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By Keith B (8th Apr 2008)

In the gaming world, there are things that go hand in hand with each console. The PlayStation had Metal Gear Solid, the Xbox had Halo, and the PS2 had Gran Turismo. The latter was defined as ‘the real driving simulator’ and was the game which really showed the world what the PS2 could manage. It seems logical then that both Sony and the legions of fans of the GT world have been waiting for this release with baited breath, because here is a game that might finally show the world what the PS3 can do.

And this is timely because the PS3 could do with a shot in the arm, and I mean that sincerely. I think the PS3 has amazing potential, but there hasn’t been anything on it that is an exclusive must buy. But this year will see that change.

So here we have it, one of the most anticipated driving simulators, albeit in cut down format, in the world. And while there are good things aplenty, there is also room for lots of improvement.

Let’s start with the visuals, because they are stunning. Breathtaking, in fact. I’ve had friends around who have raced simulators for years and they were blown away by the visuals, and not just the cars themselves, but the depth of field and the detail on the environments. While the intro is rolling and the camera flies across the track from helicopter height, you are hit instantly with the integrity of the display. The cars are beautifully realised (I think Gran Turismo 4 had 4,000 polygons each; Gran Turismo 5 Prologue features somewhere around 200,000). The cockpits are also beautifully realised and although I’ve never been a fan of cockpit driving, I found myself doing so quite often. But while the graphics may be stellar there are quite a few missed elements, such as tyre marks on the road increasing s the race progresses to the overall empty feel of the tracks. There are no pit lane people wandering about, spectators are thin on the ground, and this is something the GT series has suffered from for over a decade.

What’s not so hot is the number of cars you can access – a paltry 71. Now, I’m quite aware that this is simply a cut-price taster of things to come, but even so, 71 is a pretty paltry number, and moreso when you realise that one event might require a 3000BHP+ vehicle and you’ll find only two you can access. Considering these are Corvettes or the like, it’s tough luck if you’ve spent your hard earned money on a Japanese racer.

Once you get your cars onto the tracks, you’ll find that you’re not going to need much time to mater them all, because there’s only six - High Speed Ring, Daytona, Fuji Speedway, Eiger Nordwand from Gran Turismo HD Concept, Suzuka Circuit and a section of central London. Even taking into account that you can race each of these backwards it still isn’t much to go on. It seems a bit ludicrous though that they didn’t include more variety in the racing venues.

The sound, to go back to another high, is immersive. You’ve got the standard fare with the vehicles – a Mustang sounds like it has 300 horses under the hood while a Ferrari’s V8 purrs like nothing else. Moving around the track also sees you rely on the sound to give you focus, because when you slipstream in behind a car in front, the wind noise almost vanishes. When you pull out from behind the roar of the wind really makes you feel like you’re both travelling at immense speeds and that slipstreaming your adversaries has a real and tangible benefit.

So let’s look at the racing itself. GT5P hasn’t stolen anything from anyone, because anything someone else has done you can be sure was on a Sony whiteboard long before, but they have implemented things that help bring it into the 21st century. A racing line can be put in the track, a la Forza Motorsport 2, which provides a guide as to your speed and optimal position on the track. You also have the standard driving aids which can be turned on to help you keep your 500BHP car from spinning you into a hot dog stand.

You begin in Class C hauling cars by manufacturers like Suzuki and Honda while you get to grips with the game. Once you’ve completed all 10 races, it’s onto the Class B, where Impreza’s and Skylines enter the fray. Class A sees the elite cars, and once you finish this, you get Class S, and you also unlock a tuning feature that allows you to tweak the specifications of your vehicle. You can perform spec changes on the fly in a race too, by assigning functions to the controller buttons. So you ultimately have 40 races in four categories.

For the first time, the series features online racing, allowing for up to 16 people to take to the track and achieve domination, with scores uploaded to a global leaderboard.

There isn’t any damage though, which opens up that age old can of worms that says you can’t have an enjoyable racing experience online with people who use other players as cushions to buffer themselves from the walls as they take turns. The internet has been awash with statements that this will be introduced as a download on the ever so concrete world of ‘soon’, and if so, then that will shut a lot of complainers up. What most people have failed to notice though is that with certain cars you can do a specific race, with competitors in only that car. In these races you get speed limited every time you hit another racer, hit a wall or take a shortcut (which also happens in the S Class, once you unlock it). It may not be damage but it is certainly a deterrent to people smashing you up through a race.

Ultimately, aside from looking beautiful, the people at Polyphony Digital have some work left to do. But for simple balls-to-the-wall, heart in mouth racing, this is a good stop gap until the mothership arrives. I have a feeling this is going to be a good year for Sony, and driving fans the world over. Just get the bumps out of it and we’re all going to be happy campers.