With perfect physics, 100 tracks, over 1,000 cars, a full Blu-ray of content and more modes and challenges than Takeshi’s castle GT5 is not only the best Gran Turismo game to date, or even the best racing game to date -- but could quite possibly be the one of the best games to date.
Being a flagship title GT5 supports all of the latest technology Sony has to offer. This includes both 3D and PlayStation Move, as well as supporting all of the expected steering wheel peripherals.
As a PlayStation user Gran Turismo 5 is a title than can really show off your home AV setup with the entire game presented in 1080p at 60 frames per second only dipping slightly when a lot of action is going on (we never noticed this, but it’s what the notes say). 3D support is also executed extremely well with the perspective of the cars on the track distinctive and providing players with a certain advantage due to being able to gauge distance accurately, not overstated but certainly beautiful.
When it comes to sound GT5 also doesn’t disappoint in this area with every car sounding perfect from the high notes of the tuned cars to the deep rumbles of the heavy engine blocks of the V8 and V12 engines. Every sound is executed in full 7.1 surround sound and the rush of air that passes around your room from your drifts and the sound of other engines approaching drop you straight into the race.
But enough about the niceties lets talks about the specifics.
Interface
Gran Turismo 5 (GT5) has an interface usability enthusiasts should take note from. The intuitive and simple menu structure allows you to quickly jump from menu to menu while the beautiful visuals remain a constant back drop throughout. Sleek and minimalistic design is prevalent and the smooth jazz amplifies the overall unrivalled quality of the game.
The interface is essentially porn for car lovers, with your newest car on show for all to see. Leaving the interface to slip into screen saver mode is also a great feature in itself with car information and showroom photographs presented as a slide-show and real-time GT5 races with rolling cameras presented.
Switching to the “My Home” screen is your hub for launching multi-player games, view community information and events and view your GT profile. You can also choose from standard options such as jumping to the different racing classes, pratice lessons (driving school), dealerships, the tuning shop, official events and your photos. You also have access to a selection of quick launch icons to perform such tasks as viewing saved replays/photographs to jumping to your garage and even reading the game manuals.
At the top of most screens are also measures on your completion for both the A class and B class, your current wealth, your currently selected car and of course the time and date.
In short the interface is beautiful yet understandable and allows easy access and easy consumption of lots of information quickly.
Graphics
Like it predecessors Gran Turismo 5 doesn’t disappoint in the graphical department. Every car looks beautiful and it’s easy to forget sometimes that it is actually a game you are viewing not an episode of Top Gear.
From the deep red skies of rally tracks merging to night to the long drawn shadows of tarmac city ventures everything from reflections to shadows and lighting to heat waves from exhausts are presented in what can only be described as awe-inspiring detail - it’s perfect. The new inclusion of the weather engine heightens the realism immeasurably, with rain effects perfectly replicated even down to car window wipers smearing your view. The wind physics also interact well with precipitation both rain in normal races changing direction and velocity to the snow in rally events changing from gentle showers to intense winter storms.
The attention to detail is astonishing -- you will have a moment that just makes you say wow; for me it was driving a Ford GT: I braked from a high-speed causing my front to press further down, this resulted in the sun glimmering off my right side only to be reflected back into my window from the chrome of a car passing on my right. When you consider the mathematics involved in this simple exchange, light reflecting off my car and affected by everything around me all in real-time, it’s when you realise why this game has been in development for so long. Even seemingly simple effects as 16 cars pulling of the race line in heavy rain is amazing to watch as each spray and droplet are dealt with by precision physics.
You will often see the detail of the graphics engine when it comes to reflections and shadows but during night racing you will also notice how the light refracts of the dust you will inevitable billow upward.
Interior design has also been well crafted with cars having an accurate and sometimes eerily precise replication. If you drive one of the cars featured in the game you will feel right at home.
Damage
This is the first time Gran Turismo has included damage and although the physics damage is impressive and the separation of body parts adding a greater sense of realism for premium cars the damage feels wooden. Unlike other games where you hit walls at high-speed and your vision becomes blurred and distorted in Gran Turismo 5 there is no such effects.
Internal damage in the premium cars is a pleasure to view, especially in rally events when your copilot will bop around like a Church Hill dog with the stresses and strains of your racing.
However the damage is more cosmetic and superficial than anything and although sparks will fly (great to view in night races and 3D) and dents will appear the sense of danger or caution will have little effect on your driving.
However Gran Turismo has never been about damage and if this is what you are after most then Gran Turismo 5 likely isn’t the game for you as the aim of the game has always been to provide the most realistic driving experience scraping milliseconds of your lap times not of your paint work.
A Class Racing
Racing in GT5 is as touted, exceptional. Every car handles differently and exactly as you would expect.
Progressing through the races earning money to buy new cars is a satisfying affair with each of the courses requiring a different approach and discipline. Surfaces act differently, wind can be felt sweeping and the sun will often realistically blind you at the most inopportune moment.
The ability to tweak your cars with additional parts or adding new parts adds a lot of dimension to the game. Various parts of the cars can be modified, this includes both exterior wings and spoilers and other aerodynamic features, to the physical parts of the car such as the suspension, wheels and exhaust. All of which can be interchanged in preparation for racing.
