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GAME REVIEWED: Gran Turismo
RELEASED BY: SCEE
PRICE: £44.99
REVIEWED BY: A.K.
REVIEW: -This game was released last summer and was the first game to be analog (Dual Shock) compatible. When Gran Turismo was released it had no other game to compete with which helped its sales, but even if there has been any competition, GT would have out-sold them anyway because it is so outstanding.
The only black mark that can be given to GT is the fact that there are only 11 tracks to race on, although every track is reversed and you then have 22 racks to race on with any of over 300 cars to drive from ten top car manufacturers, which are Nissan, Toyota, TVR, Aston Martin, Chrysler, Mazda, Honda, Subaru and Chevrolet. With each car driving differently from all the rest in the game and the detail on each car is incredibly realistic with reflections passing across windscreens. Superb!
The attention to detail on everything in the game is frighteningly good, with virtually no pop-ups, screen glitches or clipping errors which ensures the tracks, cars and scenery are all totally solid and believable. The speed that you travel is not only quick but also realistically quick.
At the start of the game you begin with ten thousand credits with which you have to buy your first automobile, but before you can start racing you need to obtain a licence. there are three grade of licence for differing race difficulties, a 'B' licence is the easiest level of racing and helps the beginner get used to the handling of the game, the 'A' licence is the medium level of racing with the only real differences being more money available during races and the competition being tougher, the 'International A' licence, you may have guessed already, is the toughest level of racing with again the amount of money that is winnable is greater than that of the 'B' and 'A' licences.
To gain a licence you need to go to the licence centre on the map menu screen and take a series of exams, each of which tests your abilities in each of the following basic driving skills: accelerating, cornering, braking and more. Note that you can't enter the International A licence straight away, you have to pass the 'B' licence first, then the 'A' licence before you get a shot at the big one.
For a race you get one qualifying lap to decide where you end up on the grid, so, basically if you duff up on the qualifying lap you can end up further down the grid of six cars. If you land on poll you gain bonus credits and the higher you finish in the race the more credits you earn. (I bet that was hard to figure out, eh?)
The more money you earn, the more cars become available to purchase and if you want to compete in the really big races the you'll need to tune your car up to the way you want it. If you've had a totally outstanding race and wish to watch it every time you play GT, you can save it in the replay theatre and just sit back and watch the absolutely outstanding replay sequence, you would even think it was on TV, it is that realistic.
there is also an arcade mode to pass your time with, If you select the single race mode and complete every track on certain difficulty levels then you obtain certain items on the bonus items screen. Time attack allows you to race against the clock and there's a two player mode so you can annihilate a friend.
there are two very minor faults with GT, the first being that there is no variety in the weather and the second being that there are no top European car manufacturers, for instance, Porsche, Ferrari and BMW are all missing from this superb game.
Gran Turismo is a terrific challenge - mastering the driving techniques just to do well with the faster cars could take weeks of effort, and that's even if you have a knowledge of cars and how to tune them up to their maximum capability. the graphics are awesome, the gameplay options are huge and the game itself will keep you occupied for weeks or even months after purchase.
A few months after release this game is still the best racing game available on the Playstation and as it says on the CD box, "this is the Real driving simulator with different challenges of mastering different car speeds and handling. it is also one of the toughest, most realistic games for the Playstation." As I said before this game had no real competition when it was released but when GT2 is set for release this summer, it will have competition from Namco's greatly improved Ridge Racer Type 4. GT2 is said to include rally courses, more cars and more realistic car handling dynamics. And you thought it couldn't get any better? It also looks certain to include Porsche and Ferrari cars and best of all seems to be the possibility of flipping and rolling cars and causing damage which affects the car's handling.
Anyway, Gran Turismo still remains to be unrivalled in it's field at the moment. An absolutely tremendous first time effort from SCEE. It should be compulsory that every Playstation owner has a copy of this game.
SCORE:
96%
LINKS: www.scee.com