While the Xbox brand’s racing ecosystem has thrived thanks to Forza Motorsport, PlayStation’s main racing simulator has been absent for a while.
Development studio Polyphony Digital and Gran Turismo series creator Kazunori Yamauchi are finally ready to deliver another dose of quality racing. Gran Turismo Sport has been touted as the next generation of the franchise. And by the looks of everything shown off thus far, that proclamation rings true. The PS4 debut of the racing sim series introduced in 1997 is arriving with lifelike visuals, a vast amount of new cars/tracks, VR compatibility and even more enhancements. The roads for Gran Turismo Sport will officially open on October 17.
Prepare for everything that comes next with this preview of the next big racing sim release.
1. Gran Turismo Sport is the 7th Main Entry in the Long Running Racing Sim Franchise
It’s crazy to fathom how long its been since Gran Turismo fans have been given a mainline entry. Gran Turismo 6 for the PS3 was the last release in the series, which launched in 2013. The games that released before that and this year’s release were the first Gran Turismo (1997), Gran Turismo 2 (1999), Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (2001), Gran Turismo 4 (2004), Gran Turismo 5 (2010) and the aforementioned 6th entry. Along with all the main releases in the series, there’s been plenty of other side games, demo discs and even a motorcycle simulation developed by Polyphony Digital.
2. The Car Selection Offers 100+ Vehicles to Drive in From Various Manufacturers
Gran Turismo Sport’s lineup of cars is extensive. Some of the car manufacturers who’s automobiles will be featured in the game includes Acura, Audi, Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc. A few of the vehicles that have been masterfully transferred into the game includes the 2017 Acura NSX GT3, 2015 Aston Martin V8 Vantage S, 2013 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Gr.4, 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat etc. You can check out the full lineup of cars that’ll end up in your digital garage at the following link.
Polyphony Digital, Sony Interactive Entertainment
More cars will be delivered via DLC in the near future. Gran Turismo series creator Kazunori Yamauchi released an official statement on him and his development studio’s plans to add more content to Gran Turismo Sport via the official PlayStation Blog:
I am planning to add it by update or download contents. The reason why sports cars, especially racing cars, was needed from the beginning was that we had to prepare all the categories of race cars for the FIA championship this time. At first glance it seems that the gravity is inclined to that, but not only sports cars, but also old cars, family cars everyone carries, or old classic cars, such cars are also important as “Gran Turismo” Because it exists, I want to add more and more.
3. The Game’s Launch Location and Track Listing Maxes Out at 17 Locations and 28 Layouts
Upon launch, PS4’s premier racing sim will come with 17 locations and 28 track layouts. The number of entirely new locations being featured this time around totals 11. The total list of locations you’ll navigate on-road includes:
– Alsace
– Autodrome Lago Maggiore
– Autodromo José Carlos Pace
– BB Raceway
– Brands Hatch
– Blue Moon Bay
– Colorado Springs
– Dragon Trail International Raceway
– Fishermans Ranch
– Kyoto Driving Park
– Mount Panorama
– Northern Isle
– Nürburgring
– Sardegna
– Suzuka Circuit
– Tokyo Expressway
– Willow Springs International Raceway
Polyphony Digital, Sony Interactive Entertainment
The three gameplay modes that will place you within these varied locales are Campaign, Arcade and Sport. The Campaign is where a lot of the solo racing will be contained. Four separate modes exist within Campaign, such as the Driving School and Mission Challenge. Beginner races do exist for those who want to progress through each lesson with relative ease. The Arcade aspects of the game throws in offline time trials and custom races, plus it features a lobby mode that lets you compete against your online friends. As for the Sport Mode, its main focus lies in online racing.
The complete explanation of what this mode entails can be read in the excerpt below:
The Sport mode is the future of online racing, proposed by the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) and Gran Turismo. The ‘Advanced Matchmaking System’ matches players with the same level of skill and sportsmanship together, and the BoP (Balance of Performance) will equalize the performance of the race machines, creating a fair and exciting motorsport in an online environment.
4. Gran Turismo’s Visual Fidelity is Especially Impressive For the Series’ PS4 Debut
Like its competition, Gran Turismo Sport will sport the type of visuals that makes it hard for anyone to differentiate it from real-world images. The main features that are set to make the game’s graphical fidelity truly pop are VR and 4K compatibility, frames running at 60fps, HDR and Wide Color. Check out the official description below to learn how Gran Turismo Sport will take advantage of all the aforementioned features:
Not only has the output been made to support HDR TV signal formats, a True HDR workflow was specially established in order to maintain true HDR and wide color processing from the initial material capturing processes to the final output. The development actually started with the development of an HDR wide color capture device in cooperation with the Sony Corporation. As a result, not only is the output compatible with HDR TV’s, the images produced achieves a level of realism never seen before, even when viewed on a conventional TV.
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5. Pre-Orders of the Standard and Limited Edition of the Game Comes With Car Packs, In-Game Currency and More
Gran Turismo Sport’s pre-order bonuses for the Standard and Limited Edition are plentiful. The Standard Edition will come with $500,000 of in-game credit and a 3-Car Pack that comes with the Toyota FT-1 Vision GT Group 3, Peugeot 908 HDi FAP Group 1 and Ford Mustang Group B Rally Car. The Limited Edition’s goodies includes a Steelbook Case, $1MM of in-game credit, a Livery Sticker Pack and 30 GT Sport-themed avatars. On top of all that, the Limited Edition will grant its users access to a GT Starter Pack that comes with eight additional vehicles.
Buy the Limited Edition of Gran Turismo Sport here.
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Gran Turismo Sport: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know