Granturismo 4

oneofakind32

I dont have the money to buy this game which is driving me crazy. Is at as good as you had expected?

Dcully

Cant help you buddy,i wont be buying it either,not my cup of tea.

BlueShaun

Friend bought it, played, more of the same.

Why does everyone praise the graphics on the strength of the nice shiney REPLAYS?
Ingame, it looks crap...just go offboard for a second, or look at the other cars...the graphics are terrible!

They have however done well getting all those cars in thou.

oneofakind32

I saw it being played in gamestop and the Graphics didnt look too hot. I fugured It was either the TV not be tuned in properly or the fact that the guy was playing the Nurenburg Ring which is 27km long and would call for a downgrading of graphics

Headshot

the graphics are brilliant

Headshot

by any chance does any one know where i can get a
Logitech Driving Force Pro steering wheel

heggie

dont be muppets, its a great game, graphics for a ps2 are great, but its the gameplay thats the best.

BlueShaun

ah yes. Defence achieved by labeling as wrong (or muppets in this case), ie the arrogance of right.

I stand by my statement, while you are playing the game, the graphics are not of the standard that they are in the replays.

Only the nordschleiffe is included, therefore its just over 23km long. Perhaps it has to be downgraded for this, the only reason i can see is the lack of hard drive to load track on the fly.

The best example of this was vice city, they had a map split inside a significant building in the plot. Run from side to side of 1 room=load.

tuxy

its a good acade racing game

BlueShaun

Dont get me wrong, actually enjoyed playing it. Amazing selection of cars too, and the handling is more challenging than in the previous iterations.

Its just the reviewers told me things that were not true, re graphics.
Perhaps 6 years without hardware development (geforce ddr/voodoo2 anyone?) colours your expectations.

Fortunately, my eyes didnt pop. :eek:

oneofakind32

Arcade? Just becaus there's no damage, that dosnt make it an arcade racer. Its driving sim not a damage sim

BlueShaun

by the standards set by papyrus and isi (even lfs) its way down on my list of sims.

Theres times when one can distinctly feel the hand of the developer swooping in and saving the car (those hurtling towards the scene of the accident moments one gets with gpl).

I dont think damage is too important, because not even on a pc can the power be set aside for it. maybe when we all have dedicated ppus it will be possible to run some impact FEA, it may even be possible to move away from the current rigid body based physics models.

dearg_doom

oneofakind32 wrote:

Arcade? Just becaus there's no damage, that dosnt make it an arcade racer. Its driving sim not a damage sim

It may want to be a sim, but playing the game is nothing like driving a powerful car! Despite how much physics you talk about on the box!

Firstly accellerating by flooring the throttle, your car would NOT take off and proceed in a dead straight line.

Tyres are NOT bulletproof, if you cane it around a track, your tyres will degrade quickly, especially on tarmac.

Damage etc...:D

BrookieD

i got this game over the weekend and played for about 2 hours.
Graphics for a Ps2 are very good indeed, old tracks carried over from GT2/3 etc look much better in Gt4, the likes of Laguna Seca speedway have been given a re think and now have a much more radical corkscrew like the real track and also the graphics have been ramp up a notch or 2 here also. Car graphics in game are very good IMO good reflections the only downside for me is the lack of renderd Car Rims. I was tailing a Jag S-type around some track and could read the badge no worries, was erading so much i then crashed the car.
If your after a good laugh though take a Cobra AC out on a track and wait for the back end to power slide around the bend, great to hold the car with a force feedback Steering wheel.

The nordschleiffe is good for the size of the track. not as "pretty" as the forest speedway but you can not have every thing.

Gameplay i took a Lotus esprit around the above track and noticed a lot of movment in the car with bumps on the track, plus little elevations in the track would lift the front of the car a little giving the impression of less weight at the front, very well achived in my book.

played the same track with an BMW M5 and the same piece of road the car was heavier and not so prone to lifting from the track, and it also soaked up the bumps better.

