Here's an article which weighs the pros and cons of training with katas/forms:
"... I think all martial artists can agree on is that the study of kata is definitely not a prerequisite for combative effectiveness. There are many highly-effective martial arts that do not include kata on their curriculum. A look at the effectiveness of the able practitioners of many 'kata-less' systems also shows that you can definitely produce effective martial artists without resorting to kata. If kata training is not a must in order to develop fighting skill, why do 'traditional systems' like karate bother with kata?"
http://www.usadojo.com/articles/iain...why-bother.htm
Peter
PS: The author has an entire series of articles devoted to this topic at:
http://www.usadojo.com/articles/arti...-abernethy.htm