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Sony launches new Gran Turismo website
Sony's been pretty good at consistently releasing new videos and screens for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, but now the game has a new official website where gamers can go to find all the information they need and maybe more, not only about the newest entry into the popular racing series, but also about the previous games, as well.The website currently has a heaping helping of screens, videos and news, but Sony promised us that it will "continuously update [the] site as [it] get ready for the title's launch in April and beyond." However, if that's still not enough for you gearheads, you can also show your undying support by pre-ordering the game.Go here to check it out.
Gran Turismo 5 screenshots: yes, it looks good
Click for high-resolution image. It shouldn't come as a surprise that Gran Turismo 5 Prologue looks good. We've known this all along. As its March release date inches ever closer, SCEA has released a small batch of new screenshots that cement its beauty even further. Take a look at this screenshot, for example. Look at the incredible lighting on the signs in the background. The way it reflects so realistically is truly brilliant. We'd love to just stop the car, and walk out to appreciate the scenery. Maybe this engine will be used in another game in the future? %Gallery-4885%
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue arrives stateside April 17
Were you the sort of kid who could never wait to open their Christmas presents? The tot who would lift one corner of the wrapping paper to catch a glimpse of the treasure inside? Now, would you have paid someone $40 for the privilege to do so? If so, you might be the perfect candidate for the $40 Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, which Sony dated today for an April 17 release. The sample will feature 60 cars from manufacturers like Ferrari, Audi and Nissan and five tracks like Daytona International Speedway and one on the streets of London. You can get your GT fix either from the PlayStation Network store or on a retail disc, though the latter option ships with an exclusive video. Both also include a parental scolding for not being able to restrain yourself.
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue in the US on April 17th
We're not sure whether Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is meant to be a demo, a hype-builder or some sort of mid-development cash-in for Gran Turismo 5 (probably all three), but we do now know that it will be made available in America on April 17th. The game can be purchased on a retail Blu-Ray disc or as a PSN download, just like Warhawk. Whichever way you buy it you'll be paying the same - $39.99, though the Blu-Ray version will come with a HD behind the scenes video titled "Beyond The Apex".The 60+ cars included can be raced online with up to 15 other people. Polyphony Digital will be holding official online races and Gran Turismo TV will allow you to watch motoring shows from all over the world via the PlayStation Network. Not bad for a demo, even if it does cost $40.
GT5 Prologue pre-order found at $40
Your first real taste of next-gen GT is coming in March. At least, according to amazon.com and GameStop. Both retailers have pre-orders for the upcoming disc version of Prologue -- and for $40. There are those that think this is much too expensive for a "demo," while others will note the extensive features set that puts most retail games to shame.[Thanks, Craig!]
Real race car drivers use Gran Turismo to train
Whoever said video games were tools that turned people into mindless zombies needs to take a step back and check out what race car drivers are using to educate themselves in their perilous career. Yep, real life racers utilize the racing simulator known as Gran Turismo to keep their abilities honed. Their motive for doing this is when a new track opens up for Formula 1 racers. Sometimes they can't get on the track to train before a race, so they fire up Gran Turismo and take the virtual tour. It makes perfect sense, doesn't it?Even the creator of the series, Kazunori Yamauchi, went over 1,000 laps on a certain track in his game and then went at it for real. After twelve laps on the real track (the first twelve had him at 90% capacity) he was getting times rivaling the pack of true racers. Sounds like a useful simulator for those aspiring to race cars for a living. It probably helps with general driving knowledge and skills, too. Don't quote us on that, though.[via Digg]
Video: Now playing on GT TV
Japanese gamers have been enjoying access to GT TV in Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. This feature is a wet dream come true for car fanatics, as it gives them access to some of the world's best automotive programming -- some which has never been available internationally before! We're certain that people will love getting Top Gear and the likes on their TVs. Check out what you're missing in this new video.
GT5 Prologue scores third place in Japanese charts
You know times have changed when the top three spots in Japan's software sales chart are no longer occupied by traditional fare, but rather a miasma of Mario mini-games, a balancercise board and a glorified automotive demo. Gamasutra runs down last week's top ten, highlighting Polyphony Digital's Gran Turismo 5 Prologue which made its debut in third position with approximately 116,000 units sold. Professor Layton bully, Wii Fit, found itself parking off in second position with 124,000 units after having switched places with Mario Party DS and its 180,000 attendees. Nintendo proved the overall wii-ner, with six first-party titles accounted for in the chart -- in fact, Gran Turismo 5 Prologue was the only game not to be found on the Wii or DS. The two systems are expected to enjoy continued good fortune in the hardware sales chart due for release tomorrow.%Gallery-4884%
GT5 Prologue seen driving into uncanny valley
This is your virtual car. (Points to car) This is your virtual car with its textures' reflectivity bumped up to 500%. (Points to own finger reflected from car's bumper) Any questions?In watching new trailer for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, which debuted during last night's Spike VGAs, Joystiq's own Griffin McElroy made a strange and unintentionally philosophical observation: can mechanical objects cross into the uncanny valley? Can a computer-generated car be so detailed that it edges too close to reality and minor differences become glaring issues? Judge for yourself; the video is embedded above.