Photo mode. Waste of time, take a photo of your car in pretty location and wait 4 days to print, great plan that :mad:

overall a great game, shame about no damage but i can live with that. better than GT3 but quite some way,


Well thats my 2c anyhow.

cheers

Corben Dallas

Dearg Doom.
Try turning the assists off, and Putting tyre wear 'ON'. try it out again and then see the difference.

Have it since Wed. Absolute class. Ppl are saying that they cant believe that a PS2 is putting out that lvl of Graphic quality AND the game is doing all that @ 60fps. To the guy who thinks the Gpx arent up to much, book an eye test

LOt of very interesting new and remodelled tracks, I have PGR2 on xbox and the Nordsciefe on GT4 is so much better and more detailed its like a different track! with dips, crests and uneven surfaces taken just from the real thing. plus see all the Graffiti on the track? thats what actually what u see on the RL version. :O

700 cars and one of the best physics(again turn the assists off and turn on Type wear +tweak the car settings) seen in any driving sim.

tuxy

oneofakind32 wrote:

Arcade? Just becaus there's no damage, that dosnt make it an arcade racer. Its driving sim not a damage sim

as has already been said if you were to drive a powerful rear wheel drive car like the ones in gt it would take a long time to learn how to take a corner at speed with out loosing the rear end
but in gt you can be doing this within minutes of picking the game up maybe hours with the assists off but still much shorter time than a real car and you can do it on a joypad , totally unrealistic
take a real sim like gpl for example it take months to learn and people are still trying to master it after how long? 8 years maybe??

of course this is done so the game appeals to the average gamer that's ok
but its not a sim

as for damage i understand the car manufactures do not want damage in the game and that's fine, i have played good sims with no car damage
but what about physics there has to be a real attempt at simulating the real life physics before a game can be considered a true sim and not just a buzz word for the marketing department
take a look at this site http://phors.locost7.info/contents.htm
do you honestly think gt tries to simulate this accurately?

what i often find funny about arcade racing games claiming to have great physics(ie. toca,colin mcrae) is the cars rotate around the centre like they have a invisible poll going thought the centre and rotate around that rather than turning with the wheels like in real life
has gt at least advanced to that level of simulation?

i can understand why some people think its a sim
marketing is very powerful

beezkneez

Great game, great graphics, great selection of cars, great tracks amazing gameplay and very enjoyable.

edmund_f

made the investment in the force feedback steering wheel (logitech) well worth it. GT4 is a totally different game with it, without it, it (to me) seems to be pretty much the same as any other sim, just bigger and slightly better, with it, it starts to earn its title of 'the real driving simulator'

tuxy

edmund_f wrote:

it starts to earn its title of 'the real driving simulator'

could you elaborate on that statement?
why do you consider it a sim when it does not even attempt to simulate real life physics or racing?

have you read any of this thread?

Tobias Greeshman

snoopdog wrote:

by any chance does any one know where i can get a
Logitech Driving Force Pro steering wheel

I dont think there available yet in europe, well the UK and Ireland anyway. Its not on amazon.uk, and when you go to logitech website and choose Ireland, you cant see the Pro Wheel. Although if you could probably get it from the states, you'd prob need some voltage convertor. When it does go on sale here, it'll easily cost €150, which is very expensive for a wheel.

I have the Driving Force wheel (not the PRO) and the Force Feedback if fecking unbelievable, Driving a DB9 on the straight section of Nurburgring and it was hard to control at ~160 mph (very hard).