Decals can be placed on all cars and attractive paint jobs can be chosen that range in colour and finish. Further more you can colour coordinate the entire setup by changing the appearance of your driver -- so let’s bring back black stig hey…
In short the car’s in GT5 handle better than any racing game before, GT5 is a true racing simulator, it will be a long while before this absolute replication of racing is matched.
B Class Racing
A new addition to the Gran Turismo series B class racing is a management mode where you act as a drivers advisor and aid rather than actually racing.
The aim is to help your driver become the best by progressively pushing up the leaderboard from race to race, leading to you controlling up to 6 different drivers.
To do this you must choose a sensible car that both will operate well on the track but will also fit your drivers style. You then get the opportunity to kit out this car with the equipment you feel will work best.
During the race you are graced with a management console that provides all the information you need including a real-time camera of the race, the current standings, the race track with positions plotted and information about your driver and your drivers car, including how tired he is and how agitated he might be. You can issue orders to your driver such as when to try to overtake and what lines to take, to his attitude on the track.
The technique is to both plan your tire changes and fuel stops well and consider your drivers current mood which will change based on many variables. When your driver is stressed say from multiple orders you are barking, from losing or other aggressive drivers he will be more likely to make mistakes.
World Rally Championship
A new addition to the Gran Turismo series Gran Turismo 5 contains a feature rich rally mode, WRC. This mode allows you to take on time trial tracks against the clock through both day and night and in-between. The damage really plays a large role here with it affecting the drivability of your car and in night-time your visibility.
You initially choose a team to race then progress through each course trying to arrive top of the table. The really clever bit about this is that although the courses are set, from time to time different stretches of the course will randomly change each time you race which ensures you are always paying attention and focusing on what is going on. This is actually a clever feature and makes the Rally portion of GT5 very exciting.
Every race features the wonderful voice over from famed co-driver Sebastian Vettel and works well with each instruction clear and concise and very little repetition.
NASCAR
The NASCAR mode is very similar to the rally mode in which you can choose a team and progress through the leaderboards to earn points.
NASCAR contains aspects of both the A and B class racing modes in which choosing when to refuel is key to winning the race and driving aggressively will propel you further in this mode.
Go-Karts
A quirky addition to the game, Go-Karting is a small feature that although isn’t rich with content, but is a lot of fun.
Go-Karting can be undertaken around many of the standard tracks and the simple pleasures of drifting your kart around the long meandering corners or bumping rivals sideward is a refreshing change from the other more hardcore modes. Go-Karting is both a great relief from the pressures of serious racing and works well as a multiplayer game.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer aspect of Gran Turismo 5 has been completely revamped from Prologue with a full lobby system integrated tightly.
A lobby can be created that can hold up to 32 people, and each race 16 of those can play while the other 16 can spectate, trade cars, view each others standings, profiles and chat. Points are collated together and full-blown tournaments can be created, including real-time events such as the Le-Mann 24hrs endurance race.
The whole lobby system is social orientated, with every player able to drop in and out at any time, this includes in the middle of races where AI players will continue your race. This is thanks partly to dedicated servers which we are told every territory will be able to connect to; while playing we have never experienced any lag or connection issues which is an improvement over Prologue.
Multiplayer is limited to a lobby however, other features include the ability to challenge other friends and trade cars for the really competitive of you out there.
Course Maker
For the first time ever Gran Turismo has a course maker, notice how it’s not called ‘Course Editor’. This is because you create tracks by tweaking various complex schemas and variables. This doesn’t mean that the course maker is a poor feature, it’s actually rather robust and allows for many different types of courses to be created. If you want to create the impossible course with more corners than a Slinky then go for it, or a course that’s just an oval then feel free -- the course maker is designed in such a way it rarely feels limiting and in a way the Scalectrix style creation makes it far more accessible.
Before creating a track you can choose from 4 scenic themes that ranges from dust deserts to urban backdrops and also set other metrics such as the type of race, whether the track loops or is one way, weather and time of day.
All in all the Course Maker is a clever feature to include as it increases longevity of the game and makes online multiplayer a whole new ball game!
Extras
The aforementioned screen saver mode is certainly an attractive feature but other extras include the photo-mode.
In photo-mode you can choose any car from your garage and choose from a large selection of locations.
You are then provided with the facility to take in essence glamour shots of your car with the option to tweak numerous settings similar to a Digital SLR. You can walk around the car and aim the camera at different angles, the pictures can also be saved in HD 3D allowing a truly popping image for you brand new TV.
In-game music features with a slick control player that can be accessed during any race. It supports playlists and folder play so there is no excuse not to race to Blur Song Two.
Other interesting features include head tracking, that seems more of a gimmick than actually useful but it does work well with a slight head movement exaggerated to change the view of the camera as if your driver is looking left and right or at the rear view mirror.
PlayStation Move also features but is limited to specific features in the game such as the photo mode and replays. Maybe this will be changed at release as for the moment it seems rather redundant; here’s hoping we get steering wheel like controls with the triggers as paddle shift gearing…
Conclusion
In a nutshell Gran Turismo 5 is the apex of racing games to date, no game before it can match its realism and it has assured for some time after that no game will come close to the level of detail and features it provides.
Gran Turismo 5 is the definitive game that show’s off every feature that the PS3 has to offer, from the large size of the game, 3D graphics and super accurate physics to a strong community and unparalleled dedication from Sony -- if you are racing fan this is a must buy, if not then you should certainly buy it for someone who is.
http://www.3xg.co.uk/2010/10/27/review-gran-turismo-5/