Best in Show at GT Awards gets immortalized in Gran Turismo
The Gran Turismo Awards are a pretty neat ordeal for car enthusiasts across the world -- not only do you get to show off the hard work you've put into your cars, but you can get awarded for having the most impressive one there. What sort of awards? The title of "Best in Show" is pretty nice, but getting your car featured in a Gran Turismo game? That's nothing short of spectacular.The winner of the 2007 GT Awards was a 2007 Audi TT, submitted by Marcel Horn. Last year's winner was a 1960 Corvette, which you'll find in Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, and it looks excellent. You can check out the video above to see what the GT Awards are all about, or you can check out some pictures of the event and drool over some awesome rides. Your call.
Huge collection of new Gran Turismo 5 Prologue images
It's okay, you don't have to say a word. We know exactly what you're thinking. "Please, PS3 Fanboy. Can I see some more Gran Turismo 5 Prologue screenshots?" Ask and you shall receive, for we have a load of new screenshots just waiting your eager eyeballs to peruse over them. To mix things up a bit, we've snuck a photograph taken at a racetrack into the gallery. First person to find it wins a grand selection of prizes which, sadly, don't actually exist. It will be a fun exercise in futility, nonetheless. The gallery can be found below - go and have a look.%Gallery-9694%
Top Gear coming to Gran Turismo TV in 2008
A partnership has been announced today between the BBC and Sony, in collaboration with Polyphony Digital. The partnership will allow Polyphony Digital to distribute forty episodes of the hit UK car show Top Gear as part of the Gran Turismo TV service. GT TV will launch on the PlayStation Network in 2008 as an online car television channel for motor enthusiasts.Not only that, but a new level based on the Top Gear test track will also be included in Gran Turismo 5. Certainly, car enthusiasts should be excited by this announcement. Top Gear is a great piece of entertainment, even if you're not a huge fan of motoring. Having free downloadable episodes for the PS3 sounds great to us.%Gallery-9053%
Gran Turismo TV to feature BBC's Top Gear
A newly announced collaboration between Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., Polyphony Digital and BBC Worldwide will see the broadcaster's popular motoring show, Top Gear, distributed through Gran Turismo TV. The online channel, expected to launch on the PlayStation Network during 2008, will host 40 downloadable episodes of the Jeremy Clarkson vehicle snobbery-fest.An added bonus resulting from the agreement is an in-game replica of the Top Gear Test Track, bound for the PS3 installment of Sony's driving sim, Gran Turismo 5. You'll be able to experience "every white knuckle, hairpin turn," whether or not you're rambling into a camera about how the unnervingly attractive car makes you feel. If you haven't done so already, you can coax the Japanese PSN into giving you the GT5 Prologue demo while you await the final game's release.%Gallery-9051%
GT5 Prologue demo coming Oct 20 in Japan
Japanese racing fanatics (and international racing fanatics with Japanese accounts) can rejoice. A demo for Gran Turismo 5 Prologue is coming to the Japanese PlayStation Network on October 20. Given the futuristic nature of the country (it's currently early morning Friday), that's less than 24 hours from this time of publication.According to the press release (via Rocket Punch Auto Blog), the trial includes seven cars and one course (Suzuka). There is no online play but single-player races for up to 16 cars. Video service Gran Turismo TV will also be included with reports from 40th Tokyo Motor Show. No word on a demo release outside of Japan. GT5 Prologue is due out this year next year, according to the official PS blog.%Gallery-4884%
Gran Turismo 5: your new car dealer?
In addition to causing mouths to drop and tongues to roll on the Tokyo Game Show floor, Gran Turismo 5 has some pretty big plans, it seems. Polyphony Digital's Kazunori Yamauchi spoke about his vision of the future of GT5, as well as confirming the game's ability to hold a steady 60fps while delivering full 1080p content. Yamauchi also expressed his relief at rumble returning, as he felt it was crucial in games like these. What we saw at TGS, the new My Page and TV Mode, were the big hitters and demand a little more discussion.The My Page is fairly straightforward, adding a personal element to the gaming experience. You get to customize your car on display as well as the background. That's all fine and dandy, but the top of the screen has a band that really brings in the online capabilities of the game -- worldwide weather forecasts and an interactive buddy list that shows your friends as glowing dots on a globe, akin to the users spotted using folding@home. The TV Mode is where things get interesting. This channel will allow you to see car-sporting events rarely seen, like the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (now called Super GT). Car manufacturers will get video content to you through this mode as well, but Yamauchi won't stop there! He plans to ultimately allow virtual test drives of the manufacturer's cars, with a real dealership spokesperson in the "passenger seat" telling you about the car via voice chat. If you decide to actually buy the car, for real, that can all be done through the Gran Turismo dealership -- you'll still have to go and pick up your new car though. Strange stuff, huh? Would you buy a car based off of a virtual test drive?