Graphics are unbelievable as are physics, pity no damage, but can sorta understand from the manufacturers point of view.

edmund_f

elobrate?
nice to see a sim where it is not the burnout style of drving, where actually being accurate with your driving earns you wins, not just bouncing off the cars to help you go around corners. I do think it tries to simulate real driving. I have noticed that my lap times for karting have gone down considerably since getting this (and prologue) game.

have a look at http://216.239.59.104/search?q=cache:HuKz7dX9twwJ:www.sincitybmwcarclub.com/0805NurburgringFAQ.pdf+gran+turismo+nuremberg&hl=en

according to Nürburgring driving school GT4 is the 'The most accurate recreation of the Nordschleife'

are far as the physics go.. at the end of the day it is a playstation not a porsche..

as far as racing goes.. just go online?..

still a great game, trying to make the point that the force feedback makes it much better

Dcully

Look guys its plain and simple.
All these guys claiming GT4 is realistic simulator with great physics just havent played any simulators on PC.
Yeah GT4 is a fun game but it is far from a simulator.
If i never played GPL,GTR,Nascar 2003 and its mods,F1 Challenge i too would think GT4 was the most realistic out there.
If GT4 was a realistic simulator trust me the Ps2 buying public would not buy it.
Developers of racing games on consoles apart from not having the processing power of PCs dont want their games ultra realistic because the buyers want a simplistic racer that they can pick up and play and enjoy.
this is fine and GT4 is superb if thats what you want.
Im seeing guys coming onto this forum that i have never seen here before saying Gt4 is the king fullstop.
To them i say, fair enough enjoy your game but unless you have played any of the above sims please dont even attempt to shoot down the regulars of this forum who are hardcore simracers,trust me your out of your depth here lads.
I have GT4 i really like it ,but only for what it is,that being a console racer with a better physics engine than most other console racers.
That doesnt mean its nywhere near the pinnacle of simracing.
I say again, its a great console racer with great graphics for a PS2,it offers PS2 users the chance to imerse themselves into the world of racing but dont for a second try to compare it to graphics or more so the physics of PC simulators.
GTR for example has a physics engine that calculates real world effects of weight,balance,grip,wear,bumps etc etc etc on a GT car at 400 times per second yes 400 times per second.
All racing games are welcome on these forums,no matter what, we are all racing fans who love to think we are reallife pro racers infront of our screens but please do remember one cannot say they prefer the taste of 7up to champagne if they havent even tasted the champagne
If in doubt of PC racing sims,pay a visit to the worldwide hub a racing sims and make your opinions known there

http://www.rscnet.org/

While your there visit these also.

http://forum.rscnet.org/forumdisplay.php?f=542

http://forum.rscnet.org/forumdisplay.php?f=36

tuxy

good points Dcully
i guess it is pointless to try and explain it to someone who has never played a racing sim
the best thing to do is just recomend a good one to them so they can try it and see to see if they like sims

Dcully

Aye m8,its up to us to educate [soto speak] these fellow racers
I have introduced many many of my friends,their friends and so on,and everyone of them when possible have since purchased a half decent pc for GPL,GTR,N2003 etc such is how much they were impressed.
Infact many if not all didnt even think GTR or GPL was possible or anything like them even existed.
They too were under the illusion that toca 2 and gran turismo etc were as real as it got.
Likewise before i got a PC i thought the origional toca on PS2 was as real as it got,i simply didnt know any better.
My god when i first played GPL was i in for a major shock

Corben Dallas

GT4 is king.

Ive played GTR and verious Nascar and the Indy500 game from papyrus game as well as Geoff Crommonds Grand Prix 3/4. So ive seen(+played) whats out there.

IMO Gpx on the current generation of Consoles have matched what u can get on a high end PC (at a fraction of the cost) and the PS3 etc will jus move ahead again and prob leave them behind gpx wise.

Its a common mistake that ppl try the acrade version of GT and think this is just too unrealistic, but they havent bought the game never played the full Gran Turismo Mode and ran with tire wear TCS and ASM off (or TCS set at 1 or 2). Reason for this is that it’s a console game and has to appeal to a broad market and has to be made ‘easier’ for casual racing fans. Otherwise the casual racers wont be able to get into it because the learning curve would be too steep.

