press conference will tell.

[Image via Turn 10 Studios]