TGS07: GT5 Prologue to have five tracks
There was a bit of controversy over the price of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, as revealed at Tokyo Game Show. Since then, Sony has revealed a few more details on the game, the most telling of which is the game's limited track selection: five in total. While this is four more than the free Gran Turismo HD, it does still feel quite scarce compared to the usually line-up of tracks typical to a GT game. Hopefully, other features included in the game will make the experience seem meatier: 16 player online multiplayer - A first for the series. 30 cars to choose from - Including vehicles from Ferrari, Lotus, Nissan and Mitsubishi. Gran Turismo TV - Watch hot racing-relevant videos straight from the game. Photo Mode - The classic feature returns, letting you take in-game pictures and save them to your HDD. American pricing and a release date have yet to be revealed. Stay tuned for continuing developments on Gran Turismo 5 Prologue.
TGS07: GT5 Prologue is most expensive demo ever
Click to enlarge Hidden away in Sony's TGS catalog was a shocking revelation: Gran Turismo 5 Prologue's Japanese release date and price. Scheduled for December 13th, the game sample (demo, as we used to call) will retail for a whopping ¥4,980 ($43.10) on Blu-ray and ¥4,500 ($38.95) when downloaded through the PlayStation Store. Although the game will feature stunning graphics and many features of the final game, this seems as much too high for a game that has a limited track and vehicle selection. We hope that this kind of sticker shock doesn't come across the Pacific into other territories.
Don't touch the cars in Gran Turismo 5, please
We're having a very hard time just choosing which Gran Turismo 5 garage image to use for this post. They're all so dynamite. We're finally catching more glimpses of cars outside of Ferarri's, which is nice since we're almost to the cars normal people can afford. Nothing quite like driving your car, or the car you'd like to reasonably get, around a track like a total badass. Since you wouldn't do that for real, right? Well, from our limited knowledge of cars, it seems these pictures feature the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, Nissan Skyline, Ferarri Whatever (does it matter? It's a flippin' Ferarri), the GT-R (fill in the gaps), an Alfa-Romero, Audi TT, BMW Z4, and some ugly maroon car. Enjoy the pictures![via PS3Forums]
Sony's PlayTV turns your PS3 into a TV tuner / DVR, plus VoIP on PSP, DualShock 3 rumors
The PS3 rumor mill is working overtime today, delivering not one, not two, but three whoppers that should have fans and foes alike feeling alive with pleasure. The first top-secret super-rumor comes direct from the BBC, a small, but fairly trustworthy news organization, who is reporting that Sony's game box will be getting a digital TV tuner (at least in the UK) which allows you to record your favorite shows à la TiVo, called PlayTV, which will also let you transfer those shows onto your PSP. Of course, this news was announced by Sony at their not-so-secret Leipzig Game Convention keynote, so you can probably bank on this one. Additionally, Sony has partnered with Britain's BT Group to bring video and voice telephony to the PSP via the Go!Messenger software, which is set to launch in January of 2008. In other, less official PS3 news, word on the street is that the DualShock 3 -- not the infamous SIXAXIS -- will be compatible with Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, at least based on a second-hand report from the Japanese game magazine Dengeki PlayStation. The report has fueled suspicion that the new controller pictured in silhouette in recent GT5 ads is actually the DualShock 3, and that the controller will be made available coupled with a GT5 demo. We'll have to wait and see on this one, so try and stay tuned.Read -- LGC07: SCEE announces PlayTV for PS3, "watch, record and replay TV shows"Read -- BT, Sony unveil PlayStation with video callingRead -- DualShock 3 rumbles with GT5 Prologue, Japanese gaming mag claims
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue coming to Japan in October
You thought you'd have to wait until 2008 for some Gran Turismo fun, didn't you? Well you can stop thinking that right now as the latest piece of news to come out of the PlayStation Premiere event in Tokyo is an announcement that GT 5 prologue will be available in Japan in October. What is effectively a demo for Gran Turismo 5 will feature full online support as well as some cars which will be featuring in this year's Tokyo Motor Show.Whether it will be available in the US or EU in October is up in the air, however it's fairly safe to assume it will be out before the end of the year. There is no word yet on what the price will be for the download, considering the current PSN offering is downloadable for free.