GT can be played at a quick blast ‘pick up and play’ lvl or u can turn assists off and tune your cars to the same lvl as GTR, Geoff Crommond’s Grand Prix etc ie Bound/Rebound Shocks level, ride height F/R, Gear Ratios Aero lvl’s front and rear, Brake Balance, and in GT4 they’ve even added a Ballast feature to help u set the car up just like F1.

+ GT has Licence tests that actually teaches gamers the racing line, how to brake properly, apex a sequence of corners, how to slide a rally car etc.

GT covers a wide collective for petrolheads –Road cars, Supercars, Rallying, Sportscar racing and Formula1. GPL would tend to be very niche and a small number of gamers would ever play them compared to the millions that will play Gran Turismo.

GT4 also has a custom made wheel made with input from Polyphony Digital that really gives gamers an ideal of what the car is doing purely from ‘hands on’ feedback.

So to scoff at GT because it doesn’t reach the outright very high sim lvl’s of GPL or GTR seems elitist and begrudging of a quality racer.

Dcully

May i ask when you played GTR?
I dont think any of us simracers would forget to turn all aids off LOL.
Have you played GPL?
Have you played Nascar 2003? no not just the nascar series i mean Nascar 2003.
Nobody mentioned Crammonds GP series because they are light years behind what we have mentioned.
We are not trying to be elitist we are stating the facts is all.
Yeah GT4 is a quality game ,we are not disputing that but if you feel GT4 is king thats your opinion and your entitled to it but you are so very very wrong imo.

tuxy

Corben Dallas wrote:

So to scoff at GT because it doesn’t reach the outright very high sim lvl’s of GPL or GTR seems elitist and begrudging of a quality racer.

but we are agreeing that its a good game its just not a racing simulation

Corben Dallas

DL'ed the Beglium Track Demo and its pretty sweet, The in car views are very good. Played Nascar2 (a lot) but not the latest ones. Gpl played very briefly and is really tough (but good as well). Even played the indy500 by Papyrus on teh Amiga500+

I still say Gran Turismo its the Real Driving Simulation

BlueShaun

Corben Dallas wrote:

GT4 is king.

GT4 also has a custom made wheel made with input from Polyphony Digital that really gives gamers an ideal of what the car is doing purely from ‘hands on’ feedback.

think i can hook it up to a ps2, but wouldnt want to offend it :-)

RicardoSmith

No simulation or game is exactly like driving. However its all about the driving experience. The fact that you can feel the cars balance, and dynamics is all important. That you can adjust your driving style and technique and see the car responding.

I have driven and owned some of the cars (front, rear and mid engined) in GT series and I find the cars have noticably similar response's and dynamics to their real live counter parts. Haven't tried GT4 yet, I hope this hasn't changed.

GPL is great, but I've never driven a 1960's grand prix car so I nothing to compare it too. I never really had a problem driving any of the cars, obviously it takes time to learn the circuits and cars and you need to practise to get the times down. Like it does racing any car on unfamilar circuits.

I don't see a huge leap in GPL realisim from the GT. GPL is harder due to the nature of older cars being harder to drive. You need to be a lot smoother in style. Of course in either GPL or GT getting a good setup is something of a black art . Nothing new about that.

Headshot

Corben Dallas wrote:

GT4 also has a custom made wheel made with input from Polyphony Digital that really gives gamers an ideal of what the car is doing purely from ‘hands on’ feedback.

.

that wheel isnt even in ireland yet its a disgrace im going to have to order it from america now

GT4 rocks

oneofakind32

Wait GPL? Your not talking about grand prix legends are you? That game came out at least 5 years ago didnt it. I played a demo and didnt notice anything spectacular about it but then again I didnt put in the time to master it either. Iv played the GP series simply to create crashs cus the crash/damage physics were so good. The reason I never masterd theese games is because of the hassel of starting up my computer and downloading patch's and trying to keep up with the Hardware demands of the latest sim. Where as with GT you just pop in the disc and you racing in a minute. No error messages, No slow down cus you comp just cant keep up. No hassel

BlueShaun

oneofakind32 wrote:

Wait GPL? Your not talking about grand prix legends are you? That game came out at least 5 years ago didnt it. I played a demo and didnt notice anything spectacular about it but then again I didnt put in the time to master it either. Iv played the GP series simply to create crashs cus the crash/damage physics were so good.

