How realistic can today's current selection of racing games really be? In the Redline office, we've often been sceptical of spending our time playing on a computer...after all, we'd just go for a blast on our favourite driving road, surely? The thing is, we've kinda been missing the point. With ever-busying roads, it's often not as simple as going for a drive and enjoying your motor. Nope, you get stuck behind Doris trying to peer over the steering wheel of her Metro at 24mph or Alfie in his tractor, often forcing you to take evasive action and make dangerous manouvres. But what's this got to do with Forza? Well, the point I'm making is that the use of trackdays is on the increase. What better place is there to push your performance car - and yourself - to the limits?

The UK is blessed with a selection of decent racetracks for you to explore. However, getting valuable track time is expensive and it takes a long time and lots of laps to learn the perfect lines and get the best from your car. This is where Forza Motorsport 3 enters the equation. The technology used to create the game and attention to detail make it so realistic, that it's now a viable tool to use to practice your techniques and familiarise yourself with different tracks. Ever fancied that trip to the Nurburgring but always been scared you'll bin your car on the first wet corner? Then play the game first, get 50 laps under your belt and you'll be in a much better position.

Rich is someone who enjoys a decent track session, so he was only too keen to try out this theory. The brief was simple; go to Silverstone, try a few hot laps on the game in a Lotus Exige on a full-size racing simulator and set some lap times. That was followed by a 30 minute track session in the real deal with an instructor showing the best lines and techniques. Finally, it was back to the game to see if the tuition had helped, with a view to beating the original lap time in the game set in the morning. Simples.

So how did he get on? Well, the initial session playing Forza Motorsport 3 was a little rough around the edges, but after 10 laps the times were coming down and the lines were more familiar. Stepping into the car, it looked like he'd already completed a track session the weekend before. It's concerning how realistic the game is to the real thing - it goes to show that the car-mad team of developers who created it really know their stuff. The final session on the game indicated a two second improvement per lap - so to conclude, the partnering of simulation and the real driving experience is invaluable. If you're considering going on any new tracks, or getting your car on track for the first time, then Forza 3 is well worth the investment. It's got over 400 cars and over 100 tracks to choose from - what more do you need?