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Gran Turismo 4 Strives For Driving Perfection

Posted by simoniker on from the only-five-hundred-cars-to-save-up-for dept.

Thanks to IGN PS2 for their comprehensive preview of Gran Turismo 4, the latest installment of the seminal PlayStation 2 racing title from Kazunori Yamauchi and Polyphony Digital. The piece talks about hands-on play experiences at E3, using the Logitech Steering Wheel, due to ship alongside the game in 2004, which "... enables 900 degrees of rotation, which means two and a half times around, exactly like a real car steering wheel turns." And while there'll be no gameplay revolutions, the piece concludes: "Polyphony is looking to find that balance between simulation and arcade perfection, and given the popularity of the series and its new online component, that magic balance will be more crucial than ever."

30 comments

  1. It's supposed to be a game. by reynaert · · Score: 2, Interesting

    If you want a realistic driving experience, drive a real car.

    1. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by blankmange · · Score: 1

      Yes, but as far as consoles go, the GT franchise has been as close to reality as you can get....

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    2. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by tsa · · Score: 2, Insightful

      What I would love to see is a GT-like game that allows you to learn to drive a normal car in everyday circumstances. It applies the traffic rules and after you've driven around for, say, 30 minutes tells you if you are good enough to drive a real car. That would help people who learn to drive a lot, AND it keeps people who already have a drivers licence alert.

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    3. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by nathanh · · Score: 1
      If you want a realistic driving experience, drive a real car.

      I can't afford to drive my real car around a race track at 200kph.

    4. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why not? Autocross is pretty cheap compared to other organized sports out there. A few lessons (free if you know some friendly people on Internet message boards), a lot of brake pads, and you're good to go. I think I spend more on food in a given month than I do on Auto-X costs.

    5. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by nathanh · · Score: 1

      Yeah, great, you might live in the USA where the roads are paved with gold and dollar bills rain from the sky, but the rest of the world can't afford to spend $1000s of dollars per week on a hobby.

    6. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You spend more than $4000 a month on food? Perhaps this isn't the sport for you, your car can't be too happy. Autocross costs me $80 a month on brake pads, and $50 for each track event. I'm afraid you'll have to come up with a different excuse for not taking part in track days, money isn't one of them.

    7. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You might want to look into the actual costs of tracks in your area and associated costs. I've been doing it for years in New England and it's considerably cheaper than hobbies like photography (actually, multiple orders of magnitude cheaper).

    8. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by burns210 · · Score: 1

      " If you want a realistic driving experience, drive a real car."

      That is what they said about The Sims: if you want a reallife experience, go outside.... but look at how well that game sold :)

    9. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by thebigmacd · · Score: 1

      We don't play autocross in video games, do we! No one in their right mind would hit 200 mph during your normal run-of-the-mill Auto-X.

    10. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well I know why I wouldn't bother with track days in the USA - you just keep turning left, and left, and left, and left, and left, and....

    11. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Migrant+Programmer · · Score: 1

      I used to play that game a lot! Vice City is great for driver education. It doesn't have that 30 minute thing, but so long as the police aren't after you, you must be doing fine right?

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    12. Re:It's supposed to be a game. by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 1
      "What I would love to see is a GT-like game that allows you to learn to drive a normal car in everyday circumstances. It applies the traffic rules and after you've driven around for, say, 30 minutes tells you if you are good enough to drive a real car."

      Then just add in the ability to break those rules, and to car jack other people and take their cars, and you have an even better game! Seriously though, I think the ultimate driving game would combine the realism and graphics of GT3 with the gameplay of GTA:VC

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  2. There's a slight price issue by Chuck+Chunder · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That prevents most people driving a lot of those cars in real life.

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    1. Re:There's a slight price issue by hibiki_r · · Score: 2, Funny

      Come on, everyone that reads slashdot makes at least six figures anyway. With the current economic boom, anybody that can operate a computer can afford a 400hp sports car.

      Oops, wrong decade.

    2. Re:There's a slight price issue by paulcammish · · Score: 1
      ...everyone that reads slashdot makes at least six figures anyway.

      Does that include the ones after the decimal point? If not, I think I have some missing. Anyone got any spare?

  3. car games are too hard these days by jkcity · · Score: 3, Insightful

    not a complaint against this game in gereral but a few years back I used to love racing games, but they started getting to realistic and less fun to play, I guess this is what most people want though a more real driving experience, for me though I prefer the old style where the cars where easy to control and you never had to think much, guess that's why I llike games like gta3 and vicecity.

    1. Re:car games are too hard these days by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why, because games now require use of the brake? Some of us got bored of fantasy driving games a long, long time ago.

  4. Realism, pfff... by JamesDotCom · · Score: 1

    I'm all for realism in a racing game, but what the hell is with the crash physics in GT? (Keep in mind I think i've only played the first one) Since when do cars simply bounce off cars and walls?

    1. Re:Realism, pfff... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's a licensing issue with the car manufacturers featured in the game. I don't know the specifics of the license but they are not allowed to "damage" the car in the game. Infact the only games I ever remember that allowed damage to licensed cars was NFS3 and NFS: Porsche Unlimited.

    2. Re:Realism, pfff... by SophtwareSlump · · Score: 1

      I remember reading that the car manufacturers didn't want car damage to show up realistically in the game since it would 'taint' their image or something. So the developers had no choice except to leave it out, unless they wanted to lose all the licensing. Nothing to do with crash physics, but slightly related :)

    3. Re:Realism, pfff... by tsa · · Score: 1

      In Need for Speed I have tried to smash my car and tear it to shreds multiple times. But even after it's been run over by a train it still works!

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    4. Re:Realism, pfff... by gmrc.2 · · Score: 1

      Actually quite a few games allow damaged with licensed cars .... Midtown Madness and Project Gotham are two examples I have in my hands right now

    5. Re:Realism, pfff... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unforunately, those games only show damage. Gameplay is not affected.

    6. Re:Realism, pfff... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      GT2 didn't show damage, but there was an option to enable gameplay damage. I suspect only a small percentage of people played with it on.
      It sucked steering hard left just to go straight :)

  5. If you want to play a realistic car simulation... by rudib · · Score: 1

    ...go play Live For Speed. Version S1 was just released. If you want the full game, you download the expansion to the demo (or just the full game), pay online (~$20) and get a key to unlock the game. This allows you to race online, the website collects statistics,...

    In a word: awesome. Force feedback is the best, bar none (and yes, I'm using a M$ wheel - the only decent thing they made).

  6. Re:If you want to play a realistic car simulation. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I've played Live For Speed extensively, and I'm afraid it still pales in comparison to Gran Turismo 3. I can't wait for 4, it's definitely gonna be impressive.

  7. 900 degrees is a disadvantage by Mostly+Monkey · · Score: 1

    It might be more realistic and more fun, but having a setup that requires that much movement will likely be a setback if one races against someone with a regular controller. It's important to be able to take quick evasive movements in order to dodge other drivers that are trying to ram you.

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  8. The wheels are Not competitive by MBraynard · · Score: 1

    I've tried playing driving games with a wheel and with the controller. The controller has far better performance and to do well in nearly all driving games requires it.

  9. But I only drive an X-Box!?! by mnemotronic · · Score: 1

    Highway not found. Abort, retry, ignore?

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