Yes, we are talking about GPL. It came out just before the ps2 hardware was put into production(i believe that was march 99 for a march 2000 release, and gpl came out november 98)

What wheel/hardware are you running for these pc Sims?

abccormac

I got my hands on gpl a few months ago after playing a demo of it on pc gamer with modernized graphics etc, and its very good, but I still can't complete a full lap without a major crash. Gt4 is much easier to pick up and play, while still being a very challenging game. I've never bothered my arse learning to drive a real car, so I can't comment on realism but for me GT4 is a much more enjoyable experience.

The variety of cars, the tuning options, the tracks, the game experience as a whole just feels right. Horses for courses and all that.

whiskeyman

GT4 is a great driving SIM, but I think its a hopeless racing SIM.
With no damage and flawed AI, you just cant race seriously with it.
There's so many great titles on the PC that give a great racing experience that see you really battling for position and using strategy.... you can go full steam into corners and bounce of cars, and take huge shortcuts in GT4 for crikes sake......

RicardoSmith

whiskeyman wrote:

GT4 is a great driving SIM, but I think its a hopeless racing SIM.
With no damage and flawed AI, you just cant race seriously with it.
There's so many great titles on the PC that give a great racing experience that see you really battling for position and using strategy.... you can go full steam into corners and bounce of cars, and take huge shortcuts in GT4 for crikes sake......

In that case. Since you can't seriously injure/kill yourself or spend incredible anmount real money, Neither is realistic at all. :rolleyes:

Headshot

iv just got my self the logitech force feedback pro its brilliant the wheel handles like a dream

Balfa

Corben Dallas wrote:

GT4 is king.

....

So to scoff at GT because it doesn’t reach the outright very high sim lvl’s of GPL or GTR seems elitist and begrudging of a quality racer.

I wish you'd be more clear about your arguments.

It seemed like you were suggesting GT4 simulates racing cars better than GPL or GTR. But you actually mean something like it's your favourite game or favourite car game. That's fine. No one is suggesting that it's not a good game. You say right there that GT doesn't reach the simulation level of GPL or GTR, which is the only thing that people like dcully and tuxy are saying.

And to the rest of the people who haven't driven GTR and think GT4 is the best driving simulator on the market, go boil yer heads.

RicardoSmith

Balfa wrote:

I wish you'd be more clear about your arguments.

It seemed like you were suggesting GT4 simulates racing cars better than GPL or GTR. But you actually mean something like it's your favourite game or favourite car game. That's fine. No one is suggesting that it's not a good game. You say right there that GT doesn't reach the simulation level of GPL or GTR, which is the only thing that people like dcully and tuxy are saying.

And to the rest of the people who haven't driven GTR and think GT4 is the best driving simulator on the market, go boil yer heads.

Have you ever driven any of the cars in GTR in real life?

tuxy

RicardoSmith wrote:

Have you ever driven any of the cars in GTR in real life?

what has that got to do with anything?

RicardoSmith

tuxy wrote:

what has that got to do with anything?

Is that not obvious? How do you know if its realistic if you haven't driven the real thing? I know "some" of the cars in GT handle pretty close to the real cars, having driven them and/or owned in real life. But in GPL and GTR I have no idea how close to the real cars they are, as I've never driven the cars in those sims, in real life.

Balfa

RicardoSmith wrote:

Have you ever driven any of the cars in GTR in real life?

That's thoroughly pathetic. Listen, we've already said to just play the game and you'll understand. How hard is that to believe? It's like saying Operation Flashpoint isn't more realistic than counter-strike because you've never shot someone. Completely flawed argument.

