Puh. Guess I simply don't agree but each to his own.
However, saying the game isn't doing "enough new stuff" from FH3 is straight out wrong. I'm saying that as someone who put hundreds of hours into FH3.
well, for me it isn´t doing enough new, it is getting somewhat old at this point. so it is surely not "straight out wrong".
as i said it is stagnation on a high level. there is room for improvement which is completely untapped in this entry:
-car collisions/damage model could been much better, it is the same from FH3
-more meaningful progression system is needed, not "just finish the race and you are good"
-showcases still rubberbanded and heavily directed, uninteresting to play bar the visual spectacle
-car selection while big just misses many great cars
-landscape sadly not so interesting, too much countryside, Australia felt much grander
-devoid of life, where are pedestrians in the city, where are hikers in the countryside?
-menus cluttered, too much submenus, too much white
-cars changing for an event and back takes a long time, i just drive my Subaru which is suited for anything
-online mode really underwhelming with not enough AI cars, feels more lifeless than offline mode which shouldn´t be the case
-the festival is relegated to be something on the sidelines, the festival aspect is not as prominent as in the other games of the series
-buying houses make no big impact bar a few houses
-those stuntman/delivery service questlines aren´t as cool as bucketlist challenges
-silly dances/emotes and stupid clothes at odds with the rest of the game, i really don´t like it, Fortnite/Overwatch and GAAS reeks its ugly head and i really despise those winning poses.
what it does great is the graphics(which is cool but no selling point for me), the seasons(which are on weekly rotation so that is a point of criticism on its own), the driving feel and the soundtrack-but all of this was already great in FH2 and FH3.
maybe i am too old to be easily impressed but all in all it could have been much more and if someone was a pedantic it could be called FH 3.5
in conclusion, i fully agree with the 8.0 reviews, personally would have given it a 8.5 because i really like the game but it just isn´t higher for me because it is too samey to the last entry.
i hope they improve the online mode to be more lively and the DLC´s to be something really special because this entry needs this extra oomph somehow.