Gaming: Porsche returns to Forza

This is not a drill. Some lawyers have come to an agreement and 10 whole Porsche cars, including the 918 Spyder, are available to download today for Forza Horizon 2 in the creatively titled 'Porsche Expansion' pack.

It's a source of phenomenal irritation that tedious arguments between men in suits are the reason why you rarely see Porsches in racing games. If you're not familiar with the fable, a couple of decades ago, Need For Speed publisher EA wrangled an exclusivity deal with the German manufacturer, and seemingly no number of potato sacks full of money will persuade EA to break it.

Barring a one-time agreement with Microsoft in 2012, which saw 30 road and race Porsches available to download for Forza Motorsport 4, Stuttgart's wares have been notoriously absent everywhere other than EA's games. And because of Newton's Third Law, probably, everyone else's games have ended up riddled with RUF CTRs instead.

Today marks the first sign that EA's vice-like grip on Stuttgart's output is beginning to relax. The downloadable expansion includes a selection of road cars suited to charging around Horizon 2's stunning southern European playground, all of them rendered in Forza's trademark millimetre-accurate detail.

Classic TGTV: Porsche Carrera GT vs McLaren-Mercedes SLR

They range from a 1970 Porsche 914/6, through classics including the 959 and Carrera GT, all the way up to the 2015 Cayman GTS, though sadly not the spicier, track-spec GT4. Oh and there's also the Macan Turbo. You know, for all those virtual kids you won't be dropping off at virtual tennis practice.

Richard Hammond drives the Porsche 959

The expansion also includes a new Forza Horizon 2 'bucket list' challenge for each vehicle - a short mission tailored specifically to that particular car. Expect the 918 Spyder's to be something to do with tickling its 210mph top speed.

More importantly, this all means that, for the moment, Forza Horizon 2 is the only console game where you can pit the 918 against the McLaren P1 and the Ferrari LaFerrari.

TG mag feature: Porsche 918 vs McLaren P1 vs LaFerrari

Not for long, though, and that's the other bit of good news: when Forza Motorsport 6 arrives later this year, it'll also have Porsche vehicles, no doubt including race machinery, available from day one.

The Porsche Expansion for Forza Horizon 2 is available right now for £7.99. Welcome back Porsche, we're not ashamed to say we've missed you...