GTR simulates sitting in a tonne of metal suspended above some rubber circles on springs being propelled down a piece of tarmac at 100mph far better than GT4 does. It doesn't matter what the piece of metal i'm sitting in is, i have a pretty good idea of the general experience.

I know "some" of the cars in GT handle pretty close to the real cars, having driven them and/or owned in real life.

Really? When's the last time you took your 174HP Peugeot 206 RC or 180HP Seat Ibiza Cupra out for a spin in the wicklow mountains to test the limits of understeer under braking towards a late apex? Have you ever wondered where your clutch disappeared to? Firstly, most of the cars in the game are the factory modified versions of your average family hatch. Secondly, having "driven" one of the cars in the game is very different to having raced it at the edge of its performance envelope. If you sat someone down who'd never played the game before and asked them to distinguish their own car from a number of other similar cars based on feel alone they'd have no chance.

And besides, GT4 does a pretty lousy attempt at simulating many of the cars. Take a stock 500hp dodge viper, for example. Even with top of the line street tyres on it, it's very easy to spin the wheels in a straight line in 2nd gear. In GT4, it's simply impossible. And yes, of course i've turned all driving aids off.
Since that's something people actually can try without killing themselves in the wicklow mountains, i think that's your best point of reference.

RicardoSmith

Flawed? It illustrates how no game is completely the same as real life experiences its a completely artificial experience. So you are comparing one artificial experience with another one.

Wicklow mountains? Public roads are you for real? Personally I race cars on race tracks not on race tracks, and in GT I can see & feel how well it simulates the difference between a rear engined, mid engine & front engined car. Same with front, rear and all wheel drive. It parallels the real life experience. In GPL and GTR its how I would imagine those cars to feel, but who's to know. I've driven a few single seaters but nothing close to whats in these games.

Compare the games based on cars you've never driven in real life, then all you are comparing it with is one artificial experience with another. To me thats the only thing thats flawed.

KillerShamrock

I thought this was supposed to be a thread about GT4, not about how good or bad it is compared to other racing games.
If you want to praise GT4 or bash GT4 start an appropiate thread, otherwise leave this one to talking about what GT4 has to offer, any problems with it and any questions about it thank you.

Balfa

Richie6904 wrote:

I thought this was supposed to be a thread about GT4, not about how good or bad it is compared to other racing games.
If you want to praise GT4 or bash GT4 start an appropiate thread, otherwise leave this one to talking about what GT4 has to offer, any problems with it and any questions about it thank you.

Actually, the original question was is it good. i think the only decent answer to that would involve comparing it to other racing games, and saying whether you like it or not. If you want a better thread without people talking about whether it's sim or not, try http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=237669

2 Espressi

I received my copy of Gran Turismo 4 at about lunchtime on Tuesday, and apart from when I'm asleep or at work, I have had it running the entire time since. It really is that good.

The most noticeable changes from earlier versions are the revised vehicle physics and updated graphics, which both take a little getting used to. It's not at the level of other hardcore simulators such as Live For Speed, but it's miles ahead of other recent offerings like Need For Speed Underground 2 or Burnout 3. Cars seem more responsive to controls, though this can make them twitchy as well.

Graphics are better, especially in replays and B-Spec mode, but not by very much. There is a new Photo Drive mode as well (more on that later).

B-spec allows you to control the car's pace during a race, without having to drive it. Useful for completing competitions you'd rather not drive in yourself, or for doing other stuff, like eating, or washing, though these may be far from your mind while you're playing (I've read blogs where people have played nonstop for 34 hours, and similar madness). It has its detractors, who complain this isn't real racing, that GT is supposed to be a real driving sim, not a “race director” sim. I just think it's a good way to put an extra 20 feet between you and the TV, especially on the long haul races. There's also a certain satisfaction to be got from training your driver, as he/she masters new tracks and cars. B-Spec cannot be used for all types of race, for example the Special Condition (rally) type courses.

