In addition to the photos of damage in Gran Turismo 5, it appears plenty of people have been capturing videos of GT5 from the same demo pods which have appeared in U.S Best Buy and Target stores. The guys at GT Planet compiled what they think are the best of the captured videos, and who are we to argue: And as always, if you haven't pre-ordered you copy … [Read more...]
Shots of the damage model in Gran Turismo 5
Previous Gran Turismo games have always kept the cars pristine when they crashed - the debate has always been whether that's due to restrictions placed by manufacturers licencing their cars, or adding damage modelling into something which is already pretty graphically intensive. But that's changed with Gran Turismo 5 - both Kotaku and Playstation LifeStyle are carrying … [Read more...]
The stuff racing dreams are made of
Racing games have come a long way since I was a youngster. My first experience of gaming in any form was a variation on ‘Pong’. I’m not sure who made it, but it was almost certainly possibly nearly identical to this. By the time I experienced my first racing game, things had developed a little, but only a little. My first console (I say mine, I didn’t buy it myself as I was … [Read more...]
From virtual racing to the Spa 24 hours
The GT Academy competition was created by Nissan and Playstation to find new GT racing drivers from virtual racers on Gran Turismo. Lucas Ordonez was the first winner in 2008, and now he'll be part of a four man team for the Spa 24 Hours. He'll drive a GT4-spec Nissan 370Z prepped by RJN Motorsport and sponsored by Polyphony Digital and Playstation. Pic of the RJN Motorsport … [Read more...]
MotoGP at Laguna Seca this weekend
The MotoGP championship hits America this weeked with the race at Laguna Seca in California. Sadly the American round will miss the 125cc and Moto2 classes, as they never make the Atlantic trip, which is a real shame with the current level of excitement and drama in Moto2. Then again,the prospect of 40 completely unpredictable lunatics from Moto2 all arriving at the … [Read more...]
Making racing games wheely good
I'm planning to prepare properly for this Autumn. The release of Gran Turismo 5 and F1 2010 are important to me. The dates are in my calendar, my time is booked off work and I intend to get all my affairs in order beforehand - including the writing of a will. It also means that after few months under the bed gathering dust it will soon be time to once again break out the … [Read more...]
Grand Plans for Gran Turismo
The fifth in the Gran Turismo series is late. The game is so delayed in fact, that many fans have stopped caring about it’s release and have moved on to other activities such as raising families, learning to speak backwards and teaching monkeys to ride motorbikes. Gran Turismo 5 at GamesCom on Flickr by Sergey Galyonkin (CC Licence) However, their ears may prick up once … [Read more...]
Power of association in online racing
Like any organization, the same rules apply when creating a racing club. The general focus is to bring together like-minded competitors under one roof. This usually starts with a particular theme the club founder wants to pursue, --a kind of vision of the temperament, character, and goals of the club. The first simulation racing clubs were formed when Xbox Live hit the tarmac … [Read more...]
The ‘how to’ of hot lapping
The dichotomy of hot lapping is that it has both an addicting natural attraction, and repulsion, for everyone who does it. Evidence of its attraction is, everyone hot laps, or has hot lapped at some time or another. Evidence for its repulsion is that not everyone enjoys hot lapping on a regular basis for very long. This can often be attributed to the psychological state of mind … [Read more...]
From franchise to gaming dynasty
So, what does it take to go from a hit racing simulation, to a franchise, to a dynasty? In a word, “vision.” Making a video game into a hit simulator is hard enough. Taking a one hit wonder and making it a franchise, even harder still. Going from solid franchise to an era leading dynasty within the genre becomes extremely difficult for any game, simulation or not. Ultimately … [Read more...]