These rally courses are a step up from the gravel-drift sprints of earlier GT's. Some of the tracks are modeled on real locations such as Capri and the Amalfi coast (both look amazing, by the way). There are also a couple of wet tracks and a Snow/Ice track. I haven't raced these yet myself though. With the new physics model, driving feels closer to the real thing, and with the introduction of 5 second penalties for hard collisions, using the walls as rails is no longer an option. Basically if you hit a wall, or your AI opponent, hard enough, your car is slowed to 30mph while a timer counts down from 5,before allowing you to accelerate away again.

Possible my favorite new feature is the Photo Mode, great fun, and surprisingly addictive. This comes in two flavors, one a 'Fashion shoot' where you pick one of about a dozen sites, set up your car, your camera, lighting, then take as many photos as you like. These can be stored on your memory card, or more often, on a USB thumb drive, which means you can transfer them to your PC. Gauging the amount of GT4 Photo Mode Galleries that have cropped up since the release, a fully expect ImageShack® to implode beneath the load of millions of 1280*960 screen shots of "Johnny's favorite Skyline" photo albums.

Much noise was made during the development of GT4 over the inclusion and exclusion of certain circuits. While the chance to race the Nurburgring Nordschliefe is worth the price of admission alone, some have complained over changes made to old favorites like Laguna Seca, and Grand Valley. Whatever the gripes aired, the tracks are far more detailed that before, and some of the new tracks, (El Capitan, for example), are simply superb.

GT4 splits the tracks into 6 or so categories. City tracks are based in real cities, such as New York (a quick blast about Midtown Manhattan, with a blast down Broadway and a hairpin at Times Square), and a track called Georges V, a technical track through Paris. Real World tracks, like the 'Ring, Suzuka and Tsukuba in Japan, and Laguna Seca are grouped together, and the GT specific tracks like Trial Mountain are available together as well. There’s also a Driving school and a drag Strip though Las Vegas, as part of the Power and Speed Hall.

The 500 or so cars available will keep car fans entertained for a while, today I unlocked the 1886 Daimler Benz Motor Carriage, with all of 1 BHP. As with GT2, however, there is a bias towards Japanese cars, (47 varieties of Nissan Skyline?) but there are a lot more European, American, and Australian cars to choose from. (Still no Lamborghinis or Ferraris, but could I interest you in a Cizeta?)

The Fast and Furious brigade also make an appearance. As well as tuning cars in the factory garage, some cars can now be taken to Tuner garages, with real world brands like Spoon, Blitz, Opera, and HKS featured in the list. They also supply a selection of fully modified motors, some of which are featured in the D1 Drift Grand Prix.

The soundtrack has always been a strong point of the GT series, and I was pleasantly surprised to hear Snow Patrol and Franz Ferdinand play as I made my way though the game. There's a full list available here: http://img23.exs.cx/img23/6646/musictrackslist7dk.jpg

Now for the bad news. Some of the prize cars are concept cars, and as such, cannot be sold. They can be disposed of once they are won, but they only exist as trophies. Some cars cannot be used in races, like the Cater ham Fire blade. Reasons quoted included too much processing power was required to animate the driver's head in a six car race. Likewise fro many other soft-tops. Some cars are just silly, the Nike ONE 2022 being a prime example. And, as mentioned, there are still way too many variations the Skyline and other Japan-centric cars.

As I'm only 5% through the game, I haven't unlocked the Endurance races, which only become available after 25% completion. Some of these are fairly extreme, with 1000km and 24 hours races for the hardcore fan. Even with B-Spec, which allow you to fast forward at 3x real time, that's still 8 hours in front of the game. I think these were included to appease those who complained that the endurance races weren't long enough in GT3. Invite your friends, get in the beer, and have your own Le Mans 24Hr! Other than that, I wouldn't bother.

Opponent AI hasn't changed much since the last game, at least I can't tell if it has. They still seem to follow the racing line pretty rigidly, and the absence of damage means that barging through traffic is still the best way to grab the lead.

Online racing is absent, though there is a workaround available which lets you use the LAN mode to play across the Internet.

That's about it! Slightly more than I thought I'd write, but I'm obviously more addicted that I thought I was!

SouperComputer

i think ill grab an old pS2, I have a Xbox and really its just being used as a media centre. GT4 looks like a game you dont have too take seriously but isnt as pathetic as Project Gotham.

handy when you're not in the humour for GPL! Besides, the projector is downstairs.!

Balfa

2 Espressi wrote:

That's about it!

Very nice review-type-thing, espressi! Have you actually tried the LAN-over-internet hack yet?

I might give it a go tonight or tomorrow and report back.

Eoghan-psych

Corben Dallas wrote:

Have it since Wed. Absolute class. Ppl are saying that they cant believe that a PS2 is putting out that lvl of Graphic quality AND the game is doing all that @ 60fps. To the guy who thinks the Gpx arent up to much, book an eye test

I don't think anyone is arguing that the graphics are any less than great - but they are not "broadcast quality" as the thousands of fawning reviewers have been telling us for months.

The actual gameplay - going through GT mode - is *not* magical and amazing and friendly and intuitive. What's with that stupid layout on the main screen? What's so wrong with a simple grid, with a cursor that goes 'up' when you tap 'up'?

Is anyone else really starting to hate the whole "untouchable" culture that is developing around certain games and technology? It can bee seen with iPods - it's near heresy to dare say that the iPod is anything less than the only HD player worth a second look.

What is wrong with the world?

Eoghan-psych

2 Espressi wrote:

The Fast and Furious brigade also make an appearance. As well as tuning cars in the factory garage, some cars can now be taken to Tuner garages, with real world brands like Spoon, Blitz, Opera, and HKS featured in the list. They also supply a selection of fully modified motors, some of which are featured in the D1 Drift Grand Prix.

As I'm only 5% through the game, I haven't unlocked the Endurance races, which only become available after 25% completion. Some of these are fairly extreme, with 1000km and 24 hours races for the hardcore fan. Even with B-Spec, which allow you to fast forward at 3x real time, that's still 8 hours in front of the game. I think these were included to appease those who complained that the endurance races weren't long enough in GT3. Invite your friends, get in the beer, and have your own Le Mans 24Hr! Other than that, I wouldn't bother.

Opponent AI hasn't changed much since the last game, at least I can't tell if it has. They still seem to follow the racing line pretty rigidly, and the absence of damage means that barging through traffic is still the best way to grab the lead.

Online racing is absent, though there is a workaround available which lets you use the LAN mode to play across the Internet.

That's about it! Slightly more than I thought I'd write, but I'm obviously more addicted that I thought I was!

I'm just under 60% of the way through the game, and my level of gushing has dropped far below the level above.

There are just too many niggles and issues and, to be honest, sloppiness in the game. Things like photo mode - WHY? Cars that can't be raced - WHY? What is the point of a competition-based driving game where the cars can't be used in competition [referring to things like the Nike car, and the assorted similar cars]? What is the point of having family cars that nobody in their right mind is ever going to buy, let alone try to race? What's the point of 24 hour races [even with B-Spec, you either need to sit by the tv resetting the x3 speedup after each pit or leave it run for 24 hours]?

BlueShaun

Originally Posted by Corben Dallas
Have it since Wed. Absolute class. Ppl are saying that they cant believe that a PS2 is putting out that lvl of Graphic quality AND the game is doing all that @ 60fps. To the guy who thinks the Gpx arent up to much, book an eye test

So what are you displaying this on? Pal tvs are 50hz interlaced, 25 effective.
NTSC is 60hz interlaced, 30fps effective. So why would power be wasted rendering at 60fps